MY STORY
In January 2013 I gave it all up to create a new story. I was 27 and running the commercial division at the UK's fastest growing technology startup. I had everything society told me I should need to feel happy, but I couldn't shake the feeling of “Is this really it?”
Today my life has completely changed. I'm an adventure athlete, mindset coach, personal trainer, and motivational speaker. My biggest passion in life is helping girls build confidence and courage. I Founded TrailBlazers to help girls develop the tools and community to navigate the world and rise from the mental health epidemic we are in. In short, I found something I loved and set out to turn it into my life. The people I've met, memories created, places explored and opportunities to create change, are beyond my wildest imagination.
Where it all began
I am not a natural athlete and although I always loved sport, for years I succumbed to my doubts. When I graduated from university, I wanted to find something that would motivate me to get fit. My first challenge was an adventure race through the jungle of Borneo called the Kinabalu Challenge. After that I took to triathlon, cycling London to Paris in 24 hours and climbing Mont Blanc.
Spending my weekends running up mountains, cycling across countries and completing Ironman triathlons, provided me with the arena to develop the skills I needed to find my inner strength, resilience and drive.
Go Sailing
The night I decided to quit my job, a friend said to me:
"A ship in a harbour is safe, but that's not what the ship was built for.
Go Sailing."
Making the decision to forge a new trail where there is no set path, was one of the toughest decisions of my life and incredibly scary, but it's led me to where I am today.
Raising the Bar
I believe that through challenging ourselves we stretch our limits, break down barriers and realise we can achieve far more than we think. We raise the bar of what we expect from ourselves, develop confidence, resilience and drive. This enables us to achieve more across all areas of life and be the best versions of ourselves. My mission is to give you the inspiration and tools to be the very best you can be, get the most out of your life and have fun!
The day I quit my job, I started writing this blog, sharing the times I rise and the times I fall. I have learnt that anything is possible if I keep persevering and putting everything into my vision. My hope is that people following my journey can relate to it and realise that anyone can achieve something extraordinary.
Changing my life
Four months after starting my blog, I won the Big Blog Exchange and was sent to Singapore to travel and write about my experience. Two months later whilst training for my first Ironman, I secured my first sponsor. SportPursuit were interested in sponsoring me as an athlete whilst training for my first Ironman. Me?! In my mind I was still that 'sweaty - back of the pack - can't do it' person. Within two years I had over 20,000 followers on social media and began generating interest from brands such as Adidas, Oakley and GoPro - I'm now an Ambassador for some amazing brands.
In August 2014 I became the first and only person in history to cycle the Alps and climb the highest mountains in the eight alpine countries. Travelling through Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Litchenstein, Switzerland, Italy, France and Monaco, I covered 1700km on bike, 151km on foot and 45,500m ascent over 32 days - an expedition I called The Alpine Coast to Coast. My biggest dream, greatest challenge and ultimately, life-changing experience.
I often think back to the days in my startup job, working in a room with no natural light and thinking "I want to travel, go on adventures and live my most authentic life, but I have to be in this room every day to earn my salary." It felt incredibly restrictive and I realised if I wanted to create the type of life I dreamed of living, I needed to make big changes, take risks and make it happen.
Baby Steps
One of my biggest motivators is being inspired by other people and what they have achieved. It can be daunting and often seems like everyone else has it all figured out. Yet I have realised that there's nothing that differentiates you or I from anyone we admire. The only difference is that they made it happen.
It's all about baby steps. I don't focus too far ahead but on what I can do each day to take steps in the right direction. Somedays it feels like I'm moving forward, others like I'm moving backwards, but I know they're all building blocks to build my dreams.
One Life, Live It
Fuelled by my philosophy "One Life, Live It" I am inspired to create something that leaves a lasting impact on this world. My job enables me to create touch points with people around the world, on different stages of their journey, to help them find their fire and use it. I might attach certain labels to my name to describe my job, but the reality is, I'm an ordinary woman with big dreams and a HUGE drive to make them happen. Above all, I'm a lover of life and it's infinite possibilities for us all.
One Day I will not be able to do this. Today is not that day!
Today I am so fortunate to live a life I love. Every day is different and I never truly know what is around the corner. I live between London, my dream custom build ‘One Life Van’ and the Bahamas. My biggest passion is TrailBlazers and coaching people to build confidence, break down barriers and achieve phenomenal things.
