Let’s get down to business!

lets get down to business

Let’s get down to business

Fridays – 44 Harpur Street – come along!

‘Strong’ will be available all day to give you taster coaching sessions, discuss what you are looking to achieve but struggling to move on, support you to plan and strategise on (not in) your business and make business coaching better understood and more widely accessible to all business owners and team managers in Bedford.

If you would like to know more then there is more information here otherwise just pop in and have a chat over some tea and quite possibly a salted caramel brownie…

Looking forward to seeing you there,

 

Sarah x

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Get Your Trainers. We’re Going Manhattan!

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I’ve noticed a lot of dogs getting extra walks at the end of the day round where I live and although I’d like to put it down to the longer daylight hours, I have a sneaking suspicion that by 6pm people are desperately trying to make sure they reach their daily Fitbit target. I’m impressed at the commitment to their 10,000 steps-a-day goal they are showing and reassured that there are a lot of happier, healthier dogs out there, but even more intrigued at the desire to get outside to get moving.

We are so flat out and on the go most of the time that most of our steps are taken in the office, on the stairs (when we’re not running so late we have to take the elevator) or shuttling between the car and the car park, or in the confines of the gym where we complete them on a treadmill without even going anywhere!

It is no wonder that people are so desperate to reconnect with the outside world that Fitbit has inadvertently started a ‘get-outdoors-get-moving’ revolution. And I’m starting to see the knock-on effect not just in the way the residents of Bedford are walking their dogs, but also in the way that people are doing business. Where meetings used to be huge swathes of your time that would get lost in a claustrophobic, light-starved rooms that left you struggling to keep your eyes open and devoid of all inspiration, now meetings are being seen as conversations that can be had, well, anywhere. Our time is precious and so is our wellbeing so what better way of operating then walking and talking when you get the opportunity. Only last week I had just such a meeting at the Forest of Marston Vale – heads got cleared, business got done, fresh ideas were had, moods were lifted, heart rates were elevated, dogs were walked and Fitbits were happy.

Our minds and bodies respond to being outdoors, our senses get stimulated and we come alive whatever the weather. There is something about being outside that roots us, grounds us, and reminds us what it is to be fully present in the world. We relax, we breathe more deeply, we fill our lungs, our hearts and our minds, we feed our soul. And as a result, we are able to think more clearly, allow ourselves to be inspired more creatively, spend time thinking, talking and dreaming without distraction. All of this lends itself to clients now also wanting coaching sessions outdoors and on the move – something which I believe in wholeheartedly as when the mind and body are synchronous, the results you can achieve are unbelievably powerful.

So kick off your work shoes, swap them for your trainers – the more brightly-coloured, the better. And work your mind, your body (and your Fitbit). Not only will you be getting the results you want faster, you will feel energised, motivated and a deep sense of achievement. The ‘Manhattan’ look of trainers on the end of your suit or office attire will become stylishly normal as you power through your coaching session while ‘changing up’ both your environment and your thinking. Get your trainers – we’re going Manhattan!

 

I’m currently offering a limited number of walk-and-talk #PowerHour coaching sessions at a discounted rate of £25 to my readers – just head to my website to book using discount code PHWT25.

Have a good weekend!

Sarah

 

What we do

I Am Strong Coaching provides bespoke personal and business performance coaching in Bedford, London and the South East to support talented individuals, executives and business owners to move up a gear when they need it most. As a specialist service, we also support military leavers with cv refining, cover letter writing, interview technique and business start-up to set them on their way for a strong second career. We have a range of coaching packages on offer on our I Am Strong Coaching website, spanning confidence, change and military transition as well as business start-up and performance.

 

 

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I Am Strong Bespoke Personal and Business Performance Coaching – Bedford, London and the South East

Strong-Coaching-Logo-Red

What we do

I Am Strong Coaching provides bespoke personal and business performance coaching in Bedford, London and the South East to support talented individuals, executives and business owners to move up a gear when they need it most. As a specialist service, we also support military leavers with cv refining, cover letter writing, interview technique and business start-up to set them on their way for a strong second career. We have a range of coaching packages on offer on our I Am Strong Coaching website, spanning confidence, change and military transition as well as business start-up and performance.

A bit about me

I joined the Army rather spontaneously after graduating from university with a literature degree and a lot more rowing than reading hours under my belt. Leaving the Army eight years later, after living and working overseas, was an even bigger change. My background is almost entirely international and with that has come constant upheaval, flux and uncertainty as well as exploration, diversity and experience. I have spent long periods living in France and Germany and have worked extensively in Eastern Europe, India, Iraq, Kuwait, Mexico and Scandinavia. In any job that I have had, from being an Officer in the Army on war-fighting operations, to business development in the world of airline retail, to managing a £10m international development programme in India, I have always needed to achieve results and I firmly believe that success is all about momentum with a dash of confidence thrown in.

When I’m not coaching, I’m out walking Merlin my mischievous Rhodesian Ridgeback and exploring new parts of Bedford and the surrounding countryside. An Essex girl originally, I moved here two and a half years ago – another somewhat spontaneous decision while on a high having just finished a race at Bedford Regatta one sunny afternoon in 2013. Needless to say, I threw myself into life at Star Rowing Club as soon as I landed here.

The vision

The vision is to grow I Am Strong into a diverse hub of coaches and mentors, reaching out with bespoke coaching for both individuals and businesses and assisting others to focus, to achieve, to grow, to thrive, to prosper and to see a significant return on their investment. The journey has begun as we start to work with carefully-selected associates allowing us to leverage in the arenas of personal branding, psychological profiling, public speaking and leadership. We look forward to being able to support military leavers through a network of I Am Strong franchised coaches. A long way to go and a lot of hard work yet!

How are we relevant to you?

Coaching is an incredibly powerful, yet still reasonably well-kept, secret. All top athletes have a coach; the majority of top leaders, businessmen and entrepreneurs will also have a coach. Why? Because where focus goes, energy flows. And a coach will take you further than you can get on your own by growing your self-belief, your self-knowledge and by holding you accountable to achieving the targets you set. A good coach will help you to change the way you think, change the way you see the world, and change the way you feel. A coach is your secret weapon, your edge over your competitors, helping you to think strategically, to explode ideas and lift you up and out of the daily doing. A coach will help you to:

  • Get clear about your goal
  • Identify blind spots
  • Be accountable
  • Focus on what is really important
  • Gain a competitive advantage
  • Develop powerful leadership skills
  • Increase engagement with the things that really matter to you
  • Feel happier and more grounded

 

It is important to see coaching as an investment, and not an expense. Invest in yourself, your people and your business and they will invest in you. Get smart, Get Confident, Go beyond.

Supporting the #BedsHour Community

We do as much work as possible with local businesses and would like to thank the following for their recent, fun and hugely productive collaborations:

 

If you think there might be a way we can help you or your business then please get in touch – we are on twitter @iamstrongcoach or you can reach me sarah@strongcoaching.co.uk.

It all starts with a coffee. And sometimes cake.

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