How did your first come into contact with Flourish?
I can’t remember how! I think it might have been a lady who came to talk to us in Rochdale about developing a business, I think I registered my details and they offered to pass them on.
How has Flourish helped you?
Sometimes you have some things inside of you and you don’t know what to do about them or don’t even know they are there… attending the Flourish training and ELLII programme brought out awareness of what’s inside me and brought that out. It also helped me to know how to work with and develop different kinds of information. Another thing was meeting the people in the sessions and being empowered by seeing other women doing a lot to further their ideas for social change. It gave me the confidence – if they can do it I can do it!
Where has your journey taken you? Tell us about the highs and lows of your experience
I work with women, especially with single Mums, and people who have been through domestic violence. Because I am coming from a state of experience, I have been in their shoes, I can show them that there are things you can do to improve your situation. I bring people together, motivate and mentor and show them that what they have been through is not the end of the world, there are things we can do!
A high is seeing the women I work with coming together and being open-minded enough to take a step, because it is not always easy. When we come together, share experiences and work together, we achieve together… I show them what I know, then they find it inside of them to say ‘yes I can do this! If she can do it with all the things she’s been through then so can I’.
For lows… when people you think should be there for you, who should support you and say ‘let’s do it’, and then they pull you down instead, that is a real low.
How do you keep motivated?
My ‘why?’ keeps me motivated! I have a very big ‘Why?’ I have a goals book that I write down everything I want to achieve… every time I achieve one I tick it off. That keeps me running and it makes me know if I can achieve that one I can achieve the big ones!
What is your proudest achievement?
My proudest achievement is when I see one of the ladies I work with – she was like me with three children from abusive home. She had nothing at all and was getting no help. She was depressed, she didn’t want to speak to anyone, didn’t trust agencies. Today she is doing well, the children are doing well, and every day I see her doing so much in community I think ‘wow! Who would have thought two years ago she would be doing so much?’
Do you have any tips to share with other people looking to start their own projects?
For any woman out there, never give up! The reason you should never give up is there is more inside of you than you can ever imagine. You just need a mentor who can guide you, and you also need to be with other women who are achieving great things!
What elements of the support did you find particularly useful?
So, so many! I loved Time to Grow because when I met the other ladies, listening to their testimonials about how they were doing, how their ventures were getting on, that kept me getting through. Sometimes I’d get suggestions from the other ladies and put them into my project. Getting together and sharing ideas that’s a big one for me.
The Elli programme was also one of my favourites. Also the session that taught how to use social media to promote ourselves, I loved that, it really helped me reach out to my community, simplify communications and grow our impact.
Is there anything you’re now doing differently now?
Yes, I was volunteering for a charity prior to Flourish’s support, but now I’m working full time in my company. I’ve registered as a limited company now, and I’m trying to explore other areas of interest for my venture.
What is next for you?
I would like to kick-start my own travel agency idea next – that would be a big one for me! Plus keep supporting amazing women in my community to develop themselves and achieve their goals and ambitions in spite of overcoming hardships and setbacks.
