WHY AM I TELLING YOU THIS? Well, to some I lived the perfect life.
I was jet-setting all over the world, had a big salary, company car, the lot! I was speaking in front of thousands of people and raising multiple 6 figures.
I soon had enough to buy a 4 bedroom house in my own town, a beautiful car, brand new designer wardrobe and the life many aspire to have.
However, this wasn’t my destiny
I was balancing long flights, early commutes and targets in my corporate career with a business I adored, my celebrant business.
My 9-5 wasn’t giving me the freedom lifestyle I always desired and I was totally overworked. My celebrant business was taking second place.
I was stuck neglecting what I truly loved.
I left my training as a celebrant in 2010 and just felt a mixture of excitement and anxiety. I was officially working in the industry I loved, dah da! My dream came true!
However, I felt totally overwhelmed by setting up my own business. How the heck was I going to go from certificate to making money from this business and fast?
I just didn’t know where to start. I had a fantastic 9-5, bringing in a very good salary, a company car, lavish trips, alongside charity work which I really believed in. However, it didn’t fulfil me and I was done with the pressure of presentations and targets in a corporate environment.
It didn’t excite me anymore and I knew there was something bigger and better out there for me.
I didn’t want to continue to spend 3 hours a day on trains. I wanted to make my own money, be my own boss and do something I loved every day. Being the youngest celebrant in the UK who had completed the training, I thought it would be too hard to get my business off the ground.
I WAS NERVOUS BUT THIS IS WHEN EVERYTHING CHANGED.
I transferred all of my corporate management skills raising multiple 6 figures for charities into my celebrant business and it soared.
I didn’t wait around, I took action and worked hard. I got my head into the ‘I’m going to make this work’ space and got a strategy together. I knew who my target client was and I focused hard to find exactly where they hung out and then I found out exactly who else influences their decisions.
I networked with every venue, industry professional, local press and even tried out speed networking (very odd). I went wherever I could to get my name and business heard and didn’t stop until I was getting the bookings I knew I deserved.
Within a year, I went from no clients to fully booked and doubled my prices.
Now I live the life I truly desired with the business of my dreams. My business.
I TOOK STEPS TOWARDS my future
Soon after I was being asked by other celebrants to give them advice on growing their businesses.
They were asking me how I approached venues, how I got visible and how I got fully booked. So I decided to start coaching celebrants and soon started to see them grow in confidence and see their businesses go from strength to strength.
Before I even started advertising my coaching, I was mentoring celebrants and moving celebrants who were totally stuck, and not able to move their businesses forward, into full time business owners. They listened, learnt and took action to reap the rewards.
My mission then began to support thousands of celebrants make their business dreams come true.
2017
In 2017 I set up The Celebrant Directory, the ultimate global directory that showcases celebrants from all over the world and provides a platform to promote their business to potential clients. A one stop shop for couples and families to find their ideal celebrant.
In 2017 I also launched my digital agency and since then have created beautiful, individual websites and branding for celebrants and wedding professionals all over the world.
2018
In 2018 I wrote a book about my journey and became an Amazon Number 1 Best Selling Author. Bucketlist item number 2 ticked off (I’ve saved no 1 for going to Antarctica -not far off this!).
I am now a wedding industry awards judge, winner of a national award in influencing the wider community and regularly perform public speaking for the industry.
2019
By early 2019 I reached my first 6 figure year. I did this whilst travelling the world with my husband and son.
If anyone knows me, they know how passionate I am about the celebrant industry. I get so frustrated when we are held back by either ‘leaving it up to the Funeral Directors’ to hire celebrants, or getting missed off the recommended supplier lists.
You feel this right? Now what?
So I now put my time and effort into building up celebrant businesses as well as the industry as a whole. No time to wait for bookings to come in, it is time to make this happen.