Welcome to my office! Yes, it’s a Sunday and a dog walk, but you never stop thinking about work as a business owner.

I also wear my favourite thinking hat. I have my most creative thoughts and solve problems while walking, through the local fields and woods.

Today’s thinking was about business growth and what I would do next. WALX Kennet Valley is the reinvention of my old Nordic Walking business name. Thanks to COVID and Lockdown, my original business suffered dreadfully, and its membership declined from £modest net worth per month to just £belowpoverty per month. That was not financially sustainable, so I closed it and joined the 9-5 workforce. It did not suit me, and my mental health continued to decline.

In December 2023, I opened the business again and launched it on January 1st 2024. At the same time, Mother Nature decided to cleanse the earth, and the rain persisted through April.

My first four months were a disaster. I had only gained one new member, and one old member returned. I coached four beginners who were happy to do their own thing. I began to doubt myself and thought I was hanging onto a crazy, desperate dream. I saw failure and went into a woe-is-me meltdown.

I also started looking for new opportunities on the job sites.

With full gusto, I looked for roles where my 30 years of experience and transferable skill sets would be an asset. I applied for a plethora of jobs. I backtracked on some as I had a brain fart, and some were not going to allow me to jump out of bed, excited for another working day. I was learning fast! You need to satisfy the soul and not just the purse strings.

I was unprepared for rejection, which is a very arrogant trait. I am a motivational coach, after all! Several rejections came through, and I didn’t make the cut for the interview stage. That was fine, as I had no emotional investment at that point.

The rejections came after the first interview. Since there was no feedback, it wasn’t easy to know how to learn from them.

Rejections came after the final interview, and in one case, I was advised that I was excellent but was pipped to the post by someone for whom the job scope was changed AFTER the interview. I was gutted. I had a complete emotional investment in that role. I went into a mental breakdown for the next 24 hours.

Yesterday, the day after I had that awful news, I went to coach a scheduled Taster session and experienced what I shall refer to as a Daisy-Inspiration (name changed to protect her identity).

Daisy doesn’t like gyms and has a small income, so she is careful with how she spends it, prioritising her health. She wanted to learn how to Nordic walk as she has lower back discomfort and is aware of how her posture changes as she ages. She had heard of the benefits of Nordic Walking, which helps strengthen her core, keep osteoporosis at bay, and improve her cardiovascular health, and she loves walking. She liked the social element of being part of a Nordic walking group and being able to switch off.

Those are some of the reasons why I started the business! That was similar to my own story and is one I often hear. So I looked at the figures for the first quarter and realised they were fantastic! Five people learned to Nordic Walk, but only a 20% conversion rate. But someone came back because he missed it! Loyalty, 100%. Four people had a great experience, so word-of-mouth advertising is part of the exponential growth. I must remember to get their testimonials.

Back to my arrogant moment, rejection is part of the learning curve. “Rome wasn’t built in a day.” My initial business was booming, with rapid growth in the first quarter, but that’s because I started it in May when the weather began to improve.

Daisy reminded me about income and worth. She had also done her reflections and wanted to improve her chances of ageing younger. You can’t change ageing damage, but you can make adjustments to enhance longevity. You can only earn a modest income quickly by adjusting as you learn. You should not rely on your passion to pay the mortgage. You can, however, share your passion and attract like-minded people, and with a sustainable pricing system, exponential growth is a strong attribute and compliment to someone who cares. That’s the power of attraction and success. I shan’t be joining the 9-5ers, so the CV can collect dust and remind me of how I nearly gave up because I had a distorted view of the figures and narrative.