From employed to self-employed

Originally, the couple ran AdVintage Wines on a hobby-basis, each holding down full-time jobs. Recently, they decided to take the decision for Marleen to give up her work and to put all of her efforts into promoting the family business. As Marleen commented:”Making the decision to go it alone and to give up my full-time job with Capgemini was not an easy one. Before, I knew that the mortgage was being paid and that my children were supported by the safety net of my well-paid job. To make these types of decision in life, you need to know that you are going in the right direction.

“When it comes to running your own company, you can’t afford to take a step-by-step approach. You have complete responsibility for every part of the business and you need to strike the right balance and be confident that you are able to achieve that.”

Life Coaching
Marleen attends a great deal of business networking events in her local area. Through these meetings, she has met a number of life coaches. She added: “Even after speaking to these life coaches, I could not see what they were able to offer me, and how they could help me with any of the personal and business issues in my life.

“I first met Wendy at LifeGoal in mid-2007, and my initial impression was how down to earth she was and the confidence that she radiated. She was straight from the start, and took the approach that we are all business people and can all help one another.”

Working with LifeGoal
Marleen chose to work with Wendy at a time when the AdVintage Wines business was doubling in revenue from the same time the previous year. This increase in takings meant she was getting busier, and with the prospect of the demanding Christmas trade looming, she could not envisage how – as a family and business unit – they were going to manage. It was then that she realised life coaching may have its place in her own life.

Marleen believes that working with Wendy provided her with lots of pointers that she may not have otherwise considered, and that she was able to translate the pros and cons of going it alone to paper. She added: “Wendy helped to calm me down, to make me ask myself what I was saying. She asked me want I wanted to achieve and what I – personally – wanted to gain from the venture.

“My life was an emotional roller coaster; on the one hand I saw the benefits of working for a large organisation, and on the other I could see the freedom that running my own business would offer.

“To begin with, I don’t think you know the answers. Working with a life coach also helps you to not only think about your own reactions, but to appreciate the agenda of other people in your lives. Only then do you begin to fully-understand your own actions.

Wendy at LifeGoal added: “Life coaching has a role to play in everyone’s lives; whether related to work or personal aspects. Its role is to empower individuals, helping them to find their route towards personal fulfilment – Marleen was a classic case of someone who just needed some support towards finding the necessary focus.”

Today
Marleen still meets up with Wendy from time to time. She added: “Since Wendy helped me to focus on my life and to make that all important decision, I have not looked back. I have not missed my job, and I have not missed being part of the rat race.