GLOBAL MAGAZINE FOR EXECUTIVES AND LEADING ENTREPRENEURS SOVEREIGNMAGAZINE.CO.UK FEBRUARY 2019 ISSUE 14
TITANS OF TITANIUM
The story behind the worlds most exclusive gardening tool set
THE ELEVEN WOMEN CHANGING THE WORLD IN 2019
HOW TO CHANGE THE WORLD WHEN YOU CAN’T FIND A BABYSITTER Catherine Edsell
TIME TO WATCH & LEARN Giselle Rufer on what it means to be the only female Swiss Watch marker
P O W E R F U L
B U S I N E S S
W O M E N ’ S
N E T W O R K
TINEKE RENSEN
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The only female Swiss Watchmaker explains how she captures the spirit of the women who wear her designer watches.
Facing a non-emotional data driven reality, more people decide to invest in themselves and learn to monetise their big ideas. The old paradigm ‘time is money’ is no longer representing the quintessential definition of prosperity. Time is life, instead. More women find their way into a new economy that is shaping the future of society: The Talent Economy. By Dr Marina Nani
Giselle Rufer
Time to Watch the woman and learn
With the average person spending four hours a day facing a smartphone outside working hours, and the internet wildly available to walk one step further into serendipity with every search, is it possible that we will make progress without being overwhelmed by it? As confused as most of us are about what is happening next, there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the world is going to be changed by those who suffered the most.
See the full collection at delancewatches.com
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Is the talent economy going to help us close the achievement gap? We reached out to Giselle Rufer, Creator of the DELANCE Swiss Watches, who made her life mission to encourage women and tell them how marvellous they are, empower them to be all they can be. Mother of two, Ivan (49) and Rachel (47), Grandmother of Zoé, Mael, Loïc (18, 16 and 9), Giselle is an exceptionally talented entrepreneur who leaves in Macolin, Switzerland, near Biel, a renowned watchmaking city, home to Rolex, Omega, Swatch Group and many other world renowned companies. Her life story was captured by an American writer in ‘BUTTERFLY IN A STORMLady to watch’. Here is what she told us… ‘Sometimes it takes external forces to activate the latent entrepreneurial spirit; for many women, this moment of inertia occurs when they reach the glass ceiling in their jobs. In my case, the desire to create a special watch for women is the inertia that pushed me forward. This desire became a mission.’ Giselle advocates for women’s commitment for a better world. ‘Women’s intelligence and skills are very important on all levels. It is very important to take a step further. If you have a dream, make it come true. Put all your energy to achieve it. If you are not happy in your job, change it. You will find the perfect one just for you. It will perhaps take a few years but follow your star.’ Giselle shows women how to stand up for what they think is right and good, to go back on, after life knocks them down, to search for unique solutions, to develop and deliver their vision, work with other women, make a significant difference in the world. ‘Many times in my life I had to change my plans, as life was not going in the direction I would have like it to go. Depending of the circumstances it can be easy to change or very difficult. However, sometimes it happens that the small changes can have a big impact’
The only woman in the Swiss watch industry with the ability to make designer watches, Giselle decided to create a special watch, made by women that capture the spirit of women. Because the timepiece she created is connected with who she is as a woman, she had to gather the courage to create her company rather than selling up her design to a male competitor. Her first step was to create an international business network, to reach out and make meaningful connections with women around the world. She travelled extensively to find out how women define “time.” Interestingly, not one woman said that ‘time is money’. The most frequent answer was ’time is life!’ Women told Giselle that as they give their time to raise a family, or to build a business, they organise and manage life. Women are always the givers, the managers of life and for them, time is life, not money ! ‘Women do not measure the value of time in dollars and cents; this is not the value women give to their time and life. When I asked women what is important in their lives and how they spend their time and what business women want, their unanimous answer was that they are striving for harmony. Women want to be in a harmonious state with everything in their lives.’ A lot of women also said that they wanted something more than just everyday life, something spiritual. ‘In addition to capturing the strength and eternity of women, I also wanted the DELANCE watch to capture the sentiments of life, harmony, and spirituality. This is why I have chosen the diamond shape, because it symbolizes life and harmony.’ Giselle’s next step was to learn if women would invest in a high-quality watch that did not have a famous label. Many women said they would buy the kind of special watch made for her with two condition: if they loved the watch or if there was a special reason to buy the watch. Giselle’s challenge was to satisfy this niche of the market by making a
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By Dr Marina Nani
From Cold Calling to Hot Leads
“If it looks like work, we stop.” Interview with Monique Hoogkamer, Founder WeCallForYou Imagine that one day when you go to work, your boss tells you ‘You are out of date. We have to let you go’. What could be worse than working with a manager who doesn’t see your dedication and effort? And what could be better than leaving them behind to start your own business?! When Monique was fired, she did not know that being free to make better choices for herself is going to fire her up and change her life for good. Her desire to be an independent woman was inspired in early childhood by her mother who stopped working once she got married. Monique learned from her mother, who was an incredible woman, leading a happy life, to focus on what she had, instead of what she didn’t. Happily married, mother of two gorgeous boys, Monique is the founder of WeCallForYou, the defining midfielder which is designed to help
SOVEREIGN companies grow fast from start-ups and scale up to SME. ‘We believe people deserve a life of passion, doing what they love, and we free them from doing jobs they hate, like cold calling. People find it difficult to call, especially cold calling. Furthermore, people do not even like it or do not have the time. We call the whole day and are not distracted by other tasks. Everyone’s time is valuable. Our solutions remove the pain of chasing decision makers, and get the job done for them.’ Monique’s team is a powerful pull of talent as she learned from her manager who not to be and what not to do as a leader. Her formula brings her clients profits in excess of 400%, not just a hot team of cold callers. ‘We work with women only. Female voice sounds much better on the telephone and our clients are aware of that. We work with male clients and they appreciate our feminine charm and listening ear. We work together as a team, we support each other to master our natural skills: leading good conversations, open communicators, we are able to focus to the point of conversation, and switch quickly, to close the deal’ “Monique is very passionate about the approach and the follow-up and that is often lacking in sales. Even after the campaign ended, Monique insisted on keeping calling one of the prospects. She had made that agreement and wanted to keep her word.” One of her clients says. Monique understands that success is a two-way street and she teams up with each client, while under contract, become part of the client’s company, sometimes, they even move in to run the calls from the clients’ premises and understand their ideal demographic, target audience and lead generation process. ‘We do everything we can to ensure that our assignment runs smoothly and successfully. Until now I haven’t done that much on marketing. Our
customers find us by word of mouth. More than often, we are recommended by our clients. We want to grow more and more. I know that we have something unique in our hands, something special. We work already for international companies who started new locations in The Netherlands. Our clients trust us to make appointments with companies like Heineken and RTL. We have a script, but we never stick to it.’ Monique says with a confident smile...
MAKE THE CALL NOW!
+31 06 55 10 53 01 www.wecallforyou.nl
“The use of WeCallForYou gave us even more than we expected. We closed the deal in 95% of the cases Of the leads that they generated for our consultants.” Another client says.
Could Business Woman’s World?
become
a
Aware that business is still ‘a man’s world’ Monique understands women’s strengths and how to enhance their unique skills within a healthy work environment. ‘Women are more emotional and make decisions with their heart. For women money is important but not the most important thing. When I need guidance, I ask women for advice, because they understand me better. I don’t want to make decisions purely based on profit only. Growing a team of exceptional talented women is more important to me, and being the leader I never had is my true purpose.’ Monique is an active member of The Powerful Business Women’s Network, and believes business women can support each other in more ways than one. Women are able to understand each other’s vision and their desire for growth goes far beyond financial rewards, they complement each other and make meaningful connections. ‘This is a network for only serious businesswomen who are in business for quite some time and have a minimum turnover of 100.000 euro or far above. We all want to do business internationally, but we want to know how to help each other grow. This is how we do business with other businesswomen worldwide.’
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Woman’s Power Redefined By Dr Marina Nani
Growing up in a foreign country, without her grandmother, was very difficult for Ivana de Haan. As an adolescent, she had different life expectations than her mother and despite being so young, she decided to live on her own before reaching her eighteenth birthday. Ivana started a job as an administrative assistant at an employment agency and worked her way up running a whole department. For as long as she can remember, Ivana had a big dream and created business relationships with people who, she thought, will be honest and put their weight on to succeed and turn these dreams into a better reality together. During her full-time job, she took a five-year course and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2001. In that same year she started her first business, a recruitment agency for technical staff, with two other business partners. Eighteen months later she launched her second business, a metal factory that made components for the food industry and delivered the parts to several countries in Europe. One after another, both partnerships collapsed after nine years, bringing Ivana’s dreams down and challenged her to start again, for the third time another business, on her own, this time, but from ground zero. Many of the ones who let her
www.ivanabags.com
down while working in the same business, forced her realise that she doesn’t need anyone to complete her, she is the complete deal, she got it all. What failure and success have in common? The girl who couldn’t trust business partners anymore because of the people who betrayed her, learned to trust herself and become a woman of substance. However, that painful process transformed her into a powerful business woman, and it didn’t happen overnight (it took more than ten years of her life to solve all the problems) and continues to evolve. What at first Ivana perceived as a distrust for business partners, was her perception from two difficult experiences, trying to articulate that she didn’t relate to her own talent, she did not feel good enough to start the business on her own, and she paid a very high price for not trusting herself. She thought that business was supposed to be success not failure, so the other partners who let her down, as they felt she was threatening their success, where, in fact, she wanted limitless success. When desire makes you challenge your limiting beliefs As Ivana grew wiser, she decided that these sad memories can’t
control her present or her future and she let them slip away. She began to realize where these sad experiences originated from and how she can now benefit from those lessons. Ivana became aware of her own powers and saw more business women being successful around her, on their own right. Ivana understood the importance of manifesting courage and being determined in business and her desire to bring her vision into the world, as a whole, not just as a part of somebody else’s success, grew her confidence to new heights. Finally, Ivana created her own brand, a high end of luxury handbags and ties, and put her name on it: IVANA ‘I had a desire to do something completely different with my life. I wanted to experience what I was capable of and I challenged my own limiting beliefs. I did ask myself, what does make me happy? The answer to this question made me create my own high end of luxury handbags and ties, with my name, IVANA. My collection is more than a beautiful product. It represents me, the story of my life, my identity and the woman I am today. Everything I have gone through in my whole life did inspire me and I want to reach out to other people and inspire them, tell them that everything is possible if you believe in yourself and never let go of your dreams. ‘
SOVEREIGN The World is bigger than you think While others agree with the old saying ’is a small world’ Ivana realised that reaching out to a global audience is a huge challenge. ‘The world is bigger than you think. The question is how do you manage to reach out to all the people you want to serve, how do you position yourself in a global market? You need to network, connect and collaborate with different people all over the globe. You need to be at the right time at the right place.’ After launching her first collection in December 2016 at the LXRY Fair in Amsterdam Beau(c)se, she was approached by new clients who asked her to design an exclusive handbag with matching ties for the Royal Family in Monaco. Everything else is history, Ivana was invited to international fashion shows in Monaco, Paris, Madeira and Amsterdam. Her success story didn’t stop, on the contrary, attracted speaking engagements in London, Dubai, Ghana and soon enough Ivana launched her own stage for speaking events in Holland. ‘I want to reach out to as many people as possible. We are all unique individuals. We all have our own talent, experiences, difficulties, problems, insecurities and baggage. We do not need to be ashamed of anything. We do not need to compare ourselves with others. We only need to look inside ourselves and see the beauty and the strength we all have within.’ After everything she experienced on her quest to success, Ivana realised that life is a wonderful gift. ‘Only life can teach you this and that’s why I am so grateful for everything life taught me. Everything I have learned, I did was a choice. I was the one who took all the steps. No one forced me to do anything- it was me. I chose to embrace all difficulties, changed my mindset and kept my focus on my goals. When facing difficult decisions, my inner voice whispered: ‘you can do it’. And I am so happy I did listen. I am the living proof that it is possible to make a difference for yourself, and others, if you want to. You can overcome your problems, if you believe in yourself and act. Every
little step you make is progress. I have learned so much about myself, how strong I am, who I am, who I want to be; all the challenges I faced, made me the woman I am today.’ Celebrate the growing presence of women in business Ivana takes her inspiration from real life and the strong people who experience hardship. ‘Think about all the volunteers who help great causes. Think about homeless people, children without parents, survivors, we can’t forget that they contribute daily in their own way, as much as they can. I believe we can learn a lot from the people who need our help.’ Ivana wants to inspire other women to dream big, show them how to overcome fear and give them the confidence they need to succeed in business. She believes that, if you dare to be yourself, dare to follow your passion, dare to take the first step, dare to make the change, you will be surprised. Member of The Powerful Women’s Network, Ivana’s core message is very clear: Dare to be yourself ‘You are never alone. It is very important that women support each other. Connect, stay in touch, help, listen, be kind, share your (success) story, ask for help if you experience difficulties. You can achieve your big dream as long as you have the courage to put your name on it!’
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derstanding ads into un le e m o d is w f o gives you th The pursuit wledge and ile o h n k W l . ra d tu in a n uman m h e th the laws of to in adventure res, our courage to cent adventu ory, who re ’s d rl o w g e Edsell’s st investigatin ss Catherin ro c a eir comfort e m a c team ep out of th st to n e m o w encourages e ter one of th n e d n a , e zon ormative, most transf aginative, spiritual, im periences: generous ex Adventure!
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y l i p p a H
Together they track desert elephants, push their limits and meet challenges head on.
PAID IN SUNSETS
After becoming a mo ther, Catherine redisco vered her sense of herself thro ugh adventure. Conn ecting with nature and wildness he lped her find her inner confidence and her story opens Ca therine’s world to othe r women who dare. - Interview by Dr Marina Nani For the last two decades, Catherine mastered her passion for real adventure and effective conservation through independent and collaborative expedition work around the world. With a vast expertise in both terrestrial and marine environments, a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, an avid naturalist and lecturer in coral reef ecology, a PADI Divemaster, jungle trainer and a true adventurer at heart, Catherine is inspiring generations of mothers and daughters to push their own mental and physical boundaries, and rediscover themselves. Eldest daughter of a family of five with four brothers, Catherine grew up in a small, noisy house
in North London that gave her a ‘hankering for freedom’ at an early age. After graduating as a choreographer at Nottingham University, she felt frustrated with the limitations of planning her life a year ahead of time. With no room left for creativity Catherine decided to leave everything behind and explore the world. For the first five years she worked with Leatherback sea turtles in Costa Rica, line-handled yachts in the Panama Canal, worked for an NGO in India, trekked in the Himalayas, visited ashrams, lead exploratory hikes in the jungle, amongst other things’. With her new-found love of the tropics, she earned the position of jungle trainer for a biodiver-
t nture a m e v d a e o Join th nture.c e v d a h at www.c
SOVEREIGN sity science expedition company. ‘I would spend one week training volunteers in jungle survival, and then the next week setting up all the logistics for remote base camp surveys in the rainforests of Indonesia. This, interspersed with working for other expedition companies in the jungles of Belize and deserts of Namibia, taking time out to go on my own expeditions to the remotest corners of the planet, and also set up a new biodiversity operation in Honduras kept me very busy.’ Catherine says. During this time, she met her husband, the expedition’s medic, and they had their first child together. ‘At this point my world tipped on its axis, and I soon realized that nothing would be the same again. My naive idea of strapping my baby to my back and carrying on was nipped in the bud, when my daughter hated being wrapped like that - I was not prepared for the emotional rollercoaster that having a baby brings.’ Unlike other mums who were going back to work at the bank or at the law firm, her work was in a jungle! Taking a job in Australia for a year, to look after her baby, came as a temporary solution and with a forever parental commitment, as Catherine gave birth to her second daughter, in Melbourne. ‘When my husband went to spend 3 months at Everest base Camp conducting medical research into altitude sickness and hypoxia - I was at home with two children who wouldn’t sleep! Around this time it became apparent that my eldest daughter was exhibiting quite substantial development delays and some sensory processing disorders. My world closed in, again, and it was hard to carve out any time or focus for myself. My brother sent me a card for my birthday one year with the words ‘I wanted to go out and change the world, but I couldn’t find a babysitter’ emblazoned on the front. He’d meant it to be
funny, but it was so true, it hurt!’ Her brother’s message, made Catherine thinking… She decided to take her girls (aged 4 and 6) into a month-long adventure to Thailand, working at an elephant sanctuary, which gave her the confidence to lead diving expeditions. ‘I felt like I had really found myself once again and could stop talking about myself in the past tense.’ Going on these amazing adventures and expeditions Catherine realized that she could create an adventure just for women, an adventure to challenge and transform, an adventure that would take them so far out of their comfort zone, but in a supportive nurturing environment, allowing them to return home to their everyday lives more confident and ready to take on the challenges that life threw at them. Catherine discussed her idea with her contacts in Namibia and The Matriarch Adventure was born!
Mother & Daughter Adventure a new wilderness bonding experience for mums and young teenage daughters. I also lead The Bluemoon Adventure an all-female coral reef conservation retreat in the wilds of Madagascar.’ Each experience is an immersion in wilderness and it appeals to all women who are going through a transition period - children leaving home, reaching a plateau at work, or just, as was Catherine’s original intention, to take time out of ordinary life, leave the family behind for a few days and have a real adventure.
‘We practice yoga every morning as the sun rose, we sleep out under the stars, we track elusive desert elephants by day and chat and sing around the campfire at night eating delicious food. I now lead not only The Matriarch Adventure, but The
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SOVEREIGN Sometimes they just want to do something great for themselves by themselves. ‘Coming on one of my adventures is very different than going on a tour or a safari - firstly it is a real expedition, and my motto for that is ‘always expect the unexpected!’, secondly I don’t give everything away - often as women we are the ones who organize everything, the holidays, the kids, the food, so I want this to be a real treat where the women who come don’t have to organise or think about anything. At the beginning of the week all phones are handed in and they are not given back until the end. I keep things secret and then surprise them - it’s amazing to hear how quickly laughter and giggling come back into the vocabulary of these women (…) this stripping back reveals all sorts of things that the women may have forgotten about themselves!’ Catherine believes that women need each other and supporting each other’s dream in the business world is a moral duty. ‘We are naturally cooperative, we work well in teams and we think laterally about issues from our own experience. Sharing this experience gilded with our own personal wisdom is the key to forward thinking relationships. My expedition, ‘The Matriarch Adventure’ is all about fostering this wisdom, creating a ‘herd’ which works for the good of the group and the individual. Matriarch’s can sometimes get a bad rap, and
are thought to be bossy and dominating, but a true matriarch leads with a gentle touch - it is her wisdom and experience that guides her decisions, not fear, anger or greed. Watching elephants in the wild with their powerful matriarchal systems in place is a fine example of this harmony and is also awe inspiring at the same time!’ Catherine’s story is not about changing the world or finding a baby sitter but about ‘a deeper understanding of your own strengths and resourcefulness in the face of self- limiting believes that can easily be dispelled by spending time in the co mpany of other women, just like you’ Catherine’s life is an adventure into what is possible, and while we could only guess where she is taking us next, we learned with gratitude that being a woman, or a mother, or both doesn’t need to be a spiritless affair but rather a leap of faith into the human kind’s courage, for the daring soul.
the e g n a ch d n a t ou o g to d te n a “I w ” er tt si y b a b a d n fi ’t n ld u co I world but Catherine Edsell PHOTOCREDIT: CHRISTIN WINTER
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By Katherine Ewen Visionary artist, ethical clothes designer and teacher of Ageless Wisdom, Rita Hraiz is one of the growing number of women committed to raising planetary consciousness. Her aim is to inspire love and this is suffused throughout her work. From her uplifting paintings of goddesses, expressing the beauty of the female form, to her use of colour therapy clothing to encourage body confidence she is on a mission to break through the old moulds of what a woman should be and what she can achieve. Her courses and retreats, help both individuals and couples gain the wisdom needed to transform their lives. Born of eastern parents and brought up in the west, Rita had made it her life’s work to transcend the divides our societies impose. Her father was a young Sindhi Caste Hindu and her mother an aristocratic Lebanese Catholic. Her parents eloped to London in 1960, escaping the rigid societal frameworks that said they could not be together, daring to marry for love. She was taught by her parents to be herself in all that she did. When Rita was eleven years old she discovered a book about Tibetan Buddhism at the Catholic girl’s school she attended and this changed the course of her life. It awoke in her a deep knowledge of past life experiences in Tibet, and a lifelong love of esoteric teachings. This was an early awakening that no matter how profound did not save her
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As a young fashion designer in London, her star was rising with her clothes appearing in Vogue and other leading fashion publications. This should have been a time of success but with a string of difficult relationships and a busy life caught up in the material excesses of the 80s she suffered a crisis of faith and loss of confidence. Unhappy and alone she reached out for help and found a spiritual teacher that would transform her life. He taught her the solar philosophies of Ageless Wisdom and through this and the use of meditation she decided it was time to leave London and start again. In 1994 she moved her family to Glastonbury, to continue her spiritual awakening. In Glastonbury Rita flourished, building, from nothing Seriously Scrumptious, a very successful cakemaking company supplying Harrods, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols and QVC. It was also at this time that she met the love of her life, Jeremy and gave birth to her fourth child. “Seriously Scrumptious started when Shiloh, my third child, was a baby. It was something I could manage inbetween breastfeeding and Jeremy helped me with my sons and building the business. He held me and encouraged me to fully go for it”. But as so often happens in life it was then that misfortune struck. Jeremy was suddenly and tragically killed in road traffic accident and Rita again found herself alone, dealing with four children and a consuming business. She lost the cake company and at the same time began a deep shamanic journey that helped her to recognise her soul purpose was not about giving people cakes. With four children depending upon her, Rita focused upon her Tibetan Buddhist practices, a shamanic path and trust in the Great Mystery. Once again she brought herself and her family back from the brink. It was then she got the idea for Mudra- a clothing label designed for all
women, no matter what their shape or size. She threw herself back into work, making beautiful clothes that helped women deal with their own pain and insecurities through the use of colour therapy and positive body image techniques. It was also at this time that Rita began teaching and running retreats. She discovered that her years of experience, using daily practices to overcome difficulties could be passed on to others, helping them, in turn to meet them selves and how to transform sorrow into joy and transform stuck energy. Her Ageless Wisdom courses arose from being asked by people who came to her retreats to share the practices of how to consciously align to the highest of who we are. Now, at the age of 56, Rita is an inspiration to strong aspiring women and men worldwide. With a large family support network and successful ethical businesses, she is respected as an elder in the community having walked her talk, inspiring harmony and healing to families and people of all ages. She enjoys nothing more than teaching this simple and sacred philosophy to others and her courses are becoming more and more popular as she helps countless others with her deep insight and practical support and through sharing her life experiences.
WWW.RITAHRAIZ.COM
from the slings and arrows of life.
“At this point in my life, I am completely blown away by the consistent transformation and grace I get to witness on a daily basis. There is a massive spiritual revolution happening and people are fast track waking up to face their pain and take responsibility for what they are creating and their transform Karma. I am graced to have tasted the very nectar of the Absolute and feel so utterly fulfilled. I live my life in service to humanity in every possible way that I can and I can never take credit for the healing I witness, as I know this to come from the Presence Of The One. I am grateful for my ego to get out of the way enough to watch miracles unfold continually ”, Rita Hraiz.
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by Laura Amherst
Finding Your Spiritual Compass
Your intuition connects you to your true sense of worth, your inner strength and your own wisdom. As you develop your intuitive skills and build its “muscles”, step by step, day by day – an unfolding of your path and purpose is revealed. Meet Fiona Radman, an intuitive consultant, driven by inspirational spiritual teachers and her depth of insight into her own experience. Taking fundamental teachings, she has created a business that impacts many of her clients in a vital, lifechanging way. Fiona has been able to use powerful concepts such as listening carefully to the inner guidance of their heart and soul, which helps people understand their beliefs, emotions and the situations they find themselves in, for what they really are, and she is able to guide them in this process. Originally having a lengthy thirty five year career in the textile industry, she then set up her current business, helping people tap into their intuition. This was initiated because during many years she experienced challenging issues around low selfesteem and loss of purpose through childlessness. Although she eventually started a family, she regretted not following her inner guidance at that time. After extensive introspection of her
www.fionaradman.com
SOVEREIGN personal circumstances she had gained meaningful insight and realized just how accurate her intuition had always been. She decided from then on to tap into it to guide her choices and decisions in life. When she realised that there must be a book out there that could help her she came across certain information that totally revolutionized her perspectives. The two books she feel impacted her the most are “You Can Heal Your Life” By Louise Hay, and “Conversations with God, Book 1” by Neale Donald Walsch. Really identifying with Louise Hay in particular, Fiona went on to train in her teachings, and has run workshops and coached clients using her philosophies. There she learnt the tools she needed to work through her grief and sense of helplessness. Louise Hay ran workshops to showcase her authors with her publishing house (Hay House) and Fiona was exposed to Sonia Choquette, who she feel impacted her and changed the direction of her life even further. One event naturally lead to another, when she listened to her inner guidance system, and she found herself moving consistently in the right direction for her life purpose. “10 years later I can say that following my intuition has been an incredible, expansionary and exhilarating ride. Life is just so much more interesting and rewarding than it was before. I have learned to trust and listen to that guidance and feel I am finally living my purpose… It doesn’t mean that my life doesn’t have challenges, of course it does, it just means that I have learned to surf the waves better, with the expectation of
good things and surprises along the way, when I have the courage to step up and take action, and life is just a lot more FUN!” She delivers intuitive workshops and provides readings to clients to give them clarification, affirmation and inspiration through life’s uncertainties. She teaches about what intuition is and isn’t, and she shares useful practices to help the people she works with on their personal spiritual journeys. “I teach other skills such as spiritual hygiene, daily practices, and how to uncover creativity… Consultations usually result in suggestions for action or changes clients can make to improve their lives” She uses her experiences in her practice, combined with books, meditation, friends and like-minded people plus pilgrimage experiences, to continue to deepen the insightful service she offers her clients. “I have people who come for their very first reading with me and are surprised how accurate and helpful it can be” And the effects are far reaching, “ anyone can benefit from developing their intuitive skills. The more you use them the better you get; the easier you can surf life’s challenges. My clients are mainly women between 30 and 60 years old. I offer 20, 30 or 60 minute consultations, either in person or on Skype. I run my workshops from my home in south west London, and I usually communicate with clients via email. You can also find me at various events and shows, where I give talks” Fiona is doing a huge service in raising consciousness and guiding people to the solutions that change how they view themselves and their interactions with the world!
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SOVEREIGN
A story of Adventure and
By Laura Amherst
Kiki Fuerte author of the book series ‘Never Saw You Coming’ shares with us why she is inspired to create this powerful love story. I sit across from Kiki, a beautiful, graceful author with wonderful creative purpose. We begin by talking about her roots and how she was moulded from a young black girl, into the empowered black woman she is today. “I was born in the French Caribbean, on the beautiful island of Guadeloupe, and I had the best childhood any child could wish for, because I was surrounded by so much love! My life was filled with a lot of strong and kind women and many books, and they both shaped me to become the woman I am today. As a teen, I moved to Paris with my immediate family. It was less picturesque; much colder and gloomier. But there I learnt to be resilient, to work hard and excel. I was the only black child in the top class at school. It was a role that I feel proud of. My life in Paris blossomed when I went to university, and I discovered romantic love. Oh, love, when you catch us young and full of promise! It feels like anything is possible. If my young love dreams had come true, I would have been married by twenty with an amazing man and student of politics… but life did not turn out this way. At the time I didn’t know that all these beautiful bittersweet memories would inspire me to develop fictitious worlds with complex characters, in the form of thrilling romantic stories…” Kiki’s business is writing books, and it has been her lifelong passion. “My dream is to influence the people that read my work, to open them to matters of the heart, and for them to find a character that
SOVEREIGN they can identify with on a deep level. I used to record my dreams and turn them into short stories, but they are extremely intimate and I don’t think I will ever publish them. I want to keep something back for myself. My experiences with love as a teenager and an adult, combined with the experiences of my close friends and family, were a mixture of hopes, dramas and dreams. One day, I was in deep turmoil, and I sat down and wrote my first novel, ‘Never saw you coming’” We are both sipping on creamy coffees, and I hold a copy of her book, turning it over in my hands, while she explains to me in detail the essence of her writing. “‘Never saw you coming’ is a love story which starts like a fairy tale, but turns out to be very different. It is a story of turbulent romance, filled with a rollercoaster of emotions. I think many of my female readers will easily be able to identify with the main character Beatrice, and as we follow her journey, we begin to realise that love has many faces, and not all of those faces are smiling at us. The message that I want to express is that we have to see the warning signs to protect ourselves. I ask some fundamental questions. How do we learn to let go of a love that hurts? How do we protect ourselves and ensure that we are ready to receive a love that we deserve? All these questions demand deep inner growth and soul searching. “Never saw you coming” is a trilogy, and I immerse the reader in a journey of practising self love and finding love in return. I think women will be able to connect more to my books, but they are for anyone who wants to deepen their awareness of love and go on a magical emotional journey.” She tells me that her biggest challenge in getting her work out there is finding the time to promote it and write in general, as she is a busy mum and a full time teacher. “I have the luxury at times to visit a countryside retreat and focus exclusively on my writing, blissfully leaving the outside world behind for a while” When she talks about her role models she tells me of Toni Morrison. “A quote from Toni has stuck with me throughout my journey; “When writing, start with what you know...you must know your past history, to protect your present and create your future” She has inspired me to write from a position of strength, and she has instilled in me many of my values. Inspiration is everywhere, and the world is my open book; ready to be recorded, ready to be transformed into a powerful beautiful story to deepen our own experience of life and love. People’s capacity to bounce back from adversity fascinates me, and I believe a tragic story can be turned into a profound message”
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It is the month of Love, the perfect time to grab your copy of Never Saw You Coming, available on Amazon!
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