Being a Courageous Leader

Katherine Garret-Cox speaking at Davos 2009 - 

Aged 40, Ms. Katherine Lucy Garrett-Cox is the Chief Investment Officer, Chief Executive Officer, and Executive Director at Alliance Trust PLC. She is also employed at Alliance Trust Private Equity Partners. Ms. Garrett-Cox is a Partner at ORN Capital LLP. Prior to this, in 2004 she became the Chief Investment Officer for Morley Fund Management and a Board Director of a number of their subsidiary companies with specific responsibility for fund management teams in London, Dublin and Boston. 

Who is the Coach?

One day, there was a blind man sitting on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet and a sign that read: 'I am blind, please help.'

A Coach was walking by and stopped to observe. He saw that the blind man had only a few coins in his hat. He dropped in more coins and, asked for permission to change the sign, the Coach then took the sign and rewrote it.

He returned the sign to the blind man and left. That afternoon the Coach returned to the blind man and noticed that his hat was full of bills and coins. 

The blind man recognized his footsteps and asked if it was he who had rewritten his sign and wanted to know what he had written on it.

The Coach responded: "Nothing that was not true. I just wrote the message a little differently." He smiled and went on his way.

 The new sign read: "Today is a beautiful day and I cannot see it". 

Sometimes we need to change our thinking. If we always do what we've always done, we'll always get what we've always got.

"Be the change"

Who is the Coach  

yippee 2009 is here

Happy New Year to you all - where ever you may be!

Well I am so happy to be in this year.
Today is Andys last night shift in the army - he leaves tomorrow morning at 630am we are both so excited. He has already set up his gardening business , is networking weekly and builidng his client base. I wonder where he gets his ideas and enthusiasm from !

I have spent most of today with Lauren playing on her new game for the Wii - guitar heros. Well I am now officially a rock chick - we have done nothing but laugh since 10am until 4pm mostly at how dire I am at playing the guitar. But hey my motto for this year is to laugh each and every day !!

2008 was an eventful and amazing year for me. I got the all clear in september from the hospital after my breast cancer scare !! I closed my mortgage business down - as the market died a death and going back into this work caused me too much stress - I like the simple life. I now refer my mortgage clients to a broker and get paid for just passing them on ! Isnt it amazing what change brings for us.

I moved into my first premises in jan 08 and moved out of them in sept 08 as the company who owned the lease went into liquidation. I moved into new premises in Nov 08 and Gave notice on xmas eve - I just dont need the over head or space any more. My image work I am referring out to a couple of consultants I now work with - creating more time for me and my family.

My coaching business is relatively quiet but thats by choice as my multi level marketing business has gone crazy so i am now coaching my team on how to run the business and how to have fun in life whilst doing it.

I have been offered regular training work this year with a guy who works in financial services - but again my head is asking - do I really want to go back into this field. Money isnt everything !!

I start my psychology degree this month so I have decided that I am officially having a gap year ish !! I am officially working part time 2 days a week, studying for 2 days and then spending one day a week with Andy doing things we want to do !! weekends well they will be just for fun. I have worked hard in 2008 and the results have paid dividends so I am authorising my self some me time and it feels fantastic !!

We are going to austria in march to celebrate andys birthday - no skiing just chilling out , walking enjoying the country and the fabulous pamper treatments that the hotel offers.

In May we are having a big family holiday with my parents and brother and sister in Cyprus as my dad did his national service there. as he is 76 this year , every year we have with him and mum aged 73 is a blessing. so i instigated a family trip so he can go back to Cyprus, andy also served our there for a few months.

We splashed out on a beautiful hot tub for the garden - which at the moment is covered in a light blanket of snow it looks beautiful. We use the time in here to chill out and spend time talking - its too easy to sit down in front of the TV and veg so at least 3 times a week andy and I are in the tub! Lauren has yet to be tempted in it.

I am half way through my wish list of 101 things i want to do in my life !! and writing my goals for the first quarter of this year. I used to do it for the whole year but find this approach gives me more focus. i am still working with my own business coach and continuing to support a local school as governor. I have resigned from a couple of my networking groups so I can remain focused this year using my time even more effectively than last year.

all in all i am looking forward to a very different year - instead of feeling like a circus clown trying to spin all the plates at the same time - I feel more like a swan who will be gracefully floating through life ( underneath the water those feet will be peddling hard to get me through the first module of my degree!) I cant tell you how calm and in control I feel of my life - for the first time for a long time.

isnt it funny how people react to change, when i tell people that andy is leaving the army the stock response i get from most people is " ooh what a bad time to be leaving a secure job, what with the credit crunch and all ! " despite the credit crunch 2008 was my best year yet since going self employed in 2004 .

i hope that 2009 and every other year continues to be your best too. lets get a date in the diary to meet up to celebrate all of our achievements since our wonderful course in dublin in 2007.

health wealth and happiness to you all
debs, andy and lauren xxx