“Live out of your imagination, not your history.” Stephen Covey.
A Quote that describes the mindset of the visionary entrepreneur Penny Holburn behind her brand and its motto i.e., one of the greatest gifts human beings have been given is imagination. We use imagination in the wrong way when we use it to worry and fear. We use it in the right way when we use it to transcend what we may think are limitations and disadvantages that life has dealt us.
With a strong belief ,that like most things, we can use imagination in the right way or wrong way, Penny leads in various roles as HR Professional turned entrepreneur, a certified Personal Coach, Business Coach, and Internal and External Consultant. She holds a rich experience of 25+ years in the fields of psychology, industrial psychology, neuroscience, personal and business change, leadership development, training, counselling and coaching.
Penny has always known what she wanted to do. At the age of 14, she saw herself doing what she does today. She studied in the area she felt was right for her, and has been in a series of jobs that, with hindsight, she can see prepared herself for everything that she does today. If anything influenced her decisions in her career it was her intuition and gut feel. Somehow, she has just always known what the next step needed to be.
About the Brand and the Primary Challenges
Established in 2010, Penny Holburn Coaching provides coaching, counselling, and consulting services to private clients and organizations of any size. The three main areas she focuses on are general life issues around mental wellbeing and personal growth, careers, and business. In addition to one-on-one assistance, which is most of what she does, she also offers courses, toolkits, workshops, and talks.
The primary challenge has always been a constantly changing external environment in which Penny does business. Every year something about the economy, ways of doing business, consumer spending, technology, and legislation changes. So, each year has to be approached differently and each year, and possibly every six months, a new strategy is required. There is no such thing as “this plan worked well last year, it should work well again next year.”
Team & Clientele
Penny Holburn lives by values. She does not have permanent full-time employees; she works with contractors, other companies, freelancers, and other business owners on an as-need basis. However, in the people she chooses to work with, values are incredibly important. Her three most important business values are – Respect – Excellence – Growth, and the people and businesses she works with need to demonstrate these values. She believes you can get on with people who are different from you. It doesn’t work if you have different values though.
“My clients are the most wonderful human beings. I see almost anyone who wants to work on themselves, their career, and/or their business. Most of my clients are private clients who are committed to growing and developing themselves to be the best they can be. I connect with that. I ensure I help them achieve their objectives,” Penny stated.
Daily Routine and Hobbies
“I am not a morning person, so I gradually get into the morning. The first thing on waking is to work on my mindset and beliefs. I have a book full of affirmations, scripts (including hypnotic scripts), and writings to set my mind for the day. This takes about 30 minutes. Then from about 8.30 am to 6 pm I work. Sometimes I see a client in the evening so I finish later. There is no standard day and no routine. Generally, the workday covers the following: client appointments (most of the time), admin, writing courses, writing blogs and articles, updating social media and doing marketing”, Penny shared.
“After work, I have a 30 minute time to wash away the stresses of the day. I do this relaxation in the garden when possible. I read for about an hour before going to sleep. Hobbies include gardening, listening to music, reading, attending theatre and concerts”, she further added.
Favourite Book
Dr Joseph Murphy’s, “The power of your subconscious mind.” Your subconscious runs your life. If you want your life to work, then you need your subconscious mind to work for you.
Future Goals
While talking about future goals, Penny said, “The mission of my business is to facilitate mental well-being, personal development, and peak performance so that everyone is enabled and empowered to reach their full potential. I can still see that being relevant in the next year, together with the services and products I offer. The mix of products and services will depend on the needs of the market and clients. I have always offered online services, and possibly this may be a growth area next year. Fortunately, as a very small company, I can change direction very quickly if required to. This year, with Covid-19, so many people have had their lives, careers, and businesses thrown into disarray, and so there has been plenty of need.”
Jewels in the Crown
Here is the list of awards won by Penny in the last five years:
- 2016: Executive Coaches of the Year, awarded by AI Global Media
- 2016: Winner best for personal and business coaching Johannesburg, awarded by Corporate Vision Magazine.
- 2017: Best personal development coaching company in Gauteng, awarded by AI Global Media
- 2017: Excellence award for anxiety coaching, awarded by AI Global Media
- 2018: Shortlist Business Coaching Advisor of the year in South Africa, by Finance Monthly Global.
Advice for New Leaders
Be brave, but don’t be reckless. If you believe in your business idea then keep at it and always stay in touch with your customer and their needs. Be flexible – the world is constantly changing – and it will continue to do so. You may have to change your strategies and tactics very quickly. Be able to do that. Your business will never be better than you are, so keep working on yourself as a person and as a leader.