Happy Me Day at Base Camp

Hope you all enjoyed Me Day as much as we did. We ate delicious fairy cakes that Gen created and Smarties and Love Hearts. We also laughed doing the workshop and filling in the quiz. A good time was had by all - including two of my children who joined us. And the effects of the workshop made us all feel good.

Do let us know what you did to celebrate.

See you at Life Clubs this week. We're talking about money - very appropriate at this time of year.
All best,
Nina
Founder Life Clubs

Selling me

I've always been nervous about parties and whether someone will talk to me or not. Am I fun enough, am I relaxed enough and, yes, even, am I attractive enough? In jobs too, there's always been that feeling of whether I'm good enough or if I am going to be found out and seen as a fraud.

And I know I'm not the only one who feels like this.

This weekend was quite a trial for my teenage daughter as the two of us went shopping down the High Street and bumped into scores of her friends. I could see she desperately wanted to be with them but she was with me and how would she handle a situation like that. How to look cool with Mummy in tow.

One way or the other we're always selling ourselves. And it's best if we don't look like those 'For Sale' signs.

This week's Life Club will turn presenting yourself work-wise and socially into a fun game. You'll realise (without even trying), just how good you are at it.

And, a reminder of another potential party, Me Day - only this one's good because you're in charge. Me Day is next Sunday and there's a free workshop for you to print out and enjoy on the welcome page of our website plus a quiz you'll have fun filling in on your Me Day party invitation. Do remember to send in photos of you and your Me Day party or with your Happy Me Day card for our blog.
If you knew you were magnetically charismatic, how would you behave at parties and interviews?

At this week's Life Club you'll be selling yourself left, right and centre and enjoying it.

Life Clubs News:

The lovely Charlie Damonsing, who runs the Bury St Edmunds club is starting up in Ipswich today, so she'll be running two clubs. Do join her and tell anyone you know based near Ipswich. It's going to be fun.

The other two new clubs starting in September are Glasgow (30th September) and Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire (24th September). Make a date in your diary for those too and tell your friends.

Those three clubs are all offering free membership (worth £10) for their first month of opening.

Do pass us on to your friends, I'm sure they'll get a lot out of Life Clubs.

See you at Life Clubs,
Nina
Founder Life Clubs

Come to your nearest Life Club this week - and tell any friends you know who live near one of our clubs about us.

* Buckinghamshire, Great Missenden
* Dorset, Bournemouth
* Esssex, Loughton and Romford
* Hertfordshire,Watford
* London, Westminster, (Mondays) and (Wednesdays)
* Scotland, Edinburgh and Glasgow
* Suffolk, Bury St Edmunds and Ipswich
* Surrey, Camberley
* Warwickshire, Leamington Spa
* West Yorkshire, Ossett

Life Balancing

I suppose I've been feeling really happy and balanced this past week because my two eldest children have been working with me and my husband has been at home all week.

In my ideal world I wouldn't have to worry about whether I'm staying at work too late and not seeing my family enough, because we'd all be working together creating something for the future. My work and home life would be intertwined - not because I'm such a great mum - far from it - but because we're working on the same thing together.

An eternal optimist, I haven't been put off by the feuding Jacob and Esau, fighting over their father's birthright, I've been more influenced by the Rupert Murdoch idea of putting my children in charge of various parts of the business. It seems a wonderful way of combining all the things you love best.

This week at Life Clubs we want to inspire you to think clearly about the balance you want in your life and how to achieve it. Once we've shown you how next week can be totally different, you'll want more.

See you at a Life Club,
Nina
Founder Life Clubs

I don't give a damn

I remember when I first thought about what perspective it would be good to see the world through.

I was going through one of my many under-confident phases and Scarlett O'Hara popped into my mind.

Yes, I know she's a bitch and selfish and greedy and manipulative (and I can relate to all those things too), but she's determined and strong and believes in something and I love all that about her and the fact that she doesn't care what others think - which is something I still struggle with.

I decided those many years ago that the 'I don't give a damn' perspective would be a good one for me to choose and that I'd remind myself of it by wearing something green (those curtains).

So, whenever you see me with my sparkly green ring on you'll know I may be needing a confidence boost and I've got Scarlett by my side helping me.

We're a pretty formidable combination.

See you at Life Clubs,
Nina
Founder Life Clubs
PS Yes, I know Rhett said 'I don't give a damn', but I don't give a damn - it might as well have been Scarlett.

Going down to the crossroads

So often our life feels like this... which way do we go? It doesn't even have to be a big decision, it can be quite a small one.

Being stuck at a crossroads can be a daily occurrence.

Often I just sit down and think about what the answer could be, but this week is metaphor week at Life Clubs and sometimes using an image really helps.

I'm having a bit of a crossroads moment right now thinking about what's important for me to be saying at a talk I'm giving to Sheffield Technology Park - do I go this way or the other? Which is going to be most relevant for my audience of entrepreneurs - this 'lightbulb moment' or another?

If I think about it in metaphor terms, it suddenly becomes clearer. I'd like my talk to look like a spiral. I'd like it to flow gracefully and lead them through to their own conclusion.

Thinking like that, I can probably put all my 'lightbulb moments' in and have them run from one seamlessly to the next. And, just as the crop circle, I can start small, use a large arc and end in a bit of a crescendo.

Why use words when a picture will do?

See you soon,
Nina
Founder Life Clubs

Far from the madding crowd

Far from the madding crowd I can do what I like and in Dorset, with my daughter about to study this Hardy novel, I decided to go for my first Hardy.

I've always thought I'd hate Hardy. I've tried several times to get into one or other of his novels and have given up - his poetic style of writing frustrating me. But this time, with the thought of GCSEs hovering in the background I persisted and was it ever worthwhile? It was brilliant. A Greek tragedy in a Dorset village.

A few days of being totally immersed, with hazy memories of a very sexy Terence Stamp and Julie Christie in my mind, I realise again how my ideal life would allow me to read novel after novel.

In London I have time for three or four pages (maximum) a night before I drop off to sleep exhausted. I usually have a few personal improvement books I'm in the middle of, simply because a novel would have me too gripped to either go to sleep or function properly the next day.

But here, in Dorset, lying on the beach or in bed or on the sofa far from the madding crowd I am happy and living in the present. What's more, there's a whole host of other Hardy novels to explore so I can see hours of bliss stretching ahead of me.

Bring on the next Hardy!

See you at Life Clubs next week,
Nina
Founder Life Clubs

It's never too late

Thankfully I grew up in a late starter family.

I was god knows how old when I learnt how to walk, called 'immature' at school until I left and had my last child at the age of 44. To make matters 'worse' I had just turned 50 when I had my 'lightbulb moment' about how I could bring together all the things that I enjoy doing and turn them into a business.

Luckily our family role model was Grandma Moses.

Grandma Moses was born in 1860 in New York and started painting her primitive art pictures when she was in her mid-seventies. She had her first art show in New York when she was 79 and at the age of 95 was seen regularly on TV painting the view from her house. She died age 101 having completed 25 paintings that year.

Now do you see why I'm not worried that it took me so long to discover my life's purpose. In Grandma Moses terms, I'm a baby.

This week discover your life's purpose at Life Clubs.

Nina
Founder