It's been quite a week since last I wrote, this year has much good in it, granted some huge challenges as well but isn't that what life in it's essence is about, we grow from the challenges and if anything, this week has proved beyond all doubt what an amazing team I have behind me, around me and with me at Inspire.  This month is scheduled to be a quieter month, I've promised we are not launching anything until September but then we have so much exciting stuff in the works that I genuinely feel excited about the year ahead, I say year because to me, September has always felt like a natural start to the business year, perhaps because of having children and I always seem to have much more energy to put things into place in September unlike January when all I want to do is build a pillow fort and hide in it until the spring comes.

When Inspire became mine I didn't write a whole new set of rules or a brand new constitution because the ones we already had in place seemed to more than do the job but it's really become evident that we do need brand new positivity filled policies and so that's what we're working on at the moment.  I acknowledge that for some the transition has been challenging, even in a free Facebook group but I'm 100% confident we are moving in the right direction and the team I have around me, we're excited for the future.

This week I went to somewhere I'd never been before and somewhere I'd love to see The Inspire Network launch, Chester, that historic roman city which is full to the brim of micro-businesses on the high street.  I think we could do so much good for entrepreneurial women in Chester and I hope to see groups setting up there.  One of Chester's unusual features is that it has multi-level rows of shops, it's not something I've ever seen before on any high street and it fascinated me.  It's also home to the most photographed clock in the whole world, a tribute to Queen Victoria at the end of the 19th Century.  It also has an impressive 2 mile long set of city walls, just slightly longer than those of Berwick upon Tweed.

It's a quiet city, even during the day you could tell it was nowhere near as busy as say central Newcastle.  I was shocked to find out that Uber hasn't even made it's mark there, talking to a local business person he remarked that they do occasionally come to the city from Liverpool or Manchester but they never stayed in Chester as they just couldn't make money from being there.

Looby was only really interested in 2 things, the Rhoodee, the country's oldest race-course which has existed since 1539 and the Zoo which features in it's own tv show, the secret life of the zoo.  I have to say I was so happy to sit and watch the giraffes I got a little emotional, it's these moments of great beauty which remind me just how happy I have been and how happy I'm going to be again.  Times of transition are always a challenge when you have existing health conditions but some quiet time cleared my mind enough to know that the path I must follow now is one of meditation, mindfulness and reassessment of not only my mind but also my body.  I've always had a positive mindset but  chronic anxiety has been one of the hardest things and it's so much easier to trigger it than it is to kiss it goodbye again.

I am however resolute, like a horse I shall wear blinkers and only listen to the positive, the good, the happy, it's how I've run my own businesses as a photographer, blogger and writer for the last 12 years and I've attracted so many good people, many of whom started as clients and ended up as friends, something for which I'm truly grateful.

I'm off now to shoot a wedding today, portraits and a wedding tomorrow and then portraits again on the day after, winning "wedding portrait photographer of the year 2018 UK" hasn't really impacted on my business yet (it's only been a week since it was announced) but if it's anything like winning last years "portrait photographer of the year 2017" I'm already super busy all of the time, I can't wait to see what happens next.

The scariest most exciting decision I've ever made

8 years ago I went along to my first Inspire Network meeting, I met ladies who would become friends, clients, colleagues and in some cases, all three things.  The Inspire Network was founded by one of those amazing ladies, Julie who saw a gap in the market for a networking association which was child friendly, over the years we've grown from one small meeting to several around the region, we've inspired women to take the leap into their own businesses and we've seen businesses grow and become forces to be reckoned with.  We bucked the trend by not having any advertising and as a not for profit we grew to over 10,000 members in our Facebook group.

In June of this year I will be the CEO, I'm taking us into a whole new era with a team of trusted advisors behind me, late last week as the news was announced, I'd already chosen 2 of my new board of directors and my 3rd and final director and shareholder is in the works.  Together under my leadership The Inspire Network will be making the leap from not for profit to a company which will make a profit but with our community of the most amazing women at the heart of it.  

From June we are opening up our group to women all over the country and I won't stop working until we are a global brand.  We are working with our members to increase the number of groups we have and will be moving over to a licensed/franchised business model.  We will be offering new sponsorship and advertising opportunities and we'll continue to support our members at every level of business or entry into business.

For me this is a whole new challenge, it's unlike any job I've ever had before, I have been a director in name for the last 3 years but now this becomes my company, my fight, my mission to succeed.  I still have to get from no profit to turnover to profit so that I can myself even start taking a salary but I'm able to do this because I have Mandy Charlton Photography which is a success in it's own right and which will continue it's path of being known as one of the regions best photographers.

I've never been afraid of hard work, try shooting 300+ photography sessions in one year and tell me differently, try running a business for any length of time and you'll know what you have to do not only to survive but also to flourish, from small acorns grow huge oaks.

I've blogged about most aspects of my life and so it feels right that I should share this news, this journey, this monumental battle with you my readers.  I'm doing this not just for me but for my daughters and for every girl who has a dream that one day she's going to have her own business, as women we continue to break glass ceilings every day but in a world still dominated by the patriarchy our fight to be accepted as equals has only just begun.

As women we are fierce and wonderful in business, we are brave, we are daring but whatever happens we care, we are after all filled with not just business sense but we have the EQ to go with the IQ and so when you have an organisation of women supporting women in business, the most amazing things can happen and as my old mentor, the great Jane Graham MBE once told me, there's no such thing as competition only collaboration.