Get off the Express Train!

Do I dare mention that it's only six weeks to Christmas! I'm sure like me you are wondering what happened to this year? Maybe it's because we are all so busy that we don't have time to notice the months racing by. It's rather like being on an Express Train but we should stop and get off the train sometimes and enjoy the beautiful countryside that surrounds us. The Autumn colours in the New Forest were stunning this year and they are only just over their best. The Holly Trees are covered in red berries, does this mean we are in for a cold winter?

I had the pleasure of attending the Women of Our Time Lunch at the Chewton Glen Hotel on October29th. This lunch is held annually and the proceeds go to The Oakhaven Hospice in Lymington. The speaker this year was Clare Balding TV Presenter and Journalist. She is well known for her live racing coverage of the Grand National, Derby, Arc de Triomphe and Royal Ascot, a regular presenter on Radio 4 and has made guest appearances on many TV shows. She had us all entertained with her stories and experiences of life as a broadcaster. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to her and found her very friendly and easy to talk to.

I am a very lucky person as I do get invited to some fabulous events. On November 2nd I made my way to Unilever Head Office in Leatherhead to attend an evening with Chef Marco Pierre White of TV's Hells Kitchen. Once again it was a charity event this time to raise funds for Hospitality Action a charity that helps hospitality people who have fallen on hard times. After a champagne reception in the Foyer we all went into the smart theatre kitchen where the tables had been set for dinner. Before dinner was served two or three people from each table were invited to go up and watch Marco cook a variety of dishes from his new cookery book 'Marco Made Easy'. I found Marco absolutely charming and very appoachable, it makes you realise that what you see on Television is not always the real person. Dinner was delicious and I had a thoroughly enjoyable evening, met some very interesting people and left with a copy of his cookery book. The evening raised £17,000-00!

I am looking forward to the next Wessex Women's event on November 30th. Charisma of Fawley are hosting a Festive Fashion Extravaganza followed by a Christmas Dinner. As we are all so busy during December I thought we'd enjoy a Christmas dinner early! This is proving to be a very popular event and there are very few places left.

Don't forget the Everywoman conference on November 17th. This really is a conference worth attending if you want to grow your business. As well as meeting and listening to some inspirational and like minded women you will also have fun. All details can be found on http://www.everywoman.co.uk/

Finally 'If you think you have had a bad day try missing one'. Cavett Robert. To me every day is the start of a new opportunity.

Avril

The Season for Awards

On Tuesday October 12th The Wessex Women met to hear Karen Guttridge of Slimfocus give a really interesting talk on weight control. If only we would eat less, stop snacking and exercise more we could all look as great as Karen. She explained to us that crash diets are only a temporary measure but if we changed our eating habits and ate less the weight should stay off and we could still indulge in our favourite foods. She also told us about Nordic Walking. I am hooked on Nordic Walking and go out with Karen for an hour's  walking three times a week. I feel healthier and fitter for it and it is also great fun.

Wednesday was another busy day for me, up at 5-30am to be in London to judge the 'everywoman business awards'. This is my 5th year of judging these awards and I always love the day. The awards are given to women in four different age groups and this year I was judging the under 25 year olds. I always come home totally inspired and humbled by the stories of some of these women and how they have overcome adversity and made a success of their lives. The awards are presented at a glittering lunch at the Dorchester Hotel London on Wednesday December 1st. If you would like to go to the event or know of anyone who would like to sponsor a table contact http://www.everywoman.co.uk/. It is always a wonderful event and great for networking.

It must be the time of the year for awards because on Thursday October 21st I am attending the South East Tourism Beautiful South Awards For Excellence at Mercedes Benz World with Jan Hoy.  Anne Paterson is a finalist in the self catering catagory. Anne regularly attends the Wessex Women's meetings and we wish her  luck and success on the evening.

I have been invited to be on Radio Solent next Wednesday on the Alex Dyke Morning Show. The BBC want to encourage the over 55's to get on-line and overcome their fears with computers and being well over that age I am going to discuss the subject with Alex. I always enjoy my visits to Radio Solent, everyone is so friendly and welcoming.

I don't get to see television very often but one of my favourite programmes is The Apprentice so I was delighted when I heard there was a new series coming to our screens. However what a disappointment it has been so far with such appalling behaviour from the ladies, if that's what you can call them! Their behaviour gives business women such a bad name and is no example to young women wanting to succeed in business. I'm a great believer that being aggressive gets you nowhere but being feminine does! Hopefully they will improve their behaviour in time before they become a laughing stock.

The next Wessex Women's meeting is on November 30th. Lesley Bradsworth of Charisma in Hythe is presenting a fashion show so this will be an ideal opportunity for you to come and chose your Christmas party dress.

I'm reading another fantastic book 'Goals' by Brian Tracey. If you don't have time to read you can buy all these great motivational books on CD and listen to them while you are in your car.

'You don't have to be great to get started but you do have to get started to be great' Les Brown

Avril

Unwind and Relax

I have just returned from a weeks holiday in Lanzarote, the weather was hot and sunny and I relaxed on the beach every day and read three very inspiring books. I came back to work feeling refreshed, motivated and full of new ideas. We all work so hard juggling family with our careers that it is really important to give ourselves quality time to enable us to unwind and relax to be-able to function well and stay healthy. I am very lucky to have a great team supporting me in my business. Having such a committed team allows me to go away knowing that the Cloud Hotel will carry on without me. The flight home was delayed by three hours due to the French air traffic control being on strike so I didn't arrive home until 3-30am on Friday. I had to be up bright and early on Friday to prepare for the World's Biggest Coffee Morning to be held at The Cloud Hotel in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. Many friends and colleagues came, some of whom I hadn't seen for some time and I had a lovely time catching up with old friends. As well as having fun we raised £620-00 for Macmillan Cancer Support. Thank you to everyone who came and generously supported the event.

I am still enjoying my Nordic Walking with Karen Guttridge of Slimfocus. Karen is going to be the speaker at the next meeting of the Wessex Women's Network on Oct 12th. The title 'Change Your Thinking Change Your Weight' is bound to be a popular subject as we are all very conscious of our weight so please book early to secure your place.

The evenings are drawing in and the clocks will be going back at the end of October. The dark cosy evenings are a good time to catch up on your reading and one of the great books I read while I was on holiday was 'Winning' by Clive Woodward. Sir Clive Woodward was the coach for the England Rugby team that won the World Cup in 2003. Although rugby isn't probably one of your favourite sports you can learn alot about team work and leadership from his book. I found it inspirational.

The nice thing about team work is you have others on your side.

Avril

Tell The World About It

September is one of my favourite months, it seems to bring a calmness to the New Forest. The Cloud Hotel continues to be very busy as the more mature customers wait for the children to go back to school before enjoying a break in our tranquil setting. However life for me is anything but tranquil and I continue to do talks, attend events both locally and in London and enjoy life.
On September 3rd I was invited to attend the official opening of Pavilion Dance in Bournemouth. Having performed at the Pavilion Theatre Bournemouth in two Summer Shows and a Pantomime in the early sixties I was interested to see this new project. I was so impressed with the new facilities, wonderfully spacious studios and an intimate theatre for performance. We were entertained by some energetic and very talented young Street Dancers.It is so rewarding for someone like myself who is so passionate about dance to see such talented and enthusiasic young dancers. Dancing gives you discipline, stamina and drive that you can take into any proffession. For more information go to http://www.paviliondancesouthwest.org.uk/
Earlier that day I had been invited to join 90 Retired Partners [staff] of Tyrell and Green for lunch at the Masonic Hall in Southampton. Following a delicious lunch I had the pleasure of presenting my talk 'The Show Goes On' to them and what a great audience they were. I always dread talks after lunch because it is a time when people often drift off to sleep but I managed to keep them all awake, including the 95 year old who was an amazing lady.
One of the best pieces of advice I received when I first took over the running of The Cloud Hotel was from the late American Restauranteur Bob Paton. He said 'Always tell the World About Yourself' because you can very quickly be forgotten. Getting good publicity for your business is invaluable and as I told you in a previous Blog I was lucky enough to be approached by Emmett & Smith, a PRcompany in London to be interviewed by Good Housekeeping Magazine. I'm delighted to tell you that the article is out now in the October issue. I'd like to pass Bob Paton's advice on to you.  Never turn down a PR opportunity if you want to survive in business particularly in these difficult economic times. Another way of promoting your business is by giving talks and presentations to local clubs and organisations. I know most people dread having to speak in public but once you've overcome the fear it's not only fun but great free marketing. There are organisations like Toastmasters where you can learn public speaking and I can recommend Brian Tracey's book Speak To Win, How to present with Power in any situation. He has given me lots of new ideas.
On Saturday I went to Jennifer Nutburn's Ball in Brockenhurst. Jennifer attends our Wessex Women's meetings regularly and she and her husband Phil have been organising this annual Ball for the past 9 years. The proceeds go to Naomi House Children's Hospice and they have raised thousands of pounds for Naomi House and raised £9990-00 at this year's Ball.. Sadly Jennifer announced that this would be their final Ball but many congratulations are due to both of them for all their hard work. I had a wonderful time and haven't danced so much for years.
Finally a reminder about the World's Biggest Coffee Morning to be held at The Cloud Hotel on September 24th from 10-30am-11-45am. All proceeds go to Macmillan Cancer Support. Please come along and bring your friends.

'The future belongs to those who follow their dreams' Eleanor Roosevelt. So don't just dream it do it!

Avril

Business should be fun!

I'm a great believer that as well as hard work business should be fun and members of the Wessex Women's Network have certainly had some fun this month.On August 21st I managed to get a table of 12 together [including three husbands] to attend the Festival Ball at The Pavilion Ballroom Bournemouth. The event raised around 45k which will go towards the Variety Club, the children's charity and Help for Heroes. It's good to get together socially and be-able to chat and find out more about each other and I discovered that Valerie and I both went to Blackheath High School and at the same time! I have known Valerie for some time but we never realised we had been to the same school until then.

Last night we enjoyed the Wessex Women's Summer Dinner. Although it felt more like Autumn we all had a great time. The plan was to enjoy a glass of champagne in the garden before dinner but the heavens opened and we had to stay inside but that did not stop us enjoying ourselves. We were entertained by Nell Montague-Rendell who started the evening with some of her favourite songs including Fields of Gold, Turn Me On and No One But You. We were all spellbound  not only with her singing but her whole performance. She is a very talented young singer and I am sure she has a successful career ahead of her. We were lucky enough to be-able to enjoy a second performance from her after we had finished our main course and before I brought in Jan Hoy's birthday cake to celebrate her 70th birthday. Needless to say we all sang Happy Birthday but our voices were not as tuneful as Nell's! We were able to buy Nell's CD for £10-00 from which she gave £5-00 of each sale to the Country Education Trust. Not only do we enjoy ourselves at The Wessex Women's meetings but we try and raise money for our favourite charities.

Speaking of which can I remind you all of the World's Biggest Coffee Morning to be held at The Cloud Hotel Brockenhurst on Friday September 24th from 10-30am - 11-45am. Please do come along to enjoy a cup of coffee, bring your friends with you and sample our delicious homemade chocolate brownies. All proceeds  go to Macmillan Cancer Support.

Avril

A Can Do Attitude - - - - -

It's August already and there are only 18 weeks to Christmas! This year is racing by and it's been a while since I've had time to write my Blog. Like all of us I'm juggling work and family and have been spending time with my grandchildren whenever possible.

The July meeting of the Wessex Women was well attended and everybody thoroughly enjoyed Dr Denise Tylor's talk on hypnotism. Her talk 'Gaining the Competitive Edge Using Hypnosis' explained how hypnosis is an excellent tool for weight loss and great for improving sporting performance. She has worked with dancers, ice-skaters, golfers and tennis players, helped them to overcome fear of eg a particular jump [skaters] or generally to "up" their level to gain a competitive edge. Hypnosis can also be very effective for child related issues such as thumb sucking and bed wetting and for us adults our habitual behaviour such as smoking or overeating etc. A thoroughly absorbing and thought provoking talk. The Summer Dinner to be held at the Cloud Hotel on Wednesday Aug 24th is a chance for everyone to get together, network and have some fun. We are priviliged to have Nell Montague-Rendell entertain us during the evening. Nell is the daughter of David and Diana Montague-Rendell two very successful opera singers.

The Wessex Women's Network website has a business directory, it costs £50-00 + vat to have your business listed and is just another opportunity to promote your business. You will find the details of how to register your business on the Wessex Women web-site. http://www.wessexwomensnetwork.co.uk/.

On Thursday I attended the launch of Women 1st Femail Chef' Development programme at The Dorchester Hotel London. It was launched by Michael Caines one of Britain's most acclaimed chefs. He was AA Chef's Chef of the year in 2007, awarded an MBE in 2006 for services to hospitality as well as having 2 Michelin Stars. Michael lost his right arm in a car accident in 1994 but was back to work part time after 2 weeks and full time after 4 weeks. Not only is he an inspiration with his positive attitude and determination to not let adversity affect his career but also a charming and down to earth man. He spoke so much sense at the event and recognised that although the industry is trying to encourage more young women to become chefs it is very challenging for them. I had a very enjoyable evening and was able to catch up with some of my colleagues in the hospitality industry.

An important date for your diary is Friday September 24th. The Cloud Hotel takes part in the World's largest Coffee Morning every year in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support, everyone is welcome between
10-30am and 11-45 am. to come and enjoy a cup of coffee and sample our moorish homemade chocolate brownies.

These are worrying times for businesses at the moment with so many cut backs and redundancies but I still believe it's the companies who give 5 star service and exceed their customers expectations who have a better chance of surviving this economic climate and come out of it not only stronger but more successful. I am reading a fantastic book at the moment recommended to me by Karen Guttridge whilst on my Nordic Walk. 'THE 25 PRINCIPLES OF SUCCESS' by Jack Canfield and I'm now recommending it to you. A great read.

Remember 'A Can Do Attitude Makes The Impossible Possible'

Avril

A week in the life of-----

I can't believe a week has passed since I was having my photo shoot in London for Good Housekeeping magazine. However it has been another very busy but enjoyable week for me. I continue to do my Nordic Walking with Karen Guttridge three times a week and am already beginning to feel fitter. I had the pleasure of talking to the retired staff of Marks and Spencer on Tuesday, I have spoken to them before and they are always a lovely audience and very responsive which makes it more enjoyable for me.

The highlight of my week was opening an exhibition of Alan Carter's paintings at TheARThouse Gallery in Bournemouth. Alan and his wife Julia were both ballet dancers and great friends of mine and Julia decided to organise this exhibition of Alan's paintings in his memory. His paintings 'Choreographics' are unique and show the culmination of Alan's profession as a dancer, ballet director and choreographer as dance movements in graphic representation. The ARThouse Gallery is in Bourne Avenue Bournemouth and the exhibition of Alan's paintings will continue until July 25th. To view Alan's paintings visit ac.choreographics@googlemail.com  It was an enjoyable evening and I was delighted to meet up with two dancers who were in Pantomime with me at the Hippodrome Theatre in Brighton in 1960! It's a small world.

Quote 'You are not here for a long time but you are here for a good time' so I hope you are taking time out to enjoy this lovely weather.

Avril