| My guest blogger today is hypnotherapist, Ann Finnemore. Ann runs the Getting You There hypnotherapy, coaching and massage therapy consultancy, with her husband Steve. Getting You There helps clients achieve their health and life goals through hypnotherapy, remedial massage therapies, stress management, life coaching and career coaching. |  |
By Ann Finnemore
I love the work that I do with people to help them achieve their ambitions and dreams. I enjoy the face-to-face work and the studying, researching and writing about the methods we can all use to get over our mental blocks and find the motivation and determination needed to succeed.
I realise that, in many ways, I’ve been lucky to have grown up with people around me who fostered that belief in myself that anything is possible, if you just go for it.
My earliest memory of this was of when I was about seven and a teacher named Mr Dace asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up. Crazy about animals (as I still am) I said something very uninspiring and he became quite cross and said something to the effect of: “You could be anything you what to be – remember that and go for what you really want”. I always have remembered that and have kept that attitude with me since.
That said, it took me a long time to get around to writing a book. Although I write a lot in the forms of blogs and articles, I kept putting off focusing on getting a much larger piece of work together. I gave myself all sorts of excuses from “I won’t have enough to say for a book” to “I don’t know how to get an ISBN”. The reality though was that I wasn’t taking my own advice as a therapist and coach – the very advice I share in my book “Life in the Driving Seat: Taking Your Road Trip to Happiness”. I was making excuses and I wasn’t taking full responsibility for getting it done.
I realise that, in many ways, I’ve been lucky to have grown up with people around me who fostered that belief in myself that anything is possible, if you just go for it.
My earliest memory of this was of when I was about seven and a teacher named Mr Dace asked me what I wanted to do when I grew up. Crazy about animals (as I still am) I said something very uninspiring and he became quite cross and said something to the effect of: “You could be anything you what to be – remember that and go for what you really want”. I always have remembered that and have kept that attitude with me since.
That said, it took me a long time to get around to writing a book. Although I write a lot in the forms of blogs and articles, I kept putting off focusing on getting a much larger piece of work together. I gave myself all sorts of excuses from “I won’t have enough to say for a book” to “I don’t know how to get an ISBN”. The reality though was that I wasn’t taking my own advice as a therapist and coach – the very advice I share in my book “Life in the Driving Seat: Taking Your Road Trip to Happiness”. I was making excuses and I wasn’t taking full responsibility for getting it done.
 | Fortunately, I met a book coach (Sarah Houldcroft, from Goldcrest Books International Ltd). Sarah works with authors of fiction and non-fiction, and she told me she was running a workshop for business women to learn how to write a book for publication. That workshop was a real turning point for me. Finally, I understood the process of putting a non-fiction book together and, with Sarah as my coach, I was on my way. I knew what I wanted to share – the tools and techniques that I use with clients to enable them to discover and use their own abilities to achieve whatever they want to in life. I was keen that this shouldn’t be a dry, self-coaching instruction manual, but a book that could inspire as well as be of practical help. For that reason, I wrote the whole book using the metaphor of going on a car journey. From working out where you want to go to, through getting everything you need for a successful journey, to arriving with energy and excitement – looking forward to future journeys. |
(To view the book on Amazon, click on the cover image).
Writing the book was an education for me. I developed an even greater admiration than before for writers of fiction – the dedication, time and planning required to make a cohesive and interesting fictional tale is way beyond what’s needed to write non-fiction. The length of fiction books is greater too. Fiction authors really are amazing!
I also learned that there were a couple of areas of my advice that I was ignoring myself. The main one was a realisation I had when I came to write the chapter about the need to tell others about our plans in order to get both support and accountability. I realised that, other than my husband Steve, Sarah and one other person, I hadn’t actually told anyone that I was writing a book. I had held back from telling friends, family and other contacts partly because I’m an introvert and so often keep quiet about projects, but also because of a bit of fear of failure and judgment. Just what I was writing about letting go of! From that point on, I started to let everyone know – and the support I received was fabulous and really spurred me on.
I’m pleased with the reception my book has had, and am already considering writing more. I have some therapy-related haiku waiting to be compiled and some self-help guides. I’d love to think I might write a story one day, but am not yet ready to put in what that takes. Meanwhile I’m learning from authors I see around me – like Stewart and others I follow on social media. I’m enjoying every lesson too.
Writing the book was an education for me. I developed an even greater admiration than before for writers of fiction – the dedication, time and planning required to make a cohesive and interesting fictional tale is way beyond what’s needed to write non-fiction. The length of fiction books is greater too. Fiction authors really are amazing!
I also learned that there were a couple of areas of my advice that I was ignoring myself. The main one was a realisation I had when I came to write the chapter about the need to tell others about our plans in order to get both support and accountability. I realised that, other than my husband Steve, Sarah and one other person, I hadn’t actually told anyone that I was writing a book. I had held back from telling friends, family and other contacts partly because I’m an introvert and so often keep quiet about projects, but also because of a bit of fear of failure and judgment. Just what I was writing about letting go of! From that point on, I started to let everyone know – and the support I received was fabulous and really spurred me on.
I’m pleased with the reception my book has had, and am already considering writing more. I have some therapy-related haiku waiting to be compiled and some self-help guides. I’d love to think I might write a story one day, but am not yet ready to put in what that takes. Meanwhile I’m learning from authors I see around me – like Stewart and others I follow on social media. I’m enjoying every lesson too.
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