Currently...

Currently I am working on building up my online yoga business, http://www.loveyogaonline.co.uk" rel="nofollow">Love Yoga Online, which is an online yoga video resource which enables people to become part of a community and to learn yoga at home by streaming or downloading the class videos.  

In addition I teach yoga most days of the week at various venues, mainly at the luxury boutique hotel, The Scarlet in Mawgan Porth.

Every week and every day is different for me, which I love!  I teach regular yoga classes in hotels, offices, peoples' home and yoga studios and in between my classes I work on my website which involves videos shoots, writing yoga and healthy living articles, working with other yoga teachers and well-being experts as well as promoting and constantly developing my business.

This year I am focusing on getting more yoga teachers involved from further afield and creating yoga class videos in European languages to make yoga available to as many people, in an affordable way, as possible.

Before I escaped...

Before this I was working in London in the New Media industry, specifically in Account Management and Affiliate Marketing.  My role was very much client facing, and networking within the industry was a huge part of knowing what was happening and who was doing what to be part of new projects and technologies.

I worked in the industry for 3 years after finishing university.  I decided I needed a change because I would often read and watch programmes about inspiring and adventurous people and their stories. I kept wondering when I was going to have a story like that, then I realised I had to make the story not wait for it to find me.

So I decided to quit my job and go to live in India for a month and study yoga, then move to Cornwall and commit to my on-off relationship with my now-fiancé based there.  It was a huge change of life, pace and scene and it took some adjustment but once I had found my feet and started work on my business and teaching yoga, everything fell into place.

My moment of truth...

I have dreamed of doing a million awesome and exciting things, and I never dreamed I would have the opportunity to work in dedicating my life's work to the system of yoga - improving the health and well being of myself and as many other people as I can come into contact with - so I am exceeding my dreams!

There was a moment before I left London when I told the first person my plan to travel to India, leave my job and move to Cornwall with no money and no plan. Just saying it made it real and I thought "I am actually going to do this".

When I was in Cornwall and I had the idea for the business, as soon as it started taking shape I knew this was it and my life path had become clear; I am using my online marketing skills and knowledge to develop a learning resource and community to make the teachings of yoga available to as many people as have the internet - amazing!

Planning for it...

I worked with many business support agencies in Cornwall to learn about the various aspects of business, as it was all new to me.  

The set-up funding came partly from loans from family, business grants available in Cornwall and business competition prizes.  

The worst and best bits...

The most challenging bits about making this happen have been meeting myself again and again and needing to do the work on myself in order to be the best leader of the business possible.  Also when business relationships get tricky - that is always tough - but very good lessons are learnt.  Keeping a work/life balance has always been very important to me and sometimes that has been challenging when there are a million things to do and just me to do them!

The best bits have been working with the other yoga teachers and people involved in the creation - to share the experience and to see the awesome outcome of all our hard work.  My main intention is to create a useful web-based resource and life-enhancing community which is a very exciting, motivating and uplifting goal which keeps me going.

Best advice...

The best advice I have received is "it is important to be a leader of yourself before you become a great leader of others and organisations".

This is not to say don't start leading others until you are perfect (as that is unachievable), but it holds us to be the best we can be, and therefore the projects we work on will be the the best reflection of ourselves.

Advice I would give others is that many people can do many things adequately, and happily too; however find your passion, what you truly love and believe in wholeheartedly, as you will only be incredible at what you love to do.

Useful resources and information...

I have found business advice agencies, business mentors and business training very helpful with all the practical stuff.

I think it really helps to have people to look up to in your field or business - for me it is my yoga teachers, Shiva Rea and Elena Brower.

The one book that really stood out as a guide during the set-up process is called http://www.amazon.com/Authentic-Business-Create-Your-Perfect/dp/1841126497/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1349275114&sr=1-2&keywords=Authentic+Business+by+Neil+Crofts" rel="nofollow">Authentic Business by Neil Crofts which reminds us that business does not need to be dog-eat-dog but quite the opposite.