168 The Moment I Almost Gave Up and Went Back to the NHS

Welcome

In today’s episode of Treat Your Business, I’m joined by Anna, a pelvic health clinic owner and a client inside my Thrive Activate programme. Anna shares the moment she seriously considered going back to the NHS after 12 years away, after her clinic hit a sudden quiet month and the panic set in.

This is a real conversation about what it feels like when income dips, confidence wobbles, and you start questioning everything, plus what changed once Anna decided to get support and build a plan.

Episode Summary

Anna opened her clinic in late 2021. Early on, things went well, but she was undercharging and relying on organic growth. Then she hit a month where it was totally dead and she started thinking, “Do I just go back to the NHS?”

She shares how she tried to fix things by working harder and doing more research, but without knowing her numbers or having a strategy, the good months and bad months felt random.

We talk about what finally made her book the call, what it felt like joining Thrive, and why the weekly Q and As, monthly pods, and quarterly strategy days helped her stop feeling isolated and start making confident decisions.

Anna also shares the practical changes she made, including introducing treatment plans and packages, getting clear on her numbers, and bringing in support like a VA and an accountant. Now she’s consistently fully booked and stepping into the next stage: building a team so she can reach more women and expand services.

Key Takeaways

• A quiet month can trigger panic when your income feels unpredictable.
• Knowing your numbers and having a plan reduces overwhelm.
• Packages and treatment plans can create steadier income and better patient buy in.
• Support roles (VA, accountant) protect your capacity when the clinic gets busy.
• Community matters. Being around peers who get it makes growth feel possible.

Episode Sponsor

Today’s episode is sponsored by Jane, clinic management software and EMR. Jane’s online bookings and secure client portal help you reclaim your evenings and weekends by taking admin off your plate. To see how Jane can support your clinic, book a personalised demo. If you are ready to get started, use the code 'THRIVE1MO' at the time of sign up for a one month grace period on

Treat Your Business podcast is proudly sponsored by MBST, the groundbreaking technology revolutionising recovery and rehabilitation. Offering a non-invasive, drug-free solution for musculoskeletal conditions and nerve injuries, MBST works at a cellular level to stimulate regeneration. Expand your services and deliver long-term patient improvements without increasing your workload.

Learn more at mbstmedical.co.uk. 

Resources & Links:

Subscribe to our Channel on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@thrivebizcoach?sub_confirmation=1

Website: https://Thrive-businesscoaching.com  

Transcript

[00:00:00] Anna: And I seriously considered at that point. Do I just go back to the NHS and I'd been out of the NHS for 12 years at that point. So that was not a small consideration to make. Yeah,

[00:00:11] Katie Bell: was that feeling, was that panic because you were like, I don't know how I'm gonna have any money. 

[00:00:17] Katie Bell: Welcome to the Treat Your Business podcast, the show for clinic owners who want real, honest advice and tried and tested ways of doing things. I'm Katie Bell, and this is the new era of bigger insights and bolder [00:00:30] conversations to help you grow a clinic and a life you love. Let's dive in.​

[00:00:41] Katie Bell: Today's episode is sponsored by Jane, a clinic management software and EMR. The Jane team knows that when your workday is spent providing care to your patients or your clients, it can feel like there aren't enough hours in the day for the rest of your admin tasks. This can mean scheduling appointments become.

[00:00:59] Katie Bell: The hours [00:01:00] tasks turning what should be restful evenings into extra long work days. That's why Jane has designed user-friendly online bookings. You can give your patients freedom to book their appointments at their own convenience. Patients can also manage their appointments, fill out intake forms, and enable SMS and email reminders.

[00:01:17] Katie Bell: From their secure online portal, which saves you from having to do it manually to see how Jane can help you reclaim your evenings and weekends. Head to the link in the show notes to book a personalized demo. Or if you're ready to get [00:01:30] started, you can use the code Thrive one mo at the time of sign up for a one month grace period.

[00:01:34] Katie Bell: Apply to your new account.

[00:01:44] Katie Bell: Anna, welcome to the podcast. 

[00:01:46] Anna: Thank you very much for having me. 

[00:01:48] Katie Bell: Thank you for being here. I'm super excited for this conversation. Anna. Anna, I'd love you to paint the picture. Yeah. And the picture that I would love you to paint is Anna before you [00:02:00] started working with Thrive, when we very first met, we had our first conversations.

[00:02:04] Katie Bell: Can you describe what was going on for you in your business and in your life? 

[00:02:09] Anna: So I think business-wise, I'd opened the doors to my clinic as it is now in 2021, end of 2021, and I was a couple of years in and it was going well. But I'll be frank, competition was low in, in my area at the time for the services that, that [00:02:30] that I offer.

[00:02:31] Anna: Okay. So I think some of it, and my pricing was quite low and all those kind of things. There, I think there was an element of just like beginner's luck if you like, and I was really enjoying the clinical side of it, so that was fantastic. Okay. And then two years in, I had this one month where it just, it was dead.

[00:02:50] Anna: It was just totally dead. And I was just like, what the hell do I do? 

[00:02:55] Katie Bell: Yeah.

[00:02:55] Anna: And I seriously considered at that point. Do I just go back to the NHS [00:03:00] and I'd been out of the NHS for 12 years at that point. So that was not a small consideration to make. Yeah,

[00:03:07] Katie Bell: was that feeling, was that panic because you were like, I don't know how I'm gonna have any money. 

[00:03:13] Anna: Yeah, 

[00:03:13] Katie Bell: yeah, 

[00:03:14] Anna: because it, it all started so well, and I was just a, I sort a bit, laissez-faire really. I was just going along thinking, oh, it'll just continue to build dah, organic growth.

[00:03:26] Anna: And then when it didn't, I was like, shit, this could, I don't [00:03:30] even know why, but I still didn't get in touch. 

[00:03:33] Katie Bell: Yeah, of course you did, right? 

[00:03:35] Anna: No because being, me and like lots of other physio clinic owners, I just thought. I can do this. I'll just knuckle down.

[00:03:43] Anna: I'll listen to the podcast, I'll read some books. I'll, I'll get a new planner. All that kind of, yeah. Bs. Yeah. And then. A few months into that I was just like this I still don't know what I'm doing. I don't know, my numbers, I don't [00:04:00] know why I have months that are good and months that are bad.

[00:04:04] Anna: My, my income's fluctuating. I can't make any financial plans with that, like for within, like for the family, it was just, it was just unsustainable for me to continue the way that I was. 

[00:04:17] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:04:18] Anna: And there was a couple of things I think that made me make the call. One of them was that I just started to realize that I can't, it's that thing that you always say actually you know what [00:04:30] got you here won't get you there.

[00:04:32] Anna: So I thought something's got to change. I've got to do something differently, and it's got to be something quite. Drastic, quite radical for me. 

[00:04:40] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:04:40] Anna: And then also it was actually listening to one of the podcast episodes with Ruth, I don't know if you remember Ruth. Yeah. And I just thought, and like we, we both know Ruth A.

[00:04:52] Anna: Little bit now, and Ruth is very much she just yeah, I made a decision and I'm in. And I just thought that's just what I need. I need to just make [00:05:00] the decision and do it. And that's when I booked the call 

[00:05:05] Katie Bell: and I re I remember that you were, it, I felt like you were in a loft.

[00:05:09] Katie Bell: Were you in a loft? Like it felt like you had a 

[00:05:12] Anna: Yeah, it was awful. Katie 

[00:05:14] Katie Bell: like ceiling. I remember you noticed. It was weird shit that I remember. And you were sat there and it feel, it felt like you've had a lot on your shoulders, is how I would describe my first conversation with you, Anna know it was like quite heavy.

[00:05:28] Katie Bell: You felt a bit like you were in [00:05:30] despair about, I'm not really making money you were exhausted, you were energy depleted, you were, you were a mom of a girl and you were a wife, and you'd got all of that going on as well. You were trying to protect your time with her, but you needed to make money and it just felt yeah, it was all quite heavy for you. 

[00:05:48] Anna: I actually felt at that point that it was impossible. 

[00:05:51] Katie Bell: Yes. 

[00:05:51] Anna: So I think even when I had that call with you, I felt a little bit like, I don't think, I don't think Katie's gonna be able to help me. 

[00:05:58] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:05:59] Anna: At [00:06:00] least have that conversation. 

[00:06:01] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:06:02] Anna: Yeah. And 

[00:06:03] Katie Bell: you were.

[00:06:04] Katie Bell: If I remember rightly, you had only pay as you go. You were charging way below what you should have been. 

[00:06:09] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:06:10] Katie Bell: Your diary would do this quite a lot, go up and down and then people would cancel. And so you'd, as you said, you'd have some weeks where you couldn't get people in, and then some weeks, which would just have nobody in.

[00:06:20] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:06:21] Katie Bell: And you had no predictability to it whatsoever. How was all of that Anna, showing up for you in your personal life? 

[00:06:29] Anna: [00:06:30] I was just stressed and miserable, 

[00:06:32] Katie Bell: right? 

[00:06:33] Anna: And I didn't feel like, I felt like I had to be. I felt like when I was trying to work and solve these problems. I was like thinking, oh, I feel guilty 'cause this isn't making any money, so I shouldn't be spending my time doing this 'cause I should be doing stuff with my family.

[00:06:52] Anna: Okay. And likewise, when I was with my family, I was thinking, oh shit, I should be working on the business 'cause it's not making any money. I was just going round and round [00:07:00]in these kind. Circles mentally. 

[00:07:03] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:07:03] Anna: Which, is just very a very stressful, panicked way of thinking in hindsight.

[00:07:09] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:07:09] Katie Bell: And then you don't really make any good decisions when you feel 

[00:07:12] Anna: like No. Yeah, no. And I had no insight about that. Like I can say that now, but at the time I don't think I could even see that's what I was doing. Yeah. Yeah. I think I'm someone that is quite I am quite self-reliant and I'm quite independent and I always have been [00:07:30] since being quite young.

[00:07:31] Anna: And so it's quite a big step for me to say, actually I need help and I don't know what I'm doing. 

[00:07:37] Katie Bell: Yeah. So we had a conversation. 

[00:07:41] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:07:41] Katie Bell: And if you remember rightly, I know we had a few conversations because I think we chatted and the decision wasn't, initially, it wasn't the right 

[00:07:50] Anna: time, was it?

[00:07:50] Anna: No. 

[00:07:51] Katie Bell: This is not the right time. 

[00:07:52] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:07:53] Katie Bell: And then we chatted again some months later and it was, it still felt for you this is a massive step. I'm [00:08:00] scared, I don't wanna, and there was a lot of resistance. 

[00:08:02] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:08:03] Katie Bell: You felt like if nothing changes. And I'm gonna have to just throw myself into this.

[00:08:10] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:08:11] Katie Bell: Yeah. And so you made the decision, even though I wouldn't say reluctantly, it's like I was forcing you to make this decision. 

[00:08:18] Anna: No, not at all. Not at all. Yeah, it was from an internal point of view. Yeah. It was just very it was just very against everything that I've always, you know. Learnt, which [00:08:30] was, you can figure things out yourself.

[00:08:32] Anna: You just need to do the research. You just need to work harder. All of those kind of things. So it was from that point of view, and actually, that first conversation that we had where it wasn't the right time. It was still such a valuable conversation to have with you, and I did not at any point feel it wasn't a pressured conversation.

[00:08:52] Anna: I think it's important for people to hear that because at that time you, you knew I think, quite early in that [00:09:00] conversation that, because you instantly started saying this is what you need to do now, Anna, because. You need to be in the right place to you realize you could see what I couldn't see.

[00:09:11] Anna: And that was so valuable to me and I really respected that. And that was one of the reasons why ultimately when the time came, when I was ready, there was no one else that was gonna ring. 

[00:09:22] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:09:22] Anna: 'Cause I knew that you wouldn't bullshit me. 

[00:09:25] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:09:25] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:09:26] Anna: You know what I mean? Yeah. Yeah.

[00:09:28] Katie Bell: And you made the [00:09:30] decision, you joined our Activate program. What can you describe to everybody what it felt like initially when you first joined? Because I think it's really important to not just paint, this beautiful picture. It's all absolutely fabulous. And from day two you start making money and all of this it's a journey.

[00:09:49] Katie Bell: It's a process, but I hope it's one that you feel very supported in, straight away. Yeah. How, describe it to our listeners. 

[00:09:57] Anna: Yeah. I was super, super excited. I think [00:10:00] we'd had the conversations that I was gonna join in July, but I said, I don't wanna start till September. 

[00:10:05] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:10:06] Anna: So all summer I'd had this, it was like feeling much lighter already and like feeling so much optimism and raring to go and then.

[00:10:14] Anna: Like those first couple of conversations, like the strategy call and the mindset call. They were great. And then I think the moment where I thought, oh shit, this is actually quite scary. I was on like first Q and a [00:10:30] because it like, and not the q and a. Like I'll come onto that later. It is so important to do the q and As, but to begin with, it feels, you feel quite daunted because.

[00:10:42] Anna: You're suddenly thrown into this group. Other people seem to be just having to come on and be telling you all about what's going on in the business. And some people, and everybody's do at different stages and doing different things, it's very overwhelming. Yeah, the 

[00:10:58] Katie Bell: blue gonna be [00:11:00] overwhelming.

[00:11:00] Anna: Yes. Yeah. And in life I am the sort of person that I'll, like in a group, in a big group situation, I will sit and to just watch what the dynamic is for a little while before I get involved. And I think I did that for a few sessions. Yeah. And then I think I came in with a question very meekly at the end, and I still feel like that a little bit sometimes now because especially when, I'm in the Elevate q and As because, it's, there's other businesses that are doing different things. We've got bigger teams, I've got bigger [00:11:30] premises, and it's easy to start to compare yourself. But I think part of that journey has been.

[00:11:37] Anna: To get comfortable with that. And actually the individuals that are on the call are all so supportive. Yeah. There's never anyone like, I don't know, there's never a sense that oh shit. I wish I hadn't asked that question, because it's always like someone will post. Oh, that was really useful actually.

[00:11:58] Anna: I'm glad you asked that. [00:12:00] And oftentimes I'll come to q and a and I won't even have a question, and then by the end I've got a question. Because, and that's the beauty of it,

[00:12:09] Katie Bell: and they happen every week, Hannah. So 

[00:12:11] Anna: yeah. 

[00:12:12] Katie Bell: The weeks that you don't have a pod. And so that just gives you that regular checkpoint, that regular touchpoint.

[00:12:18] Katie Bell: And sometimes the q and a, it's team, it's termed a q and A, but really it can be a, and you've said this to me before, Anna. Yeah. You've said Katie, I don't have a question, but I just need to, I need to just word vomit at you. 

[00:12:28] Anna: Yeah. And 

[00:12:29] Katie Bell: you [00:12:30] just. Tell me what's going on. 

[00:12:32] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:12:33] Katie Bell: And then 

[00:12:33] Anna: I can feeling, yeah. 

[00:12:35] Katie Bell: This is how I'm feeling and I, and then I can ask you the questions that makes you go, oh, 

[00:12:39] Anna: absolutely.

[00:12:39] Katie Bell: Yeah, actually this is what I'm struggling with. So it doesn't always, you don't always have to come with it. 

[00:12:44] Anna: No. 

[00:12:44] Katie Bell: It's the exact thing that I know I need to work on. It often can be, I'm in a world of this going on right now and I'm not sure what I need, but that's our job as good coaches, is to be able to find what it is you really need and get to that point.

[00:12:57] Anna: Yeah. Yeah, [00:13:00] definitely. 

[00:13:00] Katie Bell: You've, I can't, it, it is funny that you share that, Anna, that when you first came on that you didn't really wanna ask questions and I felt like we've built up some form of relationship, so I was very much encouraging you to. I hope in a supportive and a kind way. Yeah. To ask questions, to be brave, to put yourself out there now, like this is a, like you are a totally different Anna, 

[00:13:21] Anna: yeah. 

[00:13:22] Katie Bell: You will just ask those questions. You will speak up. You are in our Activate Master's program, which means you're in the second year of our program, which [00:13:30] means we get to sit around the boardroom table together. You are so valuable around that table because what you give to others and the advice that you share is like a totally different, Anna from a year and a bit ago like it, it's amazing to see.

[00:13:47] Katie Bell: I don't think you probably know that. I just sit back and be like, wow, look how far you've come. Yeah. All that stuff that you've learned is in there and then you are, repeating that back to other business owners. I think it's incredible what you've achieved. 

[00:13:59] Anna: Yeah. [00:14:00] I feel. I feel different in myself.

[00:14:03] Anna: Like it's not just a business program. It is very much you. And that's business. However, wherever you look at it, whatever sector you're looking in, I don't think that you can run a business and not change in yourself. Yeah. Like it is a personal, it's a personal journey. I hate using that word, it's like, it is.

[00:14:21] Anna: Yeah. Yeah, it is. You change and you learn so much about yourself. You have to, otherwise your business won't [00:14:30] change. 

[00:14:30] Katie Bell: Absolutely. So we've taken you on this personal journey for what, what what Hannah has changed for you. Let's give people real, like strategic stuff, first of all. So what are the changes you've made in your business since starting our program?

[00:14:48] Anna: So one of the first things that I did was change my pricing structure and introduce, packages, treatment plans. Which, again, at the beginning I was very [00:15:00] skeptical about, but I thought, you know what? I'm in it. I'm gonna just trust the process. If it doesn't work, I can just change back.

[00:15:06] Anna: Yeah. So I gave that a go and actually I love it from a clinical point of view as well. I get better buy-in with my patients and all of that kind of stuff. So that. Has made my income more steady. 

[00:15:20] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:15:21] Anna: Don't get me wrong, I still, it still ebbs and flows. Yeah. Yeah. So why, 

[00:15:27] Katie Bell: why does it ebb and flow?

[00:15:29] Anna: Oh [00:15:30] no, you're coaching me now. '

[00:15:31] Katie Bell: Cause it's only you. It's only you, right? 

[00:15:34] Anna: Yeah, exactly. Which we talked about last week, didn't we? Yeah. 

[00:15:37] Katie Bell: We, we have. Got you to a place of, 'cause we've been, we've flitted and we've flitted out. We've flitted. Do I want team? Do I not want team? Do I want team? Do I not want team?

[00:15:47] Katie Bell: Yeah. It's taken a little while to understand this. We can get your income as predictable as possible and we've almost done that really. But to go to the next level requires something different. 

[00:15:58] Anna: Yeah, [00:16:00] definitely. 

[00:16:00] Katie Bell: And that's the stage you're in. So you've almost flattened out some of those peaks and troughs of income.

[00:16:05] Anna: Yeah. Your 

[00:16:05] Katie Bell: patients are getting better results. Yeah. You get better back in. 

[00:16:08] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:16:09] Katie Bell: What else have you changed? 

[00:16:11] Anna: I'm just, I'm more organized, so I like know my numbers. I check in with those regularly. I've got a plan. I know what my plan is for the next year. I know what my plan is for the next 90 days, and all that kind of stuff.

[00:16:26] Anna: Do I always stick exactly to the plan? No, [00:16:30] but I definitely realize now that if I don't have a plan. The side quests, if you like will rule the day rather than the main challenge. So that's changed. Like I'm fully booked, like constantly. I don't have, and that, and as that's currently a challenge for me.

[00:16:51] Anna: What's a 

[00:16:52] Katie Bell: great problem to have? 

[00:16:53] Anna: Yeah. Good problem to have. Yeah. And I think I'm grateful for that. Yeah. So again, my mindset has [00:17:00] changed. I'm a lot more optimistic than I was when I'm having A down. 

[00:17:05] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:17:05] Anna: I know that I'll come out of it and I know that if I have to work on not just paddling if you like, but I need to work on what's going on up here. 

[00:17:14] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:17:15] Anna: What else has changed?

[00:17:18] Katie Bell: Your systems and processes have changed In my, 

[00:17:21] Anna: I've got a VA now which makes a huge difference. I've taken on an accountant to do, the my [00:17:30] bookkeeping, got new software and things like that.

[00:17:33] Anna: All the, and they seem like little things, but I was always holding back with them because oh, how am I gonna afford it? How, but now it's I can't afford not to do that because if I don't have those things in place. I definitely would not have got through the last quarter with, the clinic being as busy, the challenges that we had at home with various illnesses and things like that.

[00:17:57] Anna: Yeah. I just wouldn't have been able, I don't know what happened. [00:18:00] Don't, not even thinking about it. Katie. 

[00:18:02] Katie Bell: Its gone, Its gone. 

[00:18:03] Katie Bell: And I think one of. It takes a moment to stop and reflect on how much stuff you've actually done and you're marketing your recruitment, you know how to, you, you're starting on that recruitment journey and we're gonna be supporting you with onboarding.

[00:18:17] Katie Bell: Then the training and new stepping into that next level of leadership, because that all brings new challenges. So it's not a one and done thing this ever, it's a constant thing that we, but Anna, [00:18:30] you. You really made the decision to invest in you. 

[00:18:34] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:18:34] Katie Bell: And you said to me on the very first call, this is like the biggest investment I will have ever made in anything.

[00:18:40] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:18:42] Katie Bell: And particularly on myself. And a part of you felt uncomfortable with that, didn't it? Because a part of you thought, should that be going into the family part? Should that be, for my daughter and her priorities, but actually. Without you working [00:19:00] on yourself and you doing this, you couldn't create a different future for the family and for your daughter, but this has given you hope.

[00:19:08] Anna: Yeah, definitely. I think making that investment, like you say, it was, it did feel like it, it felt very uncomfortable. Yeah. But if I hadn't have done it, I just, I don't just don't know what I would've done really. I just would've, I just would've carried on with everything being overwhelming and 

[00:19:28] Katie Bell: Yeah.

[00:19:29] Anna: Getting [00:19:30] increasingly more and more despondent with, doing what I love. That's the really sad thing, was that, I love doing what I do clinically. But it was just sucking the joy out of it, so I had to. It was an investment in my potential is what I felt at the time.

[00:19:47] Katie Bell: Nice. 

[00:19:48] Anna: Like when I was having that thing of, oh, shall I go back to the NHS, I was just, I got to the point I just thought, no, I'm not done. I've not fulfilled my potential as a person, and I've not fulfilled my [00:20:00] business's potential by any stretch. And if I'm honest with myself at that time, or if I was honest with myself at that time, I would've said to you then, yes, Katie, I do want to grow a team.

[00:20:12] Anna: But it felt too. Too much too, that was too far in the future. 

[00:20:18] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:20:19] Anna: And it still does a bit, but yeah I know now that's part of the, the process of growing my business and growing as a person and as a business [00:20:30] owner. Is getting uncomfortable with that feeling of, oh shit, this feels a bit scary.

[00:20:35] Katie Bell: Yeah. Yeah. And if it doesn't, it's probably not big enough. 

[00:20:40] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:20:41] Katie Bell: It's probably not the right thing.

[00:20:42] Anna: Yeah. Yeah. And also all the many other people in the community that, you know. Are all different stages and they all have the same feeling, whatever the challenge is. Yeah. And does that 

[00:20:57] Katie Bell: normalize it, Anna being.

[00:20:59] Katie Bell: Yeah, [00:21:00]

[00:21:00] Anna: it does. Totally. Before I was so isolated and I think one of the things like, I think the investment, we talk about it was a big investment. And I think one of the things that I thought about was I'll do some business coaching with through the funded local authority stuff and things like that.

[00:21:16] Anna: But actually. They're not physios and there was no, there was no other, I couldn't see any evidence being a blue, couldn't see any evidence of there being any other businesses like mine who would [00:21:30] get 

[00:21:30] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:21:30] Anna: The clinical side of it. Yeah. And that's been so valuable to, for you as like the head coach to understand that side of the business, but also everybody else who's in the community.

[00:21:43] Anna: Who are also physio business owners. So we get, what it's like with the day-to-day patient care. 

[00:21:49] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:21:50] Anna: And all the stuff, the CSP and the HCPC stuff and all that, red tape stuff as well around that. And. Yeah, I was alone before, very alone, very isolated, [00:22:00] and now I'm not.

[00:22:00] Anna: I've got I've got a team. Yeah. And I really missed that actually. I didn't realize how much I'd missed having people around 

[00:22:08] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:22:08] Anna: To bounce things off, 

[00:22:10] Katie Bell: because it is a very isolating place, being a business owner. 

[00:22:13] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:22:13] Katie Bell: Very. Especially when you are at the top of the tree, for lack of a better word.

[00:22:17] Katie Bell: When and as you grow, Anna. And you have more team around you, that feeling can be more pronounced. Because they, people look to you, they look to you for [00:22:30] motivation, for inspiration, for support, for the next steps, for the direction, for the vision. And we as leaders still have days where we feel.

[00:22:40] Katie Bell: If I can do it today, don't know if I can show up but I have to show up because I've got a lot of people that rely on me and that can feel heavy. As you grow, Anna, this is going to this in what you are doing now is gonna feel even more valuable and even more important for you. 

[00:22:55] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:22:56] Katie Bell: Because you need other people to lean on at that time.

[00:22:59] Anna: Yeah. [00:23:00] Yeah. 

[00:23:01] Katie Bell: What can you describe to our listeners what it's like when you come to the strategy days where we all get together in a room every quarter give them a flavor of what it's like. 

[00:23:10] Anna: It's just, it's lovely. You get to see everybody that you've seen on the q and As and you get to, you build relationships with people over time.

[00:23:21] Anna: The first one that you go to is a bit intimidating and scary. But you have to just suspend your [00:23:30] cynicism. Because all the sort of woo stuff that happens sometimes, like I am, that does not come naturally to me at all. But you just go with it and everybody, like I'm sure there must be more than 50% of the people in the room that are feeling the same.

[00:23:48] Anna: But you just go with it and have a laugh and it's just silly. And it does, it raises the energy. And it's just so inspiring to talk to to hear the content that, that's presented and to have that [00:24:00] guidance on the day, but also to actually just be sat and, be eyeball to eyeball with your peers and, bounce things off and talk things through.

[00:24:07] Anna: Oh, I'm not quite sure about this. And it's just lovely. It's just a brilliant day. It's like the it's one of the highlights of the program, really.

[00:24:15] Katie Bell: And I think like it gives you that bit of motivation to go into that. Like we do them quarterly and we do that for a reason because it gives you that 90 days of like right back up and re-energize I'm re-plugged in,

[00:24:28] Katie Bell: And I'm ready to go. And we come away [00:24:30] with strategies and processes or things that you can implement. And then you work with your coach in your pod on a monthly basis every 30 days. To keep you accountable, Anna, to keep you on track, and that's something that everybody struggles with. But you definitely you can have been in the past, easily overwhelmed.

[00:24:49] Katie Bell: Very normal. Lots of us are, and you often use us to say, okay, this is everything. What do I do first?

[00:24:58] Katie Bell: Yeah, and then write it [00:25:00] all down and then again, just do that. And you go, okay, great. 

[00:25:03] Anna: Yeah, and sometimes it's just as simple as that, isn't it? It's just getting it all off your chest. 

[00:25:08] Katie Bell: Yeah. Yeah.

[00:25:09] Anna: But yeah. Yeah. The combination, I think of The monthly pods. 

[00:25:13] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:25:13] Anna: Silly strategy days, the weekly q and As. Yeah. There is just like that, those,

[00:25:19] Katie Bell: constant touch points, 

[00:25:20] Anna: constant points in your year and and your week that you can come back, come back on track. 

[00:25:26] Katie Bell: Yeah.

[00:25:27] Anna: Or if you are if there has a side quest has [00:25:30] popped up that you've got to deal with then, you can just get, some guidance on that. And then you, the week later you're back or you've got, you've, oh, I've got my pod in a couple of weeks. I better think about what I need to do.

[00:25:43] Anna: 'Cause there's that accountability there. Yeah. With the pods. Yeah. That I really like. Yeah. Yeah. 

[00:25:48] Katie Bell: And what was it like when you you moved into our year two of our program and we had a boardroom session. Recently we've got another one coming up, so I'm very excited about. What was that like, Anna, for you?

[00:25:59] Katie Bell: Can you describe [00:26:00] that to our listeners? 

[00:26:01] Anna: I loved the boardroom. It was so fun because it was like a really small group. 

[00:26:08] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:26:09] Anna: And it was you, Nicola at the top of the table. And the dynamic back between you two is so there's such a good energy between the two of you.

[00:26:19] Anna: And also the banter between you two as well. It is so funny. So it's like a really, it's not heavy, it's not a heavy situation at all. And then just going round and [00:26:30] hear, hearing everybody's, it, it just really made you focus in on Yeah, and as I, I could feel it as it was coming round to my tone.

[00:26:37] Anna: I was thinking, shit, what am I gonna say? I need to really think about. Like I've got this amount of time to say what my problem is. And then also the bit where we had to listen to what everybody else's feedback was and not say anything. And you were going, Nope. Allowed anything [00:27:00] other,

[00:27:00] Anna: Really having to listen and take it on board what everybody's input was. And some of it was just thoughts. Some of it was practical stuff. So it was very powerful. It was it was very intense. 

[00:27:14] Anna: There was some really deep conversations around that table that, that day when we when we did it last time there was some tears 

[00:27:21] Katie Bell: always, 

[00:27:22] Anna: But you could feel that there was there was gonna be some, people were gonna go up a level after that [00:27:30] because they, everyone had to dig. Deep about what really needed to change or what the problem really was and,

[00:27:36] Katie Bell: yeah. And that was the, I guess the whole point of the day when I've got you on a much more kind of smaller scale is my job is always to really peel back the layers and find out what the actual problem is.

[00:27:48] Katie Bell: 'cause often the problem that you present me with is not the real problem. And it's my job to discover what that is and then guide you in where you need to go. And that might be me teaching you, or it might be. Coaching you and [00:28:00] there's two different, 

[00:28:00] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:28:01] Katie Bell: Two different ways that we do things. But the conversations are powerful and they're often things that need to be addressed.

[00:28:08] Katie Bell: And you obviously felt Anna, and I'm sure the other members did as well. It's a safe enough space for you to really lean into that. 

[00:28:15] Anna: Yeah. And I think because you've been through the Activate program for the first year. It's not like you're just dumped in with a load of people that you've never met before.

[00:28:26] Anna: Yeah. You've built some relationships with people in, in, [00:28:30] in the, around the table. 

[00:28:31] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:28:31] Anna: And so yeah, super, super supportive and yeah, definitely, a safe space sort of thing. Yeah. 

[00:28:40] Katie Bell: And if it, for people who are inspired by this conversation and really resonate with your story about where you were.

[00:28:48] Katie Bell: Where you are now. Give people a flavor of what's happening this next year for you. What's on the cards? What are we working towards now? 

[00:28:56] Anna: So the big thing this year is building, starting to [00:29:00] build my team. Yeah, that, that's the big thing, because I want to be able to reach more women.

[00:29:06] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:29:07] Anna: And I want to be able to offer more services. And previously I probably would've just thought, oh, I'll just go do that course myself. You can't do it all yourself. That's what, so rather than me trying to, what I need is a team. Yeah. And I'm excited about that. And just, yeah just more of everything.

[00:29:28] Katie Bell: I love 

[00:29:28] Anna: it. Please. 

[00:29:29] Katie Bell: But it's [00:29:30] because you've for want of a better word, you've cleared out a load of shit. 

[00:29:33] Anna: Yeah, 

[00:29:34] Katie Bell: we've put systems and processes and foundations in place that needed to be in place before we could go to this next level. 

[00:29:40] Anna: Yeah. 

[00:29:41] Katie Bell: And you feel ready for it now? 

[00:29:43] Anna: Yeah. Yeah. And the there's still things like with the systems and processes that I'm still, bringing in.

[00:29:49] Anna: It's not linear, it's not like I've heard people sometimes refer to Thrive as a course. It's not really, it is not a course at all. It's yes, [00:30:00] there's the portal stuff, which is presented like course, modules, isn't it? But that's just the platform that you're on.

[00:30:06] Katie Bell: Yeah, 

[00:30:06] Anna: but it's not a course. It's, it's I don't know, it's more of a network if I have to visualize the structure. 

[00:30:13] Katie Bell: Yeah.

[00:30:14] Anna: So all the time, you thinking about how could I tweak this? And then you go and work that out and there's information and support about that.

[00:30:23] Anna: Yeah, so just more, more continuing to make things better, tightening things [00:30:30] up, feeling more confident to do more marketing this year as well. I think that's something that before worrying about putting myself out there and the energy that I was bringing to, that public face if you like.

[00:30:42] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:30:43] Anna: I, and I'm doing as, doing a lot of work on that at the moment just to, feel more confident in doing that. Because, that's where I think I can really make an impact and get more people in to my clinic and raise the profile of pelvic health in the area [00:31:00] as well.

[00:31:01] Anna: Is just to get out there and I've just not been doing it, but this year I'm gonna do it. 

[00:31:06] Katie Bell: Now you've said it on the podcast in front of everybody 

[00:31:08] Anna: on podcast.

[00:31:10] Katie Bell: What would be your final piece of advice to anybody who feels like you did? But hasn't got out of their own way. 

[00:31:19] Anna: Just make that call. Just have that conversation. It is not, it's just a conversation. Just have that first conversation and just, [00:31:30] just take that first step. 

[00:31:31] Katie Bell: Yeah.

[00:31:32] Anna: Yeah. What's the worst that can happen? What's the best that could happen? 

[00:31:37] Katie Bell: You changed. Oh my goodness. I'm so proud. Yeah. Anna, you are an absolute inspiration. I personally, I love all, I love everybody we work with. I have a massive amount of love for everybody, but I love working with you. Your energy is great.

[00:31:52] Katie Bell: It's always great when you are on our live days, you bring great advice, you bring a lot of support, you bring a lot of blueness, which makes me laugh a [00:32:00] lot. And we laugh together about it because I'm definitely not blue. But yeah, I, you're just a joy to have in the program and long may continue and long may I be able to support you in your life and in your business.

[00:32:14] Anna: Thank you so much. And thanks to, all the team, everybody from, client care. 

[00:32:19] Katie Bell: Yeah. 

[00:32:20] Anna: All coaching team, it is just, and all the members, it's just. It's got me through some dark days in this last quarter for sure. Yeah, yeah, [00:32:30] Yeah. Um, Yeah. 

[00:32:31] Katie Bell: Well, We're not going anywhere

[00:32:33] Katie Bell: and I cant wait to hear what 2026 offers for you. 

[00:32:38] Katie Bell: Thanks for listening to the Treat Your Business podcast. Hit subscribe now and keep joining me for bigger insights, older conversations to help you build a clinic and a life you [00:33:00] love.