My own personal growth, and mindset enriched by self awareness, brought me to a point where I decided to pursue my inner vision of leading a business centred around personal development for women. The aim was to help women in overcoming self doubt, so they could reach their unlimited potential and holistic transformation.
House of Holistic Performance is the result of my own personal growth, self confidence and self discovery path for the last 20 years. All of those years, I have been aiming to find the best solutions to overcoming obstacles and leaving my comfort zone in a quest for personal success with self-acceptance, self-compassion and a sense of fulfilment of my own full potential.
The journey has been very rocky, but it has lead me to many ‘aha’ moments – which have had a tremendous effect on how life looks for me in the present moment.
Someone recently congratulated me on my baby daughter arriving in October 2024 and wished me all the best, hoping that I’m thriving.
I hesitantly say that I am – not because everything is perfect, but because I feel less burdened by the things that used to trouble me. At 44, I feel more complete than ever, having embodied my life vision so deeply that it’s almost overwhelming to realise it’s unfolding right here and now as I speak and write.
Note: The names in client stories used as examples of growth have been changed.
Redefining Success: Personal Development for Women
What does success mean in the modern world?
From my experience as a peak-performing woman, and working with other women striving for personal development, we urgently need to redefine the meaning of success. I would argue that success for many women means fulfilment, to some work achievements, and to others being a housewife. However, to most of the clients we’ve had the pleasure to work with, success means finding your authentic self with a deeper understanding and connecting to your life’s purpose.
Today’s women face challenges of having or choosing to fulfil many roles at the same time. Being a mother at the same time as pursuing a career path, or being with family at the same time as being available for social circles, for example.
Women run 110% every single day without realising that at some point, something will need to be given up due to burnout, mental health problems, a high stress level or a relationship commitment.
The above is the reason why we want to nourish women’s personal success. Women cannot drive far without fuel, and our holistic programmes create a transformation in your thinking, unlocking personal growth, self-awareness and a growth mindset. The emotional health gets looked after and becomes less reactive but more creative – “the body becomes a new mind”.
We don’t really need to create a new movement to empower women – women are already powerful. We need to help them to rediscover their full potential with more self-compassion and self-acceptance.
Why is Personal Development Important?
Personal development is not just a “nice-to-have” in the modern version of leadership and peak performance.
More women than ever desire to level up their career and professional path. However, based on my experience and work with high-achieving women, many of us face challenges in developing soft skills, alongside health issues like burnout.
A 2023 study by Women Rising confirms what I have observed. Confidence and self-doubt are among the most significant challenges for women in their careers, affecting 53%. Burnout is also a concern, impacting more than half at 55%.
What drives the pattern is the unworthiness factor, and having the “good girl” persona which always masks our authentic self and how we want to be seen.
I have experienced burnout twice and the tendency is to look after yourself last. It’s a common problem in all the female clients we work with. There is never enough time to follow the healthy habits of eating, sleeping or exercising.
Personal development is a way to reset your whole self, it will bring benefits to your self confidence and self esteem whilst your body will be more nurtured and nourished.
Common Misconceptions About Personal Growth for Women
A misconception about personal growth for women is that it’s an empowering movement. Of course, there are elements of motivation, inspiration and levelling up energy that will spike to action.
However, empowering women takes more than to make them feel good. We need to work on the deeper understanding of the limiting beliefs which often stops them from growing into their own potential. Self-improvement comes from setting achievable goals and actually achieving them, step by step.
Personal growth strategies are tailored to individual needs and depend on the inspirations you have got. We offer different resources from body – mind coaching, the neuroscience of change and somatic experience, and we strongly focus on the body with physical training and nutrition and its benefits to cognition, self-confidence, overcoming obstacles and resilience building.
Some other common misconceptions about personal growth include:
The supportive network of women you get a chance to access is there not only to give applause, but to challenge your thinking and beliefs.
Personal growth is not a linear path and requires commitment over period of time to start with. The thing is, once you get hooked on the benefits coming from the action you take, you will desire more transformational results that the personal development is creating.
A personal development programme with House of Holistic Performance is not just a well-being journey but a game changer for your professional progress and life.
Mindset Shifts for Personal Growth in Women
The growth mindset, in connection with embodying your new emotions and feelings, is where transformation begins.
Our client Anne had a mindset shift and overcame negative thinking about reaching for a higher job position in her organisation. Her shift happened at the point of self-confidence and self-awareness when she realised her past stories were blocking her from reaching for that dream job.
The fear of the unknown and public speaking transformed into courage and vulnerability when she embodied the position she was applying for. She decided to become the person who would rather take steps to learn new skills than forever regret the opportunity which came to her within one year of working with us.
A mindset shift is a benefit of joining our Master or Foundational programme. We can face the challenges you find on your way and transform them into a success story of your exciting future.
Overcoming Past Thinking and Self Doubt
Our past stories, experiences and beliefs are locked in our memories and our bodies as emotions and feelings. The best you can do is to change your thinking and work on feeling new emotions, elevating them rather than staying in the survival mode of anger, fear, guilt, shame, blame, or frustration.
I have been on the journey of transforming my limiting stories for a while and being aware of myself and what drives my behaviours and stops my progress is, at its root, very liberating and transformational. The growth which took place inside me is profound and lasting. Additionally, overcoming self doubt is more a matter of talking myself out of limiting beliefs and semantics.
The new skills you gain in the process of personal growth will allow you to simply speak your truth with a full transparency. It might not come easy at the start, the old patterns might arise when you at least expect them to, however, over time, it will become more familiar and straightforward to follow.
Training your unlimited mind potential is like training muscles, over time you feel stronger, fitter and more agile.
You become unstoppable.
House of Holistic Performance is my way of overcoming past thinking and self-doubt, and it’s proof it can be done. When you stay focused on learning and identify the reasons for change, improvement will and must happen.
Practical Steps for Personal Development
What are some practical steps you can take towards personal development?
1. Become an Observer Rather than a Reactor
One of our professional clients, who turned her whole life into more opportunities, told me once that this is one of the hardest things to do.
Yes, indeed, removing yourself from the reactive state and usually aggressive, guilt or shame driven actions in order to move away from the pleasing or “good girl” persona takes time to embody. You have never done it before, hence you need to give yourself time. Observation will serve you as one of tools for more inner growth.
2. Focus On the Importance of Well Being and Mental Health
Many things can stop your personal development, however, being in a lack of physical, mental and emotional fitness will pay back at some point. Burnout is the common side effect of overworking, with the idea that “more is better”. However, remind yourself every time you skip a healthy lunch or workout, that it is the quality that matters over the quantity.
Of course, you are going to have days when you will need to do a sprint to fulfil anything you plan and want to stay accountable to, I do this as well. However, maintaining your well-being and holistic fitness will make the marathon more achievable.
3. Emotions Are Not Always the Best Advisor
As you develop self-awareness, you will recognise that your limiting behaviour is driven at its root by a set of limiting emotions. Once you recognise the pattern of how they make you act, or stop you from acting, you can change them for the emotions you actually want to feel.
4. Accept the Organic Process of Growth
The whole point of personal development is to create the person you want to be.
It might take a while to fully embody your new envisioned experiences, the actions you will take, and the emotions you will feel. Personal growth does not happen overnight because all the limiting patterns are locked in your subconscious mind which you operate at 95% – only 5% belongs to your conscious thinking. With the help of practices such as meditation, you can tap into the brain wave which will allow the process of change to happen.
Learn to accept that you might regress or stop the process completely and acknowledge with self-compassion your failure to carry on. However, after the heart-based compassion, take the steps to get into your practice again.
5. Start Strength Training
I know you might prefer a different activity such as Yoga or Pilates, or wanted me to be coming more from empathy and deeper understanding. I’m here for these as well. However, I want to immerse you into the world of benefits of weight training for female body: brain, hormones, confidence and resilience.
Activities to Support Personal Growth
There are countless activities I could recommend, but here are five can help you make meaningful progress and shift more quickly from where you are now.
Think of these actions as foundational building blocks for your personal growth journey.
Self Reflection
Self reflection is a part of many transformative coaching programmes. However, my point is to self reflect with self awareness and become conscious of the loaded programme of your past.
When you write down your self reflection, truly embody what you are writing and take this activity to the heart because when our clients do that, overnight miracles happen to them.
You can also review the words you are talking to yourself and the language you use. Is it that you speak with kindness to yourself or about yourself?
Acknowledge what you are putting after the word “I Am”.
Meditation
It’s amazing to think that I now include meditation as a key part of my personal development activities. Why? Because only a few years ago, I would have refused to do this. Initially, I approached meditation casually, incorporating it spontaneously into my personal growth plan. However, over the past 12 months, it has become an essential daily practice. Yes, I still have days or weeks where I might skip it, but I end up regretting this, because I know it transforms the way I create my personal and business life.
Physical Training
The benefits of movement, or what I called Holistic Fitness, for our capacity to peak perform and regulate brain axis with other body parts and hormones, our DNA expression and brain neuroplasticity is what you need in order to stretch and overreach into the direction of full potential. The benefits are vastly underrated and women should be more inquisitive to learn and experience them.
There is no single client at House of Holistic Performance who embodies the benefits of weight training. The weight lifting is a part of Body pillar in our Holistic Performance Method. We teach what we preach.
Healthy Eating
You might be surprised to see “healthy eating” on the list, as you are looking for personal development activities, not a wellness programme.
In a world of my idea of business, “Health is the King and Wellness is the Queen”. Why?
Because I have seen and worked with far too many people, including upcoming leaders, entrepreneurs, business owners, top London lawyers and executives, who lost mental and physical health on the way to “becoming”, including myself.
We believe there is a healthier way rather than burnout. Following a quality meal plan that nourishes your body and mind, gives you sustainable energy and makes you feel vibrant and look unstoppable, which is what we want for you.
Quality Sleep
How much should I sleep? I am very busy, I have a deadline? What shall I do when I cannot sleep? How can I manage my sleep when I am in the middle of an important project?
I get asked all of these questions and the answer is very personal to me. I used to suffer from sleep trauma and stored lots of negative emotions about my sleep due to a few reasons: as a child I used to wake up early to kindergarten around 6:30 am, as a Personal Trainer I used to work week by week crazy hours such as 5am wake up. I had tendencies to over exercise which did not help my recovery.
Over the years, I created an emotional feedback to waking up early and if I did not get solid 8-9 hours of sleep, I would not function. I did some work on this and elevated my emotions around waking up and trust me, it worked. As I become a mother of two, there are times I just have to work earlier hours and when I do that, I feel very fulfilled. I think I feel my soul.
However, as has been said, I am very aware what lack of sleep is like and what my cognition is like when I don’t sleep. My performance drops down and my sense of drive for my business disappears.
So my advice is, solve your sleep issues before they become the reason why you have to stop your journey. You can drive on with your passion and block your brain only so far until your whole body gives up completely.
Boundary Setting
Boundary setting is a profound set point into your personal growth. Often easier said than done, at least at the start. It can feel like a sharp pain in your heart and bring emotions of guilt and unworthiness. However, over time, it will give you freedom and sense of control.
How Can a Personal Development Coach Help Women Grow?
“I came to sort my physical health and ended up on a journey of self- discovery, changing my perspective and outlook on life. Currently, I am applying for a higher job position , my marriage is improving, I am stronger physically and mentally. I believe in myself more and I am learning to live my new life after 40.
Thank you H.O.H.P”
Reena Ruhomah, Senior Policy Executive
Many women who join our programme, like Reena, are looking for an overall experience of transformation on all levels – not just body or health. Overtime, they can tap into the other issues which used to bother them and needed to be reassessed.
A personal development coach will take you beyond your past experience. It will take you out of your comfort zone and hold you accountable toward yourself. You have a goal and we help you to get what you want in the most profound way possible.
Work With a Personal Development Coach!
Frequently Asked Questions
I’ve put together answers to some of the questions I get asked most often.
How do I develop myself as a woman?
You can develop yourself as a woman by asking yourself inquisitive questions, going beyond the cultural boundaries set for women. Feeling stuck is a moment to act rather than feel sorry for yourself and the situation you are in. Give yourself a moment of self-compassion and a big hug – you’ve probably never done it before – and then ask for help and support.
Self Discovery Session and let’s talk about your personal development plan.
How to overcome low self-esteem as a woman?
To overcome low self-esteem as a woman, change the tape that has always been playing in your head. Hire a personal development coach if you want to rise faster. Motivational speeches will not work long term, you need a foundational change of part thinking and feeling.
Why is personal development important for female leaders?
As more women get involved in important decisions, we need to become more confident and more aware of our potential. We can only reach this potential when we are consciously embodying our growth from within, when we embrace our beauty of vulnerability and ability to endure in the most difficult moments.
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