Kelly Swingler's 2021 Summer Business Plans

Today we're talking to Kelly Swingler, coach and speaker helping leaders to rip up the leadership rulebook and lead from their core. Kelly works from my home in the Cambridgeshire Fens in a village on the outskirts of Peterborough, surrounded by farms, and work with clients from around the globe.

May is the last month of Spring – how has Spring been for you so far? 

It’s been wonderful so far. We moved house in October and we’ve finally planted our new vegetable patch. Seeing plants grow is always lovely as are the lighter mornings and brighter days after what has been a very dark and isolating Winter. Businesswise, seeds that were planted at the end of last year are becoming opportunities and with the world starting to open up again everything is feeling lighter.

What are your plans for the Summer – for your business and for you? 

In August my partner and I are having a couple of weeks away in the UK, one week on the coast with our dog and a second on the Norfolk Boards with our youngest son and the dog.  

The older boys are away at festivals and with friends, so we may not see much of each other at all in August.

Businesswise, I’m taking most of August off. Last year I kept waiting for my time off, waiting for holidays and rest periods and I promised that this year I would take the time. I’ll probably spend most of it writing.

May is National Walking Month, and walking was an activity which was one thing we could do over the last 12 months.  Please share your walking experiences in recent years. 

We’ve had dogs for years, so walking is part of the morning and evening routine. Our active rescue dog who we brought home just before the first lockdown had been in a shelter for seven months and our walks are still quite excitable and all over the place, but she’s getting a lot better.  

Our lovely Bulldog who fell asleep for the last time in August 2019 wasn’t much of a walker.  He’d sit down when we got to the end of the driveway and if we wanted to go further he’d need dragging along the path – always an interesting view for passing pedestrians.  

I love walking, especially where we live now as it’s so quiet.

Where is your favourite place to walk? 

Woodland walks are my favourite and thankfully we have a lot of those around us. A nice walk on the East Coast, about 40 minutes from home is always good to blow the cobwebs away on a cold day. It gets far too busy in the sun.

Have you got any events planned for the coming months which you’d like to mention – where you and/or your business will take a leading role? 

I’ve been invited to be a judge and Chief Inspiration Officer for the Inspiring Workplace awards and for the brand new Inspiring Cities where I’ll be co-hosting and co-founding the City of London. I’m excited for both and cannot wait to see the impact that this has on workplaces around the world.

I’m also delighted to be launching my next book, “The Four Core-Ners of Rebellious Leadership” in September. This is one of four scheduled for the next two years, I lose myself in the writing and it’s always a pleasure when the books make it out into the wider world.

Are you attending (have you booked) any events at all for you as a business person, or for you?

I’m looking forward to getting back to yoga in a class even an outside class. Having spent all day on Zoom, the last thing I want to do is do a Zoom yoga class. The energy is totally different and it just doesn’t feel the same.  

What’s your one top business tip to help others be positive about their business in May 2021? 

It probably sounds very woo-woo, but I think the biggest thing is to believe that everything will be ok.

There has been so much turmoil over the last year, so much unknown and so much still unknown. But you’re still here, and you’re here for a reason, so trus in that, and know that everything will be ok.

Tell us all one funny thing about you which we won’t know and you are happy to share (make us laugh!).

How boring am I? The funniest thing I can think of, is probably my inability to sing and how much this drives my family insane. I still feel, that I have the vocal chords of Pink! and Adele.  

Far too often, I’m seen using a kitchen implement as a microphone and performing my latest concert on stage in the kitchen. I’ve been invited (told) to wear my headphones when listening to music, that doesn’t drown out my singing though.  

My son is often reminding me that ‘indoor voices’ are needed during the week so that people can concentrate on their work. As far as I’m concerned I’m singing at Wembley regularly.

For more information visit www.kellyswingler.com