On Monday 30th November I woke up very early, at 5am which is actually now pretty normal for me. I scooped 3 and half month old Scarlett up out of bed and put her in the car. I picked Lotte up from the station and then headed up to Birmingham to go to The Success Summit which included The National Entrepreneur Awards run by the Entrepreneurs Circle. I was a finalist for one of the awards, Best Business Enabler which was very exciting.
When we got there it was jam packed with Entrepreneurs, in fact there were 1000 entrepreneurs all buzzing around the Hilton Metropole Birmingham. It’s a massive hotel with an American feel to it. Bringing a baby to one of these big events was a first for me and I was pretty nervous. I knew there would be lots of talks as well as the awards and as anyone with a baby knows you never really know how they’ll react to new situations.
We found a seat close to the front but also next to the exit just in case I needed to make a run for it with a screaming baby.
An Inspiring Day
The day started with Nigel Botterill, with a special guest speaker; the brilliant and inspiring Michael Gerber, who is the author of the book The E Myth. He had come over from the US for this event and he had the whole room on their feet at the end, some in tears. It was a powerful speech and at the core was all about how much we care about what we are doing. If you don’t care about your business then you should find something else to do because you’ll never reach super success if it isn’t something that puts fire in your belly. Being an entrepreneur is a tough journey and you need to care about what you’re doing and how you are affecting others. Making a positive difference to people’s lives is important.
Throughout the day the awards were announced one by one. Every finalist was introduced and Nigel would share with the room some amazing success stories from all the finalists. Some had had some pretty incredible journeys, from losing everything to climbing back on top and smashing it in their businesses.
Best Business Enabler Award Winners
When it came to the award I was up for ‘Best Business Enabler,’ I genuinely didn’t think I would win. The other finalists were amazing businesses and I know a few of them personally. Nigel read each finalist name out and explained a bit about their business and why they were finalists. Just as he was getting to the end of the list ready to announce the winner, Scarlett (my 3 and a half month old baby) started getting very excited and started shouting! Nigel acknowledged her heckling and said ‘are you cheering for your mum Scarlett?’ It was pretty well timed and only seconds later Nigel announced that I was indeed the winner! This I was not expecting and I headed up on stage totally stunned! I am absolutely honoured to have won this award for ‘Best Business Enabler’ especially considering the other finalists, who are all amazing entrepreneurs and so inspiring.
The judges were 3 incredible entrepreneurs who I hugely admire, so for them to have picked me is amazing and so humbling. This award is all about a business that helps other businesses and at the core of The VoiceOver Network we are all about helping, supporting and strengthening the voiceover industry. We do this by helping to empower our members with knowledge, skills, community, opportunities, development and they get great savings too.
A Dream and a Vision
2015 has been a hell of a journey! At the start; The VoiceOver Network was a dream, a vision and I am incredibly proud of what it has become today. From the launch on 30th January, to the brilliant workshops, amazing monthly events, meeting all our wonderful members every month as I grew in size, with my pregnant belly. Then having my beautiful baby girl Scarlett on 18th August. Now here we are at the end of 2015 with an amazing membership organisation, a new little girl in the world and winners of The National Entrepreneur Awards for ‘Best Business Enabler’. It has not been an easy ride and I have had to dig pretty deep this year to stay on track. I actually can’t remember what it feels like to be in my comfort zone! But what I would like to say is that if you believe in something then go for it.
Thank you to everyone who has supported us this year. Here’s to an incredible 2016!
By Rachael Naylor, founder of The VoiceOver Network as well as an experienced voiceover artist, actress and mother to 2 beautiful girls. The voice of many well known brands including Virgin Media, The Travel Chanel, Channel 4, Channel 5, Persil, Toni and Guy and many more.
