I am and have been many things...
In my professional life, I was a serial entrepreneur. I followed my passion and did what hadn’t been done before, building businesses that added value to people’s lives, making it up on a daily basis and enjoying the process of creation. I was also a mentor and business adviser. Alongside this, I had a parallel life as an athlete and competed in two sports at international level. Then I metamorphosed from city professional to semi-feral and had a rewilding phase. Now, to my surprise, I now find myself living on wheels. My next project is the creation of a self-sufficient intentional community in Portugal, called the Earth Collective (click link or see below). How life changes!
My spiritual journey has been essential in understanding the craziness of my life and the world at large. It helped me to maintain optimum health and effectiveness and taught me to connect with the rest of ‘all that there is’. I have written about many of the insights and epiphanies I gained from my experiences, in my book ‘The Ultimate Relationship… the one with yourself’.
Here is a more detailed biography taken from the book.
At the age of 28, Fiona founded a firm of Independent Financial Advisers in London, to pioneer financial advice for women. She was heralded as 'The first woman of finance' by Harpers & Queen. Over a 17 year period, beginning in 1988, she built her business into one of the most respected and high-profile firms of advisers in the UK. During this time, Fiona frequently contributed to the media and was profiled in 8 books on women entrepreneurs. She won three national business women’s awards and appeared in the ‘Top 100 List of Power and Influence in Financial Services’ in 2003 and 2004. Whilst building her business, Fiona set up a non-profit organisation for women financial advisers.
Later, Fiona held a variety of non-executive directorships, as well as advisory roles including one with a micro-finance charity which helped women in the developing world start their own businesses as a means of escaping poverty. She was ‘Women’s Champion’ on the Government's Small Business Council and mentored fellow business women.
In 2007, Fiona became an internet video pioneer in setting up a website called ‘Diva-Biz’, which published video interviews with high profile business women to tell their stories and showcase women’s leadership style. Then she headed up a fledgling SKY channel called ‘Horse & Country TV’ which gave her an opportunity to combine her passion for horses and her love of business.
Next, Fiona launched an equestrian video website called ‘Horse Hero’, also at the cutting edge of web development. This time, however, pioneering a subscription model. Fiona filmed top professionals and Olympians training and caring for their horses and followed them behind the scenes at major competitions. She made more than 1200 videos and the site gained a cult following. Then came a reclusive period where Fiona lived remotely on a smallholding in the Welsh hills, looking after her animals and the land.
Prior to starting work, Fiona spent a year in Australia teaching at Timbertop School (the Australian equivalent to Gordonstoun), followed by a degree in Psychology and a MBA. Sport has featured strongly in Fiona’s life and she has competed at international level in rowing and the equestrian sport of endurance.
Fiona says, “Early on I realised that the ultimate relationship is the one with yourself. How you manage yourself is key to being the best version of you and creating the life experiences you want, rather than reacting to seemingly random events. Of course, it is easier said than done because the life-long habits of thinking, feeling and behaving trip us up. But with awareness and practise, I have learned it is possible to change the mindsets that hinder us and re-focus our thoughts to become a conscious creator in our life.”
“A sense of spirituality has played an important part in my life because it allowed me see the bigger picture when dealing with everyday issues. My version of spirituality is practical. It is about engaging the quantum (or multi-dimensional) part of yourself in order to be healthier, happier, more abundant, more inspired or more of whatever you want, by taking control of your thoughts, your body and your life. Consciousness affects matter. One day, I believe there will be explanations for everything that is currently invisible and esoteric."
Notes: If you are interested in mentoring, please get in touch via the contact page. If you would like to receive notifications when I post new content, click here. You can also follow me on Substack.
The Earth Collective, a new sustainable co-living project in Portugal
A project for conscious living is in the early stages of development, in Northern Portugal. The ‘Earth Collective’ aims to adopt an Earth Ship hybrid style of building, using bio-architecture, sacred geometry, earth energies, natural and quantum physics, bio-mimicry, bio-resonance and permaculture, to create self-sufficient, harmonious, sustainable living. The aim is to build 7 homes and a community facility, in 25-30 acres. Revenue will be created from a range of enterprises, enabling members to live and work in situ. Like-minded people who are visionary, grounded, experienced in different ways, spiritually oriented, globally aware and have funds available (or will have shortly) to buy into the project, are invited to have a discussion. Please get in touch via the contact page.