HOPE and healing are the focus of this lockdown business which has been helping residents navigate the pandemic.
Borough resident Sarah Sylvester launched her transformational coaching company, A Place of Space, in October last year after suffering from burnout herself.
Now she is working hard to support people across Wokingham in their own mental health journeys, using her own life experience to make a positive difference.
“In July 2019, I experienced career burnout that resulted in a public mental breakdown,” Ms Sylvester explained.
“When I saw my busy mind slowing down, I started to notice how hopeful and possible life could be.
“This insight had such a profound effect on my life and I wanted to share it with others.”
A Place of Space supports people to understand low moods, anxiety, and to live a “less tangled life” through a series of coaching sessions and thought-provoking podcasts.
“We experience an array of emotions but we don’t have to behave as those emotions decide,” Ms Sylvester said.
“There’s a misunderstanding that living a fulfilling life requires work, and there are many strategies that teach us how to be better.
“But we don’t always need to be taught, and we already have all the tools at our disposal.”
And she said the coronavirus pandemic has made her work more essential than ever before.
“The mental health agenda was already at the forefront of my mind last year, but the surge of Covid-19 meant we were all faced with something we hadn’t seen before,” the company founder explained.
“We were dealing with an invisible entity that didn’t discriminate or care about what we were doing, so it came as no great surprise that covid had a huge impact on our wellbeing.”
But Ms Sylvester said that launching a business on her own was extremely difficult, and the pandemic didn’t make it easier.
As a solo entrepreneur, the entire business was her responsibility and she had to learn to balance creative flow with logistical decisions.
“Every day is day one for me, but that is equally true for life,” she added.
“The process has taught me resilience and self-encouragement.”
Now, Ms Sylvester is sharing some of her top tips and tricks for anybody else looking to launch a local business.
She encourages people to create their own business goals, and to always be ready to try out new ideas and approaches.
“When one strategy worked, I went with it,” Ms Sylvester explained.
“Now that A Place of Space is a bit more established, I can rely on referrals, seasonable offers, professional networking and friend recommendations, but don’t be afraid to have a go at something new.
“And don’t be too hard on yourself if things don’t go to plan.”
