Like many of the women I follow on Instagram I can’t remember how I found Helen Perry and her account Not About The Kids but gosh am I glad I did! Helen is not only a fountain of knowledge and experience when it comes to all things Instagram (her social media speciality!) But she genuinely wants to help others grow and see them grow theirs! Helen has been a massive support to me and has been my inspiration and cheerleader when dipping my toe into video content on Insta too!
Please welcome Helen to my HER WISDOM series, go and say hi over on Instagram and happy reading!
How do you begin your day? What are the first 3 things you do to get your day started?
I don’t have morning rituals as such, although my days always start the same way. I must have a shower and a cup of tea (breakfast time is too early for coffee) and I never, never skip breakfast (when I am being healthy this is porridge, otherwise cereal). And whenever possible I try and walk my son to school rather than drive. It’s just over a mile and I feel 100 times better for the fresh air and exercise.
Share your favourite piece of wisdom and why it means something to you.
There are so many it’s hard to pick, I love an inspirational life quote, a nugget of glorious wisdom. If I have to choose one, I will defer to my granny, Margot. Margot is 103 and has been one of the greatest influences in my life. She has an instinct for how to live well and make good decisions. Her favourite bit of advice is “always look forward, never look back.”
What is your go-to thing of comfort when it all gets too much?
My home and family. Although my online identity is Not About The Kids (a project I started in order to carve out time and opportunities now that my children are a little older), if I am feeling frazzled or that things are fraying around the edges, my mindset is to check in with the children. Are they ok? If so, then everything is ok really.
Who are the women that inspire you?
So many, I’m bound to forget someone great here. Who springs to mind?
Granny Margot, my mum, the words of Eleanor Roosevelt, Emma Thompson, the writer, podcaster and comic Viv Groskop is a current favourite.
All the women who went before us and battled for greater equality and choice, what a debt of gratitude we owe to them. I wonder if I’d have been brave enough to be a suffragette, or bring my kids here from a faraway country to try and build a better life? I’ve had it very easy.
How do you see yourself and what makes up your sense of identity?
I see myself as a mum, wife, friend and feminist. Having purposeful creative work is incredibly important to me, I got low and felt that I had lost my sense of identity when I didn’t have it (I was a full time mum for a few years, the choice to do that was a great privilege but it didn’t make me happy).
Do you have a favourite dish or recipe that makes you feel good or gives you a much needed boost?
Pie! I’m a (fish eating) veggie but resolutely not a ‘clean' eater. I try very hard to enjoy everything I eat, whether it is healthy or a treat.
What does confidence mean to you, what builds yours?
In many ways I am a confident person, but I have always suffered from imposter voices when it comes to work. Overcoming that (insofar as I ever will totally overcome it) has been about realising that the stories you tell yourself, are not always true. Also, keep doing the work. Confidence comes with learning and experience.
What's challenging you right now?
Prioritising my work. Content creating for digital platforms can hoover up all of your time, whilst it is more important for me to focus on product development at the moment. I hope to launch online learning courses a bit later in the year and I have to be really disciplined about finding time to work on them.
Tell us more about your latest or next project.
Ah there we go, I just did. I hope to start transitioning my blog www.notabout-thekids into a viable digital business. That’s what I am working towards at the moment, alongside growing my audience on social media.
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