🎉I cannot believe it – 10 years ago I launched The Healthy Mommy.

But I didn’t love what I did. I worked crazy long hours. And I didn’t feel I was doing anything good with my life. Yes I was paid well and yes I had had good career development but I longed to do something worthwhile with my life.

Something that made a difference. Something that mattered.

I had also begun a real passion for health and fitness over the previous couple of years and had invested a lot of time studying courses into health and nutrition and learning about how healthy living is all about balance and healthy eating – but I had no idea about how to turn this into a business

And in June 2010 I was also 4 months pregnant.

And it was about this time that the pregnancy weight starting coming on.

And on.

And on.

By late July I was like WHOA – this is what moms go through!

And it was completely new to me. I ,like so many women before me, were going through pregnancy and the weight gain, the tiredness and all the other fun things it brings!

And it made me think about how hard it was for moms to get healthy after having kids. To lose weight. To regain body confidence. Especially when moms are on a tight budget and have a whole different set of priorities – especially when their lives and often their social lives and networks have changed so much.

So I spent a lot of time researching and talking to moms about how they felt and the problems they faced and how they felt and it confirmed what I thought.

Then on a Sunday morning (in mid August) I woke up and bolt upright in bed and I knew what I was going to do. I was going to quit my job, sell my house and give 110% on creating a healthy eating and exercise program and community just for moms.

And on 1st October 2010, I launched The Healthy Mommy!

I literally had no idea it would turn out like it has. And I am humbled by it every single day

I went it into it with complete passion and a desire to do something good with my life and to be able to do it around my kids as they grew up – which I feel so very grateful for every single day.

But I would never have believed 10 years ago, that it would be a world wide business where we would be helping so many moms to improve their health and transform their lives and it literally blows my mind.

I have LOVED the past 10 years so much.

Yes there have been INCREDIBLE tough times, insanely stressful time but no matter how tough things have been I have always loved what we do as a business and I feel so lucky to have been able to spent the past 10 years doing something that has genuinely helped so many moms and families and do it whilst raising my 2 boys and being a working mom.

Here are some of the top areas that stand out for me over the past 10 years

1) CUSTOMER IS NUMBER 1

I believe this is CRUCIAL. Without customers you have no business. So worship them. Place them on a pedastal. Talk to them. Listen to them and go out of your way to help and support them

2) PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

Never stop developing and innovating. Invest in new products.

Think about what your customer needs and go out of your way to create it.

I have done this from day 1 and yes it makes things a bit crazy and anyone who works in the business will say it is hectic but it is also exciting and you are never bored – and the best thing is constantly creating new products that are used and loved by so many.

3) WORKING FROM HOME AND STARTING AN OFFICE

I worked from home for the first 4 1/2 years of my business. It enabled me to be there constantly for my young kids and I had an amazing virtual team to help me.

It was a massive juggle but also a really good. As the business kept growing, I realised I needed an actual office which was a big step for me and the business.

It meant a lot of extra costs and the business shifted to a more professional outfit – but it enabled shared IP with all the team and it enabled me to hire some amazing staff – many of whom are still with the business today

4) LAUNCHING THE APP

This was a big milestone for me. And it came about after we had our 28 Day Diet and Exercise Plan book in the market for a while – then moms began asking for an app based on the same idea. I was excited!

I was also nervous as the cost was enormous! But I am so glad I listened to the customers as the app journey I have been on has been incredible!

And from when I first launched the app 6 years ago we have had about 10 rebuild and relaunches as the app needed to innovate, improve and scale. And today it has over 7,000 five star reviews and 100,000’s of moms using it – and we literally never stop listening and doing all we can to make it even better.

5) MEETING AMAZING MOMS

One of the things I have loved the most is meeting so many amazing moms over the past 10 years. It humbles me every single time and to actually get to meet the moms who we have helped is such a privilege and it always ends in tears!

6) FAMILY TIME

I feel so lucky to have built the business with my kids around. They are part of the business.

To them it is just part of our life and they are always coming up with ideas too!

They have always helped out too – from back in the early days when they would help with the parcels and post runs to testing lots of the new products we do  – they especially love the kids smoothies, the home delivered meals, the snacks – and they LOVE going through the app to choose their food!

7) MISTAKES

I have made HEAPS of mistakes. It is inevitable. Things have gone wrong. Wrong suppliers have been used. And lots of stress has been had. But mistakes help you earn – they help you grow.

The key thing for me is that when mistakes happen I look at why it happened, how we can ensure it doesn’t happen again – and then move on so I can keep leading the business and services we offer forward.

8) PASSION

I am as passionate as the business today as I was 10 years ago. I am so driven to help moms.

To listen to the customer and deliver the support, tools and services to empower moms to live a healthier life. I care immensely about the customer and doing the right thing and I love being able to do what I do

9) STRESS MANAGEMENT

Stress over the past 10 years has been a bit nuts for me. But it is important for me to manage it as stress is so bad!

Firstly I have an amazing team who 100% reduce my stress as they are awesome, reliable and have an AMAZING work ethic. Secondly I do everything I can to stay positive and always look forward. I am a firm believer in avoiding negativity.

Negativity breeds negatively and that can breed so much stress! I find spending time with my family has an amazing positive effect on my stress as they are my everything.

I also try and do daily exercise – even if only for 15 minutes as it really helps my mind be clear and if all of that doesn’t work – I catch up with friends and have fun as that is a sure fire way to destress me!

And you can check out all our products in The Healthy Mommy Shop here