Bronwen Sciortino is an International Author and Simplicity Expert who spent almost two decades as an award-winning executive before experiencing a life-changing event that forced her to stop and ask the question ‘What if there’s a better way to live?’
Embarking on a journey to answer this question, Bronwen developed a whole new way of living – one that teaches you to challenge the status quo and include the power of questions in everyday life.
Gaining international critical acclaim and 5-star awards for her books and programs, Bronwen spends every day teaching people that there is an easy, practical, and simple pathway to creating a healthy, happy, AND highly successful life.
Sourced globally for media comment as an expert and working with corporate programs, conference platforms, retreats, professional mentoring, and the online environment, Bronwen teaches people how easy it is to live life very differently.
For more details, visit their website here.
Here we sit down with Bronwen, to know a bit more about her journey as an international author.
Q. Tell us a little more about your journey as an entrepreneur – how did you get started?
Bronwen: I ‘accidentally’ became an entrepreneur! I was recovering from a significant trauma and wrote my first book as part of my recovery. As that book went out into the world, people from all corners of the globe loved it and wanted to know how else they could work with me. Suddenly, I found myself with a global business on my hands and I had to find a way to create a business that would support my health & wellbeing (I was still only halfway through my own healing process) and so I needed to get really smart with how I lived my life. sheIQ Life was born out of this and I now spend every day creating tools and resources that help people to tailor-make the life that’s perfect for them.
Q. What is your long-term goal in business? – paint a vision for the future.
Bronwen: Almost everyone on the planet is suffering from stress and exhaustion created by our current way of living. I used to be the same.
What I learned through recovering from trauma, is that it’s the simplest things that create the most significant change in our lives, but none of us do those things because we’re all waiting for the ‘permission to change’ that we believe only comes once we’ve experienced trauma.
My long-term goal is to get my work into the hands of as many people as possible NOW so that everyone can learn the simple, practical, and easy ways to move their lives in a different direction. Whether that’s through direct conversation with individuals, or through partnerships with organisations, my goal is to get solutions to the people who need them the most.
Q. What motivates you?
Bronwen: I think motivation is a false economy. There’s been a lot of talk in the past few years about how to motivate yourself when things are tough.
We have this extraordinary ability to make things really complex when simplicity will do.
When you align your life with the things that are important to you, you don’t need to ‘push through’ anything, you don’t need to ‘pep yourself up’ to keep going and you don’t need to ‘soldier on’ to get things done.
If you’re always doing the things that are important to you, then you’ll find yourself engaged and you won’t need to be ‘motivated’ to get things done.
Q. What business-related book has inspired you the most? Or, What is your favorite book?
Bronwen: I have an eclectic soul so find inspiration from many different corners and many different mediums. I tend to spend more time being inspired by life than by business, but if I had to choose a business-related book that has inspired me, I would say that it would be ‘Screw Business as Usual by Richard Branson.
What I love about this book is that it openly encourages the reader to step outside the accepted norms and forge their own way in the world. It advocates putting people fairly and squarely in the center of the picture and it also champions looking for a win-win in every situation.
I’m a big believer in finding and creating solutions that align values with life and for me, that means making sure that there is a values-based outcome for everyone involved.
Q. What is the most memorable thing you’ve done since you started your business?
Bronwen: My #1 strategy for optimising performance AND mindset is making sure every day is set up to support my health & wellbeing. If I take care of that, then everything in life flows.
My #2 focus is on making sure I’m doing the things I love and then I don’t have to manufacture energy or enthusiasm.
These two things make it possible for me to be completely authentic in every situation. I don’t ever have to pretend to be engaged in what I’m doing because I can always be myself, whether it’s for work or play.
Q. If you were to write a book about yourself, what would you name it?
Bronwen: Actually, I’ve written and published two books that are about my journey – they are literally, me on a page!
The first one is called ‘Keep It Super Simple – Tips from a Recovering Perfectionist’ and the second one is called ‘The Economy of Enough – Unlocking the Secret to Happily Ever After’.
If I was to write a complete autobiography it would probably be called something like ‘In Search of Simple’ or ‘A Journey Back to Joy’.
Q. What is one of the best or most worthwhile investments you’ve ever made?
Bronwen: Investing in myself and making sure I am always growing and developing has been the best investment of my life.
If I hadn’t been prepared to step up and do the work to grow into the complete person I am today, I wouldn’t have the belief, or the confidence in myself to be the entrepreneur that I am.
Because I know who I AM, and because I’m prepared to back myself, I find myself in situations where the most incredible opportunities come my way. And because I know what’s important to me and WHY I do what I do, I can easily and quickly assess opportunities and decide whether I want to explore them or not.
You are the most precious resource you have. In my experience, investing in YOU is the most important thing you can do.
Q. Where do you see the future in your niche/industry 3-5 years from now?
Bronwen: The world is stressed and fighting exhaustion as the long-term effects of the pandemic start to take their toll.
Despite stress being different for every individual, people are looking to their employer to solve their problems.
Harvard Business Review stated recently that they’re predicting that wellness will be the newest metric employers will use to analyse and to assess their employee’s mental, physical and financial health.
With people all over the world placing a higher importance on their health & wellbeing, they’re voting with their feet if the organisation they work for doesn’t deliver.
Organisations are going to need a strategic health & wellness plan and it’s going to need to be bespoke to their organisation. The plans are going to need to deliver unique solutions that provide bespoke results to the unique individuals that work for them.
Providers in the industry are going to have to find creative and innovative ways to deliver programs that allow organisations of all sizes to access information that helps them build these programs in a way that meets any budget.
Q. What is your ‘one-sentence’ piece of advice you’d like to give to someone who wants to become an entrepreneur, coach, or business owner?
Bronwen: Know your WHY. Things are never always smooth sailing and you’ll find yourself being questioned constantly by those around you. Knowing your WHY means you’ll always have a simple touch point to remind you of the way forward when you need it most.
To keep up to date with Bronwen and her journey, connect with her on LinkedIn and Facebook.
