There are three ingredients involved in the making of a good life: Learning, Earning and Yearning. Ms. Ivy Emmanuel, a behavioral skill trainer, leadership, life coach and NLP business practitioner sets a good example for a good life.
Influenced by her efforts and hard work, it was great to learn about her experience.
Interviewer: Please enlighten by sharing something about your company.
Ms. Emmanuel: My Company is called clockwork we are a professional and organizational development company that delivers high impact trainings tailor made to suit specific organizational and personal needs. Our services include workshops on soft skills, behavioral skills, team work, experiential learning, out bound training, leadership and employee engagement.
We work with various industries, educational institutions and small and medium business owners. I have been in the industry for about 6 years and as an entrepreneur for 2 years.
Interviewer: How did you come up with the idea of such a business venture?
Ms. Emmanuel: Training is extremely challenging as well as rewarding at the same time, I has been working as a freelancer as well as on the panel of many training companies. And I realized most companies look at the number of hours and charge their clients. But learning and development is a service which cannot be quantified easily, So it is essential that we become solution oriented and bridge gaps, which help transform the organization and mould individuals toward excellence. Creating value for organizations is the key in my business and that is exactly what we do!
Interviewer: Where did you take your training from?
Ms. Emmanuel: I have a taken a few international courses for being a trainer. I took up various specializations and have attended workshops and seminars from the best in the business and did my advanced behavioral training, ’Train the Trainer’ course from AIT, American Tesol. Also I completed 2 distance programs from a university in Sydney and another from Florida. I am also an ICF certified leadership coach and life coach; I hope to be a lifelong student!!
Interviewer: How are your programs different from those of other companies?
Ms. Emmanuel: Every organization is unique and so are we, clockwork strives to deliver high impact workshops which are transformational, and we do so using high quality training tools and materials, audio /visual aid and top class trainers who are passionate and trained to make a difference. Our sessions are experiential and activity based which keeps our trainees excited and on their toes while they learn. We give importance to the need analysis and post evaluation; I think we are also constantly trying to keep up with the latest trends and learn as an organization that keeps us grounded and fresh!!
Interviewer: What motivated you take up training as a career?
Ms. Emmanuel: This is a simple question!! I love what I do, it helps me live life purposefully and it’s a great way to express my talent and competence while adding value to every person I meet!!
Interviewer: What have been your failures and what have you learned from them?
Ms. Emmanuel: Like every entrepreneur I have had tough times with setting up my company ., every mistake you make teaches you a whole lot , My father has been my biggest inspiration he is a self made man and has achieved great milestones , sometimes when you fail all you need is someone to look up to ! He has taught me to stand tall, fight the odds and be patient with getting results. That’s my problem solving strategy.
Building a brand and selling something which cannot be quantified was my biggest challenge with respect to my business , My husband happens to be a hardcore sales guy and he gave me one of the most important tips and that’s to build personal relationships before proposing business he encouraged me to go beyond small talk to build my networking skills .
Interviewer: How did you come up with the name of your company?
Ms. Emmanuel: Clockwork is a phrase used for continuity so I feel that every human being needs to have the quality of being a lifelong student and learning is a part of growth and development. And I feel clockwork is an apt name for Training and Development Company because training is a continuous process. We believe continuity helps build credibility over time.
Interviewer: What would you like to advice budding entrepreneurs?
Ms. Emmanuel: firstly it’s important to find your passion because starting a business can be hard and it’s your inner drive and motivation that fuels the journey.
Second is step out of your nutshell get out and explore be the jack of all trades and master what you love most.
It is also important to find out everything from the horse’s mouth and obtain as much knowledge from those who are already running a similar business.
Now that you found your passion and collected adequate information about the business you want to start, the next step is to have clarity on the profitability of your business because at the end of the day a successful business has to show returns. My father always told me never to attempt a business which does not give you a 100% profit this guideline helps me set my financials in place.
Believe in yourself, evaluate your journey, and be open and flexible to new ideas!!
Interviewer: How has your life changed after becoming an entrepreneur?
Ms. Emmanuel: the only thing constant in life is change!! being able to accept change in all its glory is true success, my journey as an entrepreneur has helped me have clarity in my core values, it has made me more confident and mindful .there has been a significant change in my positivity levels and i consciously invest my time an energy towards growth the most empowering part is being financially independent.
Always remember your life does not get better by chance it gets better with change so go ahead and make a conscious effort to discover your true potential .