In this Business Blast Podcast episode, host Tyler Wagner interviews Elaine Godley, a former CEO/COO, serial entrepreneur, health radio host, author, and speaker. Elaine shares a personal story about being called a "fake" and emphasizes the importance of walking your talk and maintaining authentic perception. She advises listening to one’s body and intuition, especially when making leadership decisions. Her core business mantra is to be yourself and uphold personal morals rather than conforming to external rules. Elaine stresses that health is the foundation of any business, recounting her experience surviving cancer four times and the necessity of prioritizing wellbeing. She recommends two seminal books—Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich and Stephen Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People—as sources of timeless advice. Her favorite quote is Eleanor Roosevelt’s “Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent.” Listeners can find her at www.perfecthealth.co.uk. The episode also includes a sponsor plug for Authors Unite.
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Welcome to the Business Blast Podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. This episode is brought to you by Authors Unite. Authors Unite provides you with the support you need to finish your book. Best part is, after you finish your book, they take care of the entire publishing and marketing process 100% for you. So if you want to become a successful author, make sure to check out authorsunite.com. Now let's jump into the episode.
¡Hola!
¿Cómo estás?
All right, everyone, welcome back to another episode of the Business Blast podcast. I'm your host, Tyler Wagner. Today I have Elaine Godley with us. She is the former CEO and Chief Operating Officer with multimillion and budget responsibility and a staff team of over 200. She's a serial entrepreneur, health radio host, published author, and public speaker. So welcome to the show.
Thank you, Tyler. Lovely to be on here.
Of course. Lovely to have you here. Let's dive into the first one. The first one I got for you is what is the best story from your life that has an underlying valuable message?
It's about walking your talk and be authentic. And so often, in fact, today I've had quite an unpleasant incident where and somebody kind of called me out for saying one thing and potentially doing another. So it's about don't say one thing, do another. Always be authentic, do what you say kind of on the tin sort of thing. So when you're, whether you're managing yourself if you're a solopreneur, whether you've got a couple of people in your business, whether you've got a whole team, don't say one thing and do another, but make sure the perception from the outside looking in is authentic. Because as I say, I've been kind of dubbed a fake today, which is really quite hurtful. That's not the case whatsoever, but it's the perception that other people have seen. So it's not just walking your talk for yourself, but it's also making sure the perception on the outside world is authentic.
And what is the most valuable piece of information we should know that's within your expertise or industry?
Listening to your own, listen to yourself really, listening to your own body. And very often you have a gut feeling, you know, you wish you'd done this, you should have listened to your intuition, that kind of thing. And how many times do we all kind of think, oh damn, if I'd only listened to, you know, my first reaction was XYZ, but I did ABC instead. And as I say, whether you're managing a team, so when I've been managing, you know, huge big teams, if I've thought somebody was, you know, kind of off-piste and I thought, oh, you know, give them a second chance, which, you know, everyone is entitled to, and then I've gone, oh damn, I should have listened to my intuitions. So listen to your feeling.
And what is your best piece of overall business advice? So not necessarily industry-specific.
Be yourself. Doesn't matter what industries that you're in, whether you're selling widgets, selling services, do what's right for you. So I've crossed a variety of different industries over a 40-year career in business, and wherever I have kind of laid my hat sort of thing, I've learned to be myself. So don't try and shoehorn yourself into somebody else's rules and, and guidebook. Be yourself.
And if you could give your younger self one piece of advice, what would that be?
What I just said, really. Follow your intuition. Be yourself. Um, be authentic. Um, keep your own morals and values to the highest you possibly can, uh, at all times. And don't stoop down to other people's morals and values, providing you are adhering to your own rulebook kind of thing. I think that's pretty good sound advice and has stood me in good stead, especially when I have business debts and then I've gone out.
And in your opinion, what is the key to happiness?
More of the same. Being healthy is a key thing. A lot of business owners strive for perfection, strive for bigger, better, bigger car, bigger business, more staff, more turnover. But actually, if you don't have your health, you don't have a business. So I've learned over the years to follow my own health path. I've had cancer 4 times. I know what it takes to get your health back on track. I know what it's like to lose your health. But I also know what it's like to be really successful and also to fail. But the two go hand in hand. If you don't have your health, you don't have a business, end of, period.
And what is the best book that you've read and what was the number one thing you learned from that?
Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich. I read this years and years ago and I studied under Bob Proctor and I still dip in and out of that book. Also Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Successful People. Those two are kind of equal in my library, and I've bought many copies over the years and given them away to people. There's really sound advice in both of those books.
And what is your favorite quote and why?
My favorite quote, um, I think Eleanor Roosevelt. Nobody can make you feel inferior without your consent. Hmm.
I like that one. Thank you so much for coming on. The last one I have for you before we let you go is where is the best place for people to find you online?
www.perfecthealth.co.uk.
Perfect. Thanks again.
Marvelous. Thank you. Thank you, Tyler Wagner.
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