What Does it Really Feel Like to Have a Part of You Stuck Inside and Unable to Get Out?
How I’m Becoming Unapologetically Me
Becoming Unapologetically Me is the podcast for people who know that they have more inside them and want it to come out. “My natural style [is] to open gates for people and to enable others to achieve what they need to achieve,” host Helen Norbury tells listeners. A natural coach, she embraced servant leadership even before she knew what it was. She honed this gift into a fulfilling career as a management consultant where she helped colleagues develop into strong organizational teams to deliver operational excellence by the end of her time with them. In this premiere episode, Helen shares her amazing story, and explains why she chose to start this podcast.
Helen describes the series of unfortunate events over a decade that changed her into a shadow of her former self. Soon after her wonderful honeymoon in South Africa, her father fell ill and was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He passed away just six months later in March 2007. His death hit her especially hard: she did not know him well growing up, and felt like he was taken away from her just when they were finally getting to know each other. Exactly one year later, in April 2008, Helen’s mother was also diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She died in September that year. Despite reeling from the grief, Helen kept moving forward. Her two children were born during that time, and she launched a new business. Then in 2017 her marriage ended. She comments that everything she went through over those ten years changed her into a shadow of her former self.
“I got really fascinated and curious about mindset and the role that it plays in our life,” Helen says. She started learning about mindset for her own healing. She realized that she was at a crossroads: either continue on as she was, or choose the path towards healing. “I'm following the mindset, the healing, the recovery route because this is more important… for more than just me. This is important for my children as well,” she vowed to herself. Marianne Williamson’s famous poem, Our Deepest Fear, embodies everything about her journey. Playing small does not serve you or the world, she counsels listeners. It may be scary at times, but shine in whatever way you’re meant to shine. She had an epiphany that she spent 40 years of her life trying to be what someone else wanted, and not who she wanted to be. This aha moment is what inspired the podcast name Becoming Unapologetically Me. She is on a journey to let her true self shine, and she wants to encourage you to become unapologetically yourself as well.
Key Takeaways
A servant leader empowers others to transform their lives.
You can choose the path to healing and recovery by changing your mindset.
You don’t have to be just a passenger through life; you can direct your own path.
Playing small does not serve you or the world.
Choose to be you, unapologetically!
