Interview with Sally Garozzo, founder of Inspiring Talks Brighton
Find out how her quest to understand the cause of her own anxiety led anti anxiety coach and hypnotherapist Sally Garozzo to launch Inspiring Talks Brighton.
What’s your background?
I’ve mostly always been self employed. In fact, I’ve only ever done three years of employment because it didn’t compute to exhaust myself to line someone else pockets! I picked up You Can Heal Your Life at age 14 and never looked back.
Self employed, I was a beauty therapist and Reiki healer for six years, then I re-trained and became a singer and singing teacher and have been doing that since 2000. Growth and transformation have always been my passions.
How did you transition into becoming an anti anxiety coach?
It’s the passion behind what I do that has enabled the transition from being a singing teacher alone to public speaker, event organizer, coach and hypnotherapist. It’s not been easy, but the passion fuels the work. I’m hungry for it and I’ve realised the more I help people, the more it gives my life meaning and purpose. That’s the best anti depressant ever.
In 2012 I developed chronic anxiety, the recovery of which meant digging around in my own history to find out what the heckity heck had caused it. Understanding is power right?.
In my quest I discovered some incredible breath and movement practices but I also found a new hybrid therapy developed by celebrity therapist Maria Peer called Rapid Transformational Therapy. The training was expensive and a big risk but every fibre of my being knew this was for me so I invested the money and became an RTT practitioner.
Learning this therapy not only changed my life but it changed my clients. After one session people who had struggled with anxiety around their singing voices began to open up like singing was the most natural and easy thing in the world. It’s been amazing to watch.
I now address all sorts of anxiety related issues like: headaches, insomnia, compulsive eating, depression, low libido, procrastination, money blocks, addictions and performance issues.
I would say passion and bravery are the two driving forces behind any transition.
Who is your target audience?
Anxiety suffers, worriers and perfectionists!
How do you spread the word about what you do?
I set up Inspiring Talks Brighton as a way to make myself more visible to the outside world. I did it as a way of getting clients and also as a way to challenge myself (because public speaking scared the living daylights out of me).
And it worked…. I’ve got more clients and I’m less scared of public speaking. I always start the evening with a little talk about things I’ve been pondering, or my biggest breakthroughs that month and as a result people have learnt to trust me and get to know me. When you’re working with people’s minds, that’s the most important thing – they have to trust you.
What’s been your best marketing strategy?
I’m very active on Facebook because writing is my favourite medium. I’ve found the best marketing is being nice, responding to comments and uplifting people. I’ve also found that by doing lives in my group The Anxiety Compass helps my audience learn to trust me and become inspired by me.
I’ve also found that creating packages rather than selling single singing lessons or single RTT sessions gets way better results and attracts clients who are more committed to change.
What has been the biggest obstacle you’ve had to overcome?
The demons in my mind. I’m hyper critical, because that’s what I learnt from my father. We were so close when I was a kid, dangerously so. And when I failed my 11+ my dad didn’t know how to respond. He expected a lot more from me and so he shut down and stopped talking to me for about a week.
I was devastated, I felt disgusted by myself. There was born the belief, “I’m not good enough.” From that moment on I sub consciously began to seek validation from him through learning.
I’ve been on more courses than Nick Faldo and even though I’ve learnt a lot, none of them satiated me or gave me what I was looking for. There are some deep wounds within me that I battle with, sometimes daily but through the work that I do, I’m carving out my own identity. I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved.
I’ve also got a full motorcycle licence, but that’s another story.
Why is work so important to you?
I don’t have children, so in a way, my work is my child. My work is also my muse. It’s with me 24/7. Even when I’m relaxing. Inspiration feeds my work, so when I’m out and about I’m constantly being inspired which nourishes my ideas.
And if I happen to be in a more thoughtful/gloomy mood, that inspires my work too… it makes me empathic. Some people call it over-thinking, I call it my soul’s purpose.
There’s no greater gift on this earth than making someone else feel good. If you can remember that premise and apply that to everything you do, even if it’s pouring coffee, you’ll be very happy. As humans our most powerful drive is to avoid rejection and find connection. Connecting with other humans is a choice, you can do it anywhere.
What are your three top pieces of advice for someone wanting to do something similar?
- Seek to understand yourself deeply. When you do, you’ll understand your target market. They’re simply a reflection of you. The more you understand you, the more you’ll understand them. Audiobooks help. Inhale them!
- That said, don’t burn out. Understand what lengths you’re willing to go to for your career. You don’t have to be Gaudi or Ghandi, you don’t have to die for your purpose. But you DO have to live happily. I recommend reading Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin. Make small changes so that you can live ‘everyday utopia’.
- Just be confident. Know that everything about you is perfectly ok in it’s imperfect form. Make no excuses for being you. Stop saying ‘sorry’ all the time. Then get up on a stage and tell us your story. We want to hear it, we NEED to hear it, it makes us feel like we’re not alone.
You can learn more about Sally on her website. You can also like her Facebook page.
