Interview with High Performance Coach Sonya Morton-Firth

Hi Sonya,

First off, thank you for taking the time to get involved in this interview for my readers.

We were introduced to each other last year by our mutual friend Toby, aka Zen Mind Coach. He thought we would be a good match as you work with entrepreneurs running their own businesses looking for performance improvement.

When we first started chatting, I was struggling with motivation and productivity after earning money online for the last 20 years and having over a year break. A few sessions with you and I was back on track. So, thank you for that!

This blog is all about productivity and improving my and hopefully other people's lives, and so I thought it would be great to interview. So, let’s jump straight into this with my first question.

Your background is really fascinating, and you have done a lot in your career, can you give us a brief outline of your background.

My career started in the City – I was a high flyer sales Exec living in a man’s world, the Finance Industry. I traveled all around Europe and the US, Miami / NY and California – sounds like a boring job, right? Not to toot my own horn but I was the best – won sales award after-sales award and was recognized globally.

I had everything or, so I thought.

I was successful but not fulfilled.

After 16 years in sales, I decided to jump ship. I was way too feisty to put up with the corporate bollocks and wanted to figure out my purpose – there was more to life.

My passion was health and fitness, so I qualified as a Personal Trainer (PT) but always knew it was a business I wanted to run, a few months and Entrepreneur’s courses later I met my business partner and we launched a brand of fashionable gym clothes for woman.

It was hard work … 24/7 a lot of stress and money… all my savings. I learned a lot about business – cash flows, managing staff, sales and marketing, everything about the fashion industry.

2.5 years later and I sold my shares in the business.

I went on to help other Entrepreneurs and set up an Entrepreneurs club, there was no money in it. Start-ups have nothing and although I wanted to help I needed to help myself first.

I was tempted back into the City and did a further 2 years whilst building my property portfolio – which was to be my escape. I had a plan for everything.

I’m a bit of a Maverick and like to do things out of the ordinary. I’d said that health and fitness was my passion. I’d been a runner and obsessed with the endorphins and the challenge of a race but that was nothing compared to this… I decided at the age of 44 to start bodybuilding and enter my first competition – (it’s a way of life now for me and I’ve done a couple of competitions).

It takes a lot of dedication and determination to do enter a bodybuilding competition – it's not just the training, the most difficult part is the discipline and the nutrition, no social life for months.

Then comes the hard part!!!

Getting on stage in front of a huge crowd at the 02 in London in a skimpy bikini to be judged.

I know from speaking with you, that like me being financially independent has been a big driver for you. Can you outline how you have managed to achieve this?

My Dad taught me the importance of being financially independent, and, in his words, never depending on anybody. He advised me to buy bricks and mortar at a relatively early age…and I did, just at the right time.

This risk paid off, despite all my friends thinking I was crazy at the time to tie myself down to a mortgage.

Now I have a multi-million-pound property portfolio that has given me financial freedom.

It’s meant a lot of sacrifices, but I always believe in investing in assets rather than material throw away things.

I’d advise anyone to invest in assets and let your money grow for you. Otherwise, you’ll be a slave to the man all your life.

You’re based in London, what makes you stay in the City considering you could live anyway in the World?

I love London!! I moved to Richmond, after being in Clapham for 20 years and I’m loving it – being so close to the Richmond Park, the stunning nature and the river has brought a great deal to me, and I’m no country bumpkin I assure you.

I was born to travel, and I spent much of my corporate life on a plane.

I was very close to living in New York in 2008. The banking crisis hit, and we were in the center of it, so my move was withdrawn literally 2 weeks before I was due to leave. Sliding doors and all that…

In the future, I’m going to be living in California, possibly a 2nd home, and traveling between London and the States.

I love the sunshine and healthy lifestyle and my dream home overlooks the water.

I’ve loads of traveling to do though and lots of places I want to visit. My brother lives in Singapore and I’ve spent a lot of time in that part of the world.

Spain has a special place in my heart as studied Spanish at Uni and lived and worked there when I was 18.

You have recently started working as a mentor and performance coach. Can you outline how you help entrepreneurs to transform their lives and improve performance?

And give away my secrets 😊!!

I take a holistic approach to coaching.

Everyone is different, and one size certainly does not fit all. I take each individual and tailor my coaching to them. We look at all aspects of their life and what areas they would like to work on.

Drawing on my 20 years of sales and business experience I combine my knowledge with a holistic approach to mentoring and coaching.

I have mastered many areas in life and believe that success in business is about mindset, and values being aligned. Failure rates for businesses are high which is why adopting high-performance habits early on give strong foundations for a rewarding business.

I encourage my clients to think big and think outside the box.

What tips could you offer business owners who are stagnating and struggling to reach the next level?

Get a coach!… I know a good one 😉

Seriously though you have to step back, resistance comes and that’s a normal part of business, it’s not going to be plain sailing.

It depends on the situation, a lot of the time the business owner could be coming across a limiting self-belief that is stopping them from going further.

It could be that the business is not aligned with its values.

Or simply that they are burnt out.

I delve deeper to find the real reason and together we work through a plan to get the business owner “unstuck” and move forward.

How do you see your business growing in the next 6, 12, and 24 months?

Rapidly!!! Watch this space.

I have just launched my new website and putting out free video content across social media – would love to get your reader's thoughts.

In my Coaching business in terms of personal 1-1 coaching I’m keeping to a small number of high-level clients. I want to dedicate quality time to my clients, coaching shouldn’t be a numbers game.

I’m also launching the Sonya Morton-Firth show in the Summer. It’s going out on YouTube so please subscribe.

I will be interviewing Mavericks, Game changers, Leaders that are challenging the norms of society and helping us think outside the box.

Lastly, do you have any personal achievements you’re working on or yet to achieve?

I want to challenge society and the norms we live by.

Society in my mind has to change so the big thing I’m working on is The Sonya Morton-Firth Show and giving value to people, helping them be the best versions of themselves to do good.

Other goals I’m working on:

• Continue building my property portfolio, aim is 10 beautiful properties
• Keeping fit and healthy and building more muscle to place in the top 3 of my next body building competition.
• Speaking on stage – there is a TED talk in me and a book!