Parents in business: Abigail Horne of Authors & Co

Abigail Horne, 33 is a mum of two, an award-winning serial entrepreneur, multiple best-selling author and multiple business owner.

Abigail went from working in an energy company to becoming a very successful young female entrepreneur, before she turned her attention to other like-minded female entrepreneurs. She felt she should put her mentoring and business development skills to use in supporting other women craving more work/life balance. This desire led to her co-founding The Female Success Network (FSN), which launched in 2017 to help other women who felt that they wanted to take more control of their lives, whether in their career or business. Authors & Co has been a natural progression from FSN as Abigail heard so many women’s stories that she felt needed sharing, to help empower them and celebrate their journeys, but also to inspire others.

Abigail has bridged the gap of self-publishing and traditional publishing, shaking up the industry to help more entrepreneurs and business leaders get the books that are in them, out and this year alone, she has helped over 100 people become best selling authors through her incredibly passionate and purpose-led business venture… Authors&Co https://authorsandco.com/ 

When did you have the idea for your business?

I remember the genetic specialist turned her screen to face me, showing me the cancers within my family tree, there it was, a box containing my grandad’s name with a big red cross going all the way through it. Edward Hand – Deceased, Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. ‘How was this his legacy?’ in years to come is that all that future generations are going to know about this incredible man? My heart just sank, remembering the conversion I had with my grandad during his illness. “I’ve bought you a gift Grand, I think we should fill it in together” I proudly handed him a sort of journal called, “Dear Grandad, From You To Me”.

You simply go through a process of writing on each page answering the prompts which eventually fills the book with the author’s life story, their memories, knowledge, thoughts and wisdom, in their own words. I just wanted to cherish it forever not knowing what was around the corner. He smiled and said, “I will write in this, but not now…I’m not going anywhere just yet”

I understood, and “not now” just continued into his remission. He was given the all-clear and life was back to normal. The urgency had gone, the anxiety had passed and the book was put in a drawer. Twelve months later, with no warning, my grandad’s cancer returned in his brain and within 3 weeks I had lost my hero and my world fell apart.

How do I continue to face every day of my life without him? What would his advice for me be on getting married and having children of my own? What would he think of my career choices? What would he tell me to do when things get tough? I don’t even know. Because he isn’t here to ask… and he never got the book back out of the drawer. Blank page after blank page.

It haunts me.

I survived. Next year marks 10 years since his passing and life has been filled with happiness and love.

A year after he passed away, I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy, lovingly named after my grandad, Ted.

That genetic appointment took place on October 2017 and eight weeks later, I launched Authors & Co https://authorsandco.com/  with a heart filled with the desire that our legacy is far greater than any diagram.

How do you fit in work with the family and avoid burnout?

I am a mum of two  – Ted is 8 and we also have our 9-month-old daughter Polly-Rae.

After the birth of Ted, I suffered from burnout, which lead to me taking a year off work to recover, reflect and then embark on my highly successful entrepreneurial journey.  

The raw truth of being an a working mum is that it isn’t a journey of sunshine and storms. It’s true that success is never a straight road, we all have our own trials and tribulations, lessons and blessings, successes and failures that all lead to who you are today.

When you are feeling overwhelmed, or uninspired it is easy to shut down, and feel paralysed to take any kind of action. This leads us to being hard on ourselves. When you feel this start to happen, you need to take a step back. Are the factors that are causing these feelings avoidable? Can you cut down the seemingly endless list of tasks for today, and do them tomorrow, or next week? Are you putting too much pressure on yourself?

It’s easier said than done, but to help avoid burnout, you need to make time for yourself. With technological developments, it can sometimes feel like you’re switched on all the time. To help, schedule designated time for you to relax, read a book, or spend time with your family. Even if it’s an hour a day, it will help put perspective into your life.

I know from my own entreprenuerial journey and business success, that I often push myself to overcome obstacles, work long hours and justify busy schedules in order to see the BIG vision become reality.  To help avoid burnout, it is important to keep your big vision/dream in the front of your mind. Reminding yourself why you are doing what you are doing can help avoid burnout. Try and rekindle the spark inside that burnout is trying to put out – come back to the why. 

What impact do you want to have?

Writing a book is leaving a legacy, it’s giving a part of yourself to the future to last for all time. My hope is that one day, when I’m no longer here, (hopefully when I’m super old after a lifetime of happiness with my family) people won’t have to rely on their memories to recall what I stood for. Future generations will KNOW what I lived for because piece by piece I’m leaving my legacy in books.  I’m here to make an impact, one that long surpasses my lifetime… and there is no feeling quite like it.

Sharing our lives greatest moments, deepest thoughts and wisest teachings is not reserved for celebrities, it is for all of us.

Publishing a book is not reserved for those who have their “Submission Accepted” by printing/publishing houses, it is for ALL of us. Leaving our greatest legacy in book form is for each and everyone one of us, no exception.

For too long we have gifted our personal power to an industry worth billions and let them have the final say on whether our story is worth printing, what complete and utter rubbish. Take back your power, do what my grandad never got around to doing and leave a lasting legacy and impact within our world.

Now….not never.

Your past experiences may one day change someone’s life.

Photo credit: Lisa Dolman 

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