Celebrating 10 Years in Business.
Keith Blakemore-Noble Ltd: A Decade of Empowerment, Growth, and Connection
This month marks a special milestone for me, as Keith Blakemore-Noble Ltd celebrates its 10th anniversary. As I sit down to reflect write this, I can hardly believe it’s been a decade already. What a journey it’s been!
From IT Specialist to Mindset Coach
For those who haven’t heard my story, my roots are in IT. I spent 20 years working in the world of computers, rising to the level of Fellow of the British Computer Society and ultimately with a team working for me across three continents. Yet, there was always another side to me, one marked by crippling shyness and social anxiety. Until one day when enough was enough, after one panic attack too many. I dived into learning NLP and hypnosis as a way to fix myself, and in doing so I discovered a calling in helping others achieve profound mindset shifts.
After leaving the security of my IT job (thanks to a rather direct nudge out the door in the form of redundancy and a proverbial wheelbarrow full of cash), I transitioned into coaching. Please trust me when I say: building a business from scratch is both exhilarating and scary. The learning curves are steep, but so are the rewards!
The Early Days: Experimenting, Learning, and Evolving
My first business, Be Your Change Limited, was born in July 2011. Like so many fresh businesses, I found the start challenging. Endless networking, hustling, and figuring things out as I went. An exciting twist came when I was invited to Bali to help set up an international training operation. I sold my house, embraced the adventure, and for 18 months, I travelled and worked across Asia. During that time I wound up my original business, mainly because it wasn’t really doing anything at the time so it made sense.
By 2015, after a stint stateside, I returned back home to Scotland and got back into full time coaching, setting up my current company on 25 June 2015. At the time I called it Be Your Change because why not, as it was good enough first time round.
However, over the course of a few years I realised that it was time to focus, rebrand, and truly consolidate all I was doing under one clear banner. “Be Your Change” had served its purpose, but as my work expanded – coaching, writing, hypnotainment, speaking -I needed a brand that reflected, well, me. Looking for inspiration among the greats (think Derren Brown Limited, Paul Daniels Limited, Anthony Robbins Companies), the path was clear: Keith Blakemore-Noble Limited was born, and I renamed my business accordingly on 11 December 2018.
Key Lessons From the Decade
These 10 years have taught me several key lessons:
- It’s Harder Than You Think: Setting up and building a business takes longer than you think and costs more that you think, but the rewards are far greater than you can imagine.
- Never Stop Adapting: From taking part-time jobs at McDonald’s during a lean period of business (successful business owners are the ones who will do whatever it takes to keep things running, after all) to launching online programs, adaptability has been vital.
- Community is Everything: Networking (especially with 4Networking), collaborating with mentors and colleagues, and building lasting relationships remains at the heart of my business.
- Brand Evolution Matters: From The Confidence Alchemist to The Fear Strategist to The Overachievers Club, every evolution has been about meeting people where they are and providing what they truly need.
Milestones to Remember
- International Adventures: Building an overseas training company, living in Bali, and working throughout Asia.
- Books and Speaking: Publishing six books, including “The Masks We Wear” (a lockdown project inspired by feedback from my network) and “AntiManipulation.”
- Online Transformation: Early adoption of remote coaching and membership models (Mindset Mastery Movement, which has since evolved into The Overachievers Club), which opened doors to clients worldwide and proved invaluable during lockdown.
- Community Building: From helping 4Networking migrate online to establishing supportive circles like the Overachievers Club, building community remains one of the greatest joys.
What’s Next?
As we celebrate 10 years, I’m thrilled to be launching The Overachievers Club, a new online community designed to support high-achievers in mastering mindset, overcoming blocks, and building lasting success. I’m also planning to bring back live events, maybe even return to training others in NLP, hypnosis, and coaching.
And yes, the bow tie and three-piece suit, the unmistakable Keith Blakemore-Noble brand, will be making a comeback!
A Huge Thank You
To everyone who’s been part of this journey, be you clients, colleagues, mentors, friends, and listeners, thank you. You’ve made these years meaningful in ways I could never have imagined. If we’ve connected before, I’d love to hear your stories! If we haven’t, there’s always room in this ever-growing community.
Here’s to the next 10 years and beyond, helping countless more people to take back control of their lives and to unleash their brains’ true potential.
Podcast Episode
I’ve also recorded a special episode of The Keith Blakemore-Noble Radio Show going into a little more detail. Either listen to it here, or go to its own page for full shownotes and transcription and more.
