We all experience pivotal moments in our lives, experiences that when you look back on them years later still register with such clarity they seem like only yesterday. I had one of these pivotal moments 7 years ago.

My career development had been successful up to that point progressing from sales through sales management, distributor management and ultimately ending up as a Divisional Manager for an International organisation. I had all of the benefits associated with such a position, good money, global business travel, expenses, health insurance, pension, car, and so on.

As part of my divisional responsibilities I enrolled several of my own team on a programme from the Leadership Management UK portfolio. The programme was a success and I quickly decided to follow suite and participated in a management programme myself coached by Ray King, Managing Director and Master Franchisor of LMI-UK. This proved to be a pivotal moment.

Not only was the programme rewarding from a business point of view but there were huge personal benefits. I identified far more clearly the really important areas of my life that needed attention, most notably time for my family and friends along with time for me to work on my own attitudes and habits.

Three months later I joined Leadership Management UK as a franchisee.

Six years later I run my own successful franchise with two associates, I take responsibility for helping other franchisees succeed in my role as LMI-UK Business Development Manager; I enjoy a well balanced lifestyle along with unlimited opportunities to achieve anything I want in the future.

I am still working on my goals and ambitions but I am getting nearer every year to reaching my true potential as a business leader and as an individual.

We have a saying in LMI-UK, "Become a product of the product". The results can be hugely rewarding

There were two primary reasons for deciding to join Leadership Management UK in 1999. Firstly, after meeting Ray King, the master franchisor, to learn about LMI-UK,

I realised how the business could help me to develop myself, an important moment for me. Secondly, I decided this was a way of not just developing people but helping to improve their business results in terms of profit, sales, quality.

I learnt a lot about myself in the early stages, which has in turn helped me to understand more about the challenges and issues my clients face daily. So from a background in the London insurance market I have clients today in property management, corporate clothing, marketing and advertising, local government, and insurance. LMI-UK is a people business that's lots of fun.

My LMI-UK franchise has created for me an opportunity to live and work around my family commitments. My business enables me to support my wife and five children, and their support has been invaluable.

When you have led large teams of people in industry and you realise that your passion is to achieve results through people there comes a time when you must take stock and decide, what's next?

After years of excellent self-development I truly started to understand who I really was and decide how best to utilise my skills. First and foremost I wanted to be my own boss, to be totally empowered, to have the authority to choose, to make and take decisions. Second, I wanted to work with people to help them maximise their individual potential. My only nagging doubt was who would buy my services?

Having worked with big brands for many years I realised the power and effect they have, so when I discovered Leadership Management UK and the prospect of a franchisee opportunity, everything made sense.

Four years later I deem myself a success. I have won many national and international awards with LMI-UK, have a portfolio of clients that anyone would be proud of and my earning potential is being met. I have now started engaging associates to expand and develop my business still further.

I joined Leadership Management UK initially as an Associate. After consideration to various options, I wanted to join a professional organisation that was passionate and committed to their industry. I also wanted an organisation which matched my requirements and were committed to the success of the team. I soon realised LMI-UK met my criteria. The products were as good as anything else in the market place but I believed were more effective and I soon recognised the potential they offered. The proof is that I am now a franchisee.