Make a splash

Several months ago I was visited by a business coach who claimed he could help me turn my nanny agency into a much bigger and more profitable company. When he had asked how long I had been running, and what were my long-, short- and medium-term projections, I realised I had obviously been lacking serious, timetabled objectives. I knew I was not likely to be on the Rich List by next year and he seemed glad to get away.

When I interviewed Sanchia Hampson, a nanny who started 'First for Swimming', and whose lessons have become so popular in a very short time that she now has expanded to work out of a second venue, I expected to see a sharp-suited, laptop-toting superwoman who would talk about her life plan and how many millions she expected to earn before she was 30. It was tremendously refreshing, then, to meet a young nanny who just gets great enjoyment out of what she does and, in spite of her success, never had a particular 'life plan'. Instead, she followed her instincts and turned her setbacks into opportunities.