In 1996, aged 24, I started my own business, E-Js Dance & Fitness, teaching tap and dance to adults. I continued to be a cabaret dancer and I temped in the corporate world to continue earning regular money. I moved into children’s dance classes and in 2000, I opened StageWorks Performing Arts School for children; I wanted to give kids security and stability within an environment that I had enjoyed as a child growing up. I taught in schools and ran children’s dance parties.

   When I was 26, I began working more in the fitness world. I worked in an exclusive Personal Training Gym in Beaconsfield and had the toughest of bosses, who I thank every day. She gave me a steely focus and my training continued. I worked in gyms and halls, and in 2013, I bought all of my fitness activities under one umbrella, and I am now the Director of NutritiousWorks, a mobile fitness/well-being company.

   In 2017, I collaborated with my old boss and very good friend Sarah Folley to bring OceanWorks Retreats to life, an overseas retreats company focusing on well-being of the Mind, Body and Soul. I have dreamt of working overseas, as I really do miss the travel.

   My work is very varied: I manage the Performing Arts team at StageWorks and the fitness team at NutritiousWorks. I am a Mentor, Body Transformation Coach, PT and in 2015, I was offered the opportunity to present the Well-Being Show on That’s TV. I write the well-being column for the Henley Standard newspaper and now I am an author of my first eBook, Don’t Hold Back. Everything I have learnt in life has bought me to this point in my career, I truly love my work.

   I live in Henley-on-Thames. I grew up in Marlow. I love this area, the river and what the Thames Valley offers families. In the summer, I love nothing more than being by the river with my daughter and enjoying the beauty of the town. I have lots of great friends around this area, and I love each and every one of them.

   I wrote Don't Hold Back about my journey through life and how it has been shaped by the world and those in it. I want to help people identify with their feelings and emotions, and for anyone going through hardships as I did in my earlier years. I held back for such a long time. I didn't live a life I was proud of or very happy in. If I can help someone turn their life around to become the person they wish to be then it will all have been worth it. I would like to help others fulfil their dreams and ambitions with abundance of self-confidence and happiness. My life may not have had the best start but it has finally given so much to my soul and I can now enjoy my life with my loved ones around me, and share my story to help others. I would like to work with child abuse charities, maybe become an ambassador, as I think these days there is so much more awareness about these kinds of stories. I am talking about this at the Media Hub in Cookham on 1st November. 

   I certainly don’t claim to know everything. What I do know is that you must never give up on yourself – you must keep the faith and the fight within you. I have also learnt how important it is to get professional help, that you should talk to people, how forgiveness is key to recovery, and that you must learn to trust and believe in loved ones around you. My earlier years were my toughest but they eventually gave me so much hope...

   I knew I had a story. I just expressed it through my work of helping others. It was the last year or so that I thought maybe I should jot it down. It is scary putting it all out there but, like I say, if it helps others then it will all have been worth it. I am self-publishing the book and using Amazon to release it as a Kindle read, although since last week, I am now talking to publishers. So things may change… watch this space.  

   I am organising a Flash Mob in Henley this year, and I am also choreographing Chorus Line at The Kenton Theatre, Henley, in November.

   My best accomplishment in life has been my daughter. Being a mum completed me – it gave everything a reason. My daughter is my best friend and companion. I take the summer off to be with her and we travel around the UK and overseas.

   In terms of other books I like to read; I love Paige Toon. She writes a chick lit annually and I get excited just to order my summer read. I also quite like a good thriller/suspense and I am currently reading In the Woods by Tana French, which was recommended to me by a friend.

   I have learnt to never expect the expected. Life changes constantly. I don’t get het up about things these days, there is always a solution, even threw the hardest of times. Something good comes from it all… just keep remembering to flip the negative into positives. It is never that bad and even if it is, something good will eventually come your way and make you realise that everything usually does happen for a reason. Never lose faith.

   Visit www.emmajanetaylor.life

 

To book your tickets for the media hub, please click here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-media-hub-with-author-emma-jane-taylor-tickets-50824598743 

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