Meet Sheryl Miller, Author of Smashing Stereotypes

Sheryl Miller is a business coach, award winning serial entrepreneur and author of the book Smashing Stereotypes: How To Get Ahead When You’re The Only ____ In The Room

I mentor SMEs and startups, entrepreneurs and managers, young people who are long-term unemployed or from disadvantaged backgrounds, as well as aspiring leaders of organisations. In 2009, I co-founded the Stilettos Network – a networking and events company for women from all backgrounds to discuss ways in which to personally advance in a more gender equal society but, in truth, I was providing mentoring sessions to people long before this business was established. 

Although I’m a director of a number of businesses, my main venture is Reboot Global, a company that provides life and career coaching sessions and retreats for people who feel stuck and unfulfilled in their jobs or have lost their sense of purpose. We conduct tailored programmes and workshops in order for people to reach clarity and a sense of direction in a life or career that has essentially stagnated. 

In 2016, I was a finalist in the Birmingham Awards Business Woman of the Year 2016 and I’m also co-founder of Soup To Nuts – an award winning agency that supports startups and SMEs with marketing, virtual assistants and business coaching. 

I recently published a business and personal development book that launched in March 2020: Smashing Stereotypes - How To Get Ahead When You’re The Only _____ In The Room. It draws upon my own experiences as a minority working in corporates and reflects on the valuable lessons I’ve learnt from being on the receiving end of office bullying and micro-aggressions, unconscious biases and office politics. I hoped to have imparted constructive strategies and advice on succeeding in such a world when one is disadvantaged – whether because one is physically or mentally disabled or because of race, religion or gender identity.

What inspired you to launch your business and what is the end goal?

I spent over 20 years working as a chartered accountant for big corporates in roles which I largely enjoyed – but I always aspired to having a more free-range existence. My desire to set up a business enterprise largely on mentoring stemmed from my accountancy job. I used to get a lot of people asking me to review their business plans and crazy ideas: everything from running pubs, care homes, new apps, delivery services – I’ve seen all sorts. In order to know if the business plan makes sense, you have to be able to critique the business assumptions, so this naturally led into coaching conversations. And that’s how I eventually transitioned into becoming a business mentor. 

In my earliest days, I had spearheaded a graduate initiative whilst working at npower to attract talent to accountancy roles within the company, and was a voluntary careers advisor for AAT where I visited schools and colleges and encouraged children to get excited about a career in accountancy. I then got involved with the Professional Women’s Network simply because I love mentoring and I know that many women feel over-whelmed in environments where they seem to not fit in.

In 2012 I took up an opportunity to mentor young people who were long-term unemployed and often from disadvantaged background via the Princes’ Trust. I could, of course, relate to their struggles as well as their determination to improve their circumstances through entrepreneurship. These are valuable personality traits that can easily be snuffed out under the struggles, burdens and everyday petty humiliations that come with disadvantage.  I realised that these individuals not only needed words of advice and encouragement but practical help too. 

In coaching and mentoring people in organisations, from graduates to senior managers, I’ve came to realise that there are a lot of unhappy people stuck in organisations or roles where they feel unfulfilled. 

Mentoring soon evolved as a proposition to offer more intensive retreats and workshops for people who require more direction in life and in their career. So I co-founded Reboot Global. 

The retreats are set in Arundel, West Sussex and Market Harborough, but we have partnered with another retreat business in Jamaica and have intentions to go global within a few years, running a Reboot retreat on every continent. I have been to retreats in the past and appreciate the transformational, life-changing nature of these experiences. The results we have had so far have been phenomenal – people have been rejuvenated, changed jobs, moved cities, started new volunteering efforts – and we only held the first retreat last year!

How do you set yourself apart from other businesses in your industry?

Mentoring, business and life coaching are incredibly human-centric lines of work, and when clients usually buy-in to the retreats and workshops, they’re really buying into our personalities and expertise shaped by relatable experiences. My business partner, Emma Howard, and I work well together and collectively we bring an interesting blend of skills to the retreats; her from an HR and executive career planning perspective, and me from a financial and business aspect. But there’s a healthy dash of alternative thrown in too: Emma is also a Reiki practitioner and brings a more spiritual element to the retreat. We dial this up or down according to the needs of the group.

Of course, there are many retreats and career coaches out there, but I do believe that the only USP you can have in a business like this is being individual, congruent and authentic.

Keeping an eye on the numbers in any business is important. How do you ensure that you’re always up to date?

I rely heavily on the snapshot reports on my business banking apps – they are one of the first things I look at each day. Then I review monthly KPIs that indicate whether we are growing – sales leads and actions, subscriber base, as well as the overall financial summary and forecasts.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?

Be really careful when taking business advice, especially in the area of marketing. There’s a great saying (although not mine) that you should never compare your beginning to someone else’s middle. I take this a step further: the things that made someone successful 10 years ago will not necessarily work for you now. A great example of this is social media, which is a great low or no-cost advertising resource. But with platforms evolving and algorithms changing all the time, what worked for someone using facebook ads 5 years ago will not work for you today – fact! Marketing to overcome obscurity is one of the biggest challenges an entrepreneur will face and there are a lot of people, including the gurus and experts, giving out or even selling obsolete and outdated methods.

With all the success stories around entrepreneurship and how innovative people have to be to take the leap. How do you think you’ve innovated your sector and why?

Although, at the start of this journey, we were fairly confident of the market need for our retreats, we definitely examined the competitor landscape, examined where the ‘gap’ was and how we would address it. We’re creating a brand experience with Reboot based on key retreat elements. I don’t want to go into too much detail yet but, as we grow over the next few years, I believe people will see how we stand out from the competition.

If you could be in a room with 4 entrepreneurs, who would they be and why?

Steve Jobs – I believe that the Apple comeback is one of the biggest entrepreneur success stories of the last century. And even though Steve wasn’t necessarily a ‘nice person’, by all accounts he had a level of focus and vision that was off the scale. His understanding of the importance of controlling content and all elements of the product design and styling (in a premium consumer product) are second to none.

Richard Branson – Many people talk about personal branding and even try to teach it. Richard Branson was a living personal brand. But he was also one of the forerunners in how to create a lifestyle brand which means people want to buy all of your products and services. I’d love to understand his decision-making process and how he decided which markets he could leverage his brand across. He also has the challenge of focusing on one idea at a time, which is something I struggle with. I have my own methods for prioritising, but I’d love to hear his.

Gary Vaynerchuk – Not necessarily because I want his marketing tips (although I do), but because I love his passion for helping people find meaningful work that they enjoy instead of embarking on something they actually hate or isn’t purposeful or fulfilling because it just pays the bills. 

Oprah Winfrey - (yes, I would put Oprah in any category if it meant I got to meet her!) I’d like to understand the business of media, TV and film production from her perspective. I believe traditional media has a huge influence on stereotypes, inclusion, tolerance and acceptance and I’d love to understand how to leverage this medium and wield influence in this space. She has obviously navigated this perfectly, plus her backstory – one of amazing triumph over unbelievable adversity – is to be admired and learnt from.

How important is company culture and what is your top tip to get it right?

Company culture is everything – it’s key to attracting, engaging and retaining the right talent, especially those early hires.

If a company has a reputation for being a sweat shop or harbouring bullies, this will ultimately hurt the business. There’s no place in modern enterprise for such operations, and employees – much like consumers – are becoming choosier with what brands they buy into and what companies they’d like to work for. That’s why businesses are investing more in refining and improving work culture; it’s no longer seen as a ‘nice to have’ but a must-have element to long term business growth plans. 

A company culture mirrors the person either at the top or other ‘big’ influential characters within the management team. In order to keep it in check and make sure it lines up with the company values espoused, companies must ensure that they employ people who simply aren’t ‘yes men’ that perpetuate group think. Rather, they impart the absolute warts-and-all truth – the good, bad and the ugly - NO MATTER WHAT. You need to have someone who will hold up a mirror to you and call you out when the culture is going rogue. That kind of impartiality is invaluable, even if it can appear unpalatable.

How did you fund the launch of your business and what creative strategies did you use to execute a minimal cash flow?

Our business model didn’t require a significant outlay, given that there was no equipment or stock required, and no significant IT or brand investment to be made from the outset. Simply, we had to ensure that payment terms for outgoings broadly mirrored the incoming cash.

How did you conquer those moments of doubt that so often affect entrepreneurs or stop many with great ideas – what pushes you through?

If you are prepared to fail, and if you are prepared to be open and accountable when things haven’t worked out, I believe you will push through the challenges – no matter how big and destabilising these might be. The two main things that I believe hold people back are fear of failure and fear of being criticised by others for failing. Fear of failure can’t be completely eradicated, although the risk can be reduced if you do your customer and market research. Fear of being criticised or looking stupid in front of others (bruising our fragile egos) is the harder nut to crack and I don’t have any silver bullets for tackling this problem. I will say that, for me, reminding myself that people’s opinions of me don’t add or take away from my intrinsic value or self-worth, helps.

What’s the most important question entrepreneurs should be asking themselves?

Why am I really doing this? If it’s just for the money don’t bother. You need to have a burning desire to stick at running the business, not just the motivation to start. And as we all know by now, money doesn’t make us happy – or, if it does, the effects are always transient.

How do you believe the evolution of tech will affect your industry over the next 10 years?

I’m sure technology will continue to become more democratised and accessible, making it easier for us to do business beyond the confines of the office and across continents and time zones. In fact, this is already being done – but it’s likely that the process will be sleeker, more streamlined. In terms of things like VR and AR, who knows? Maybe people won’t actually need to leave the comfort of their own homes to actually attend a retreat. We’ll just be plugged in to experience it immersively – like The Matrix – which is a scary thought! That said, I do believe that human-centric disciplines – from the therapies and retreats to coaching – will always thrive; perhaps more so in a world where we are digitally connected and seek more meaningful human connections.

Also, the tools that are used in these disciplines may be optimised by technology so we get a deeper understanding of an individual, with actionable data at our fingertips to deploy ever more personalised development plans. Technology has long been demonised as a relationship killer, enslaving us to our jobs. But perhaps (optimistically) we’ll see more of a synergy between AI and humans transpire as technology becomes more sophisticated – perhaps enhancing interactions and underscoring the efficacy of mentoring and coaching further. What that will look like in 10 years’ time remains to be seen – if we’ve learnt anything, it’s that innovation moves fast.

What do you think gives a brand longevity?

Agility; the ability for brands to evolve with the times, spot trends, be sensitive to ever changing customer needs and behaviours, as well as pivot – if required - in order to weather stormy economic climates. It’s amazing what innovations can be borne out of a crisis. For example, weeks into this pandemic, we’ve seen new social enterprises emerge in a matter of days to provide a response to the practical and humanitarian issues that have arisen, leaving no community unscathed. We’ve also seen businesses inventively pivot; if not to survive then certainly to contribute to communities with a common purpose, supporting those most in need. Agile business are often deemed the kinds of organisations best able to adapt and survive a crisis; able to take adversity as a business opportunity and change the business model in order maintain and even increase cashflow.

Even before this current global pandemic occurred, consumers were evidently seeking authentic brands that they can emotionally ‘connect’ with; brands that aren’t afraid to show their human-side but are able to make audiences and consumers smile - more so than ever in a climate of anxiety. Consumers are becoming more socially conscious, are using money to essentially ‘vote’ for corporates that are reflective of their own personal beliefs and value system – and they are quick to openly vilify brands and companies who do not look after their employees or customers when they need to the most. Again, this pandemic will be a case in point. Many consumers may never visit a Wetherspoons pub, purchase from a Sports Direct or fly with Virgin Atlantic ever again – based on the way these organisations have behaved. 

If a brand remains focused on solving problems for its customers, they will be around forever.