Feature Interview - Ruth Kudzi

Ruth Kudzi

Ruth works with coaches, consultants and trainers who want to build and scale successful businesses on their terms.

With a background in sales, recruitment and senior leadership in education, Ruth is an ICF accredited coach with an MA in psychology and a background in business who combines business strategy, psychology, mindset and coaching in her work.

Ruth spent over a decade teaching and mentoring people to start and run businesses and has practical business experience in a variety of industries. Her approach is straight talking but supportive and combines her love of business and strategy with softer skills that showcase her love of working on your mindset alongside your strategy.

On Personal Development

Please start with telling us more about what you do?

I am a business mentor, coach and author. I help coaches, consultants and service-based business owners start and scale their businesses by working on their mindset and business strategy.

What were the biggest influences in your life that have helped shape who you are and what you do today?

My gran was a huge influence on me, she lived around the corner when I was growing up and she always encouraged me to be myself and to aim high. There have been various mentors along the way as well – a lady called Zoe when I was working in recruitment who saw my potential and made me believe in myself, and a woman called Anne Barton who showed me what a great coach can do.

What are the areas of your personal development that you really had to focus on improving to help you progress in your career?

I think for me it is about focusing on one thing at a time. I am an ideas person and I tend to get carried away with lots of things. Learning to simplify and focus has helped me so much in my career. I still have the tendency to over commit so have put systems in place, so I stay more focused!

I have also had to overcome confidence issues around visibility, I didn’t feel like I could do things or that I was good enough. I have done a lot of work both on my own and with coaches and therapists around this.

What motivates you to keep doing what you do?

I know that I am making a positive difference and changing people’s lives as well as being a role model to my children. I love what I do, and I love the fact that it has such a positive impact.

On Social Visibility

How has social media helped you in your business / work?

Social media has enabled me to build a business from home and to work with people all over the world. It has enabled me to grow my business more quickly than I would have been able to without it.

Are there any ways in which you think social media has held you back or not supported your goals?

I outsourced some of my social media pretty early on and I think that I lost control, of Instagram especially, and I regret that. I believe that social media needs to be personal but I now get help with scheduling and I am mindful about how much time I spend on there. Social media with intention rather than mindless scrolling!

Which channels do you use the most to improve your online visibility?

Facebook is my go-to but I love Instagram as well and have a YouTube channel and LinkedIn account that we use as well.

How important is social media in connecting you with your audience and building your influence?

To me it has been key, it has helped me to build relationships and it has helped me to demonstrate my expertise and get people to know, like and trust me. My business has been built on social media and I am incredibly grateful for that.

On Personal Brand Image

When you think about your personal brand style (fashion, beauty, body image etc), how would you describe yourself?

My style has changed since I have had kids, but I have always preferred dresses and skirts to trousers. I have started to wear brighter colours and different designers rather than my staple Whistles. I have a positive body image, my weight tends to fluctuate with stress but I exercise regularly and look after myself and to me this is the most important thing to do. I don’t really care what people think about my body – I dress for me and want to look nice but it isn’t the most important thing in my life.

I love beauty and I look after my skin, I have regular facials and use Elemis products mainly. I don’t wear much make up normally but get dressed up and like to have my hair and makeup done! My hair is now pretty much grey so I currently have it coloured every 4 weeks but who knows how long I will keep that up!

For me; my personal brand is about being comfortable with who I am. We all want to look nice but we don’t need to aspire to look like a specific person – it is about working out what works for you.

Is there anything about your style that you think makes you stand out and if so what would you say that is?

Probably my love of dresses! I have a lot. I look like an English rose, so I have never been able to pull off anything super trendy hair and makeup wise (I have tried!) now I am happy with this. I don’t really push boundaries style wise but do love dresses!

What areas of your personal brand style do you think works for you the best in terms of your attraction and visibility (i.e., do you get more attention from your images or video or do they both work well for you)?

To be honest I think people connect most with me when I am in my everyday gear – hair up or down, some makeup and a nice top or dress.

In terms of branding it is useful for people to see you in a variety of different ways so having the styled photos and professional videos works well alongside the more day to day pony tail and active wear.

Do you have any tips for people who are shy about putting themselves ‘out there’ and being the ‘face’ of their brand?

The person who is judging you is you. Think about what you can do to be more confident – get photos done that you like, have hair and makeup and clothes you feel comfortable in.

Start with small steps such as writing a post on social media or replying to other people’s posts and then build up your confidence. You don’t need to start by doing live video – work out what works for you and be consistent.

If you want to build your business, then having a personal brand makes a huge difference. If you are struggling to do this remind yourself of why you are running your business and go for it.

Final Question

When you think about all of the elements that make up your personal brand (mindset, social visibility and image), why is your personal brand important for building an authentic persona with your target audience?

Your personal brand is who you are, it is your public image that people connect with and build a relationship with.

To me your personal brand needs to represent your core values to be authentic and to connect with people so be you, you don’t need to share everything but remember the more personal your brand the more others will connect with it.

Follow Ruth on Social Media:

www.ruthkudzi.com www.facebook.com/ruthkudzi2/ www.instagram.com/ruthkudzi/ www.linkedin.com/in/ruthkudzi/ YouTube - Ruth Kudzi Coaching

Photographer - Emma Marshall