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Shona Hirons is an award-winning motivational speaker and published author of the bestselling book ‘The Girls Who Refused to Quit – Volume 3’ who spent two decades as a Lawyer before work-related stress caused her to have a breakdown in which she attempted to take her own life. Shona has developed proven methods for improving resilience and shares these strategies with others, so they do not face burnout during a stressful job like she did. She also travels the world teaching leaders the signs of burnout – helping eradicate the stigma surrounding mental health so employees work in an environment where they are nurtured and can perform to the best of their ability.
Throughout her lifetime Shona has had numerous health scares – she was born 6 weeks premature, not expected to live a long life, at 22 she suffered a mini-stroke – the reason for which was unclear, and at 32 she a hole was found in her heart which she needed surgery for. Despite all of the health scares she has had throughout her life, Shona found her employees unforgiving and soon found herself working 80-hour work weeks on what was meant to have been a part-time basis. Shona became mentally and physically exhausted, suffering frequent panic attacks. One day the stress was too much for her body and Shona collapsed, even though Shona had never felt so unwell in her life and was being pressured back to work and ultimately ended up leaving her job after 14 years of struggling. Shona then found a love for spin and became a Spin Instructor.
Just two years later, a job opportunity which was too good to pass by was presented to Shona but to regulate her stress, this time Shona utilised mindfulness techniques. In an attempt to stop neglecting her health, Shona began cycling to this new job but after only 9 months she was involved in a life-changing accident which saw her suffer numerous broken bones, a shattered cheekbone, loss of hearing, brain damage which left her in an induced coma for 2 weeks. Shona also needed major reconstructive facial surgery. It was in the recovery period when Shona hit rock bottom and attempted to take her own life. If it were not for her daughter, it is likely Shona would not be here today. Shona received therapy and changed her life completely after once again walking away from her job.
Shona decided she wanted to work with others who were also suffering from burnout and in 2019 received ‘The Inspired Award’ for her contributions to mental health. During her talks, Shona leaves her audiences feeling energised, happy and more productive and she shares her techniques to help with mental resilience when working in a stressful job. Shona engages her audience and helps them to put their wellbeing first, and the wellbeing of their staff, proving that a healthy culture will lead to improved productivity. When looking for an inspirational speaker, look no further than the accredited business coach, Shona Hirons.
“I have been fortunate to hear Shona’s ‘Broken to Bionic’ talk and found it not only inspiring but very relevant. Listening to ‘real life’ struggles turn to great success’s is very powerful and moving. Shona puts this over in such a way that is engaging, interesting and useful.
The beauty of how Shona lays out her story, she wraps it with easy to understand and useful take away tools. Not just a talk but useable tips on burnout, stress anxiety, self-management and more.In today’s fast paced and high pressured environment, Shona’s message and content is not only useful, it is vital.
Fantastic speaker, author and coach. Very highly recommended.”
“Shona Hirons partnered with Velocity Global as Resilience Coach over the past year. Shona first delivered her signature speech to our employees which truly resonated with so many of our people and we then asked Shona back to support our employees navigating through remote work in an international context (we have employees across 55+ countries across six continents). Shona talks with passion and from her own experience, and she has an amazing ability to apply a practical tool box enabling everyone she worked with to take ownership of their own boundaries, managing their time and responses more effectively and becoming an all around Resilience Coach. Thank you Shona!”
“I heard Shona give a keynote speech at an event in Bristol. She was engaging, insightful and amusing and I was hanging off every word. If you haven’t heard her story, then get yourself to an event she is speaking at. I also had the pleasure at sitting at her table for dinner and enjoyed chatting to her very much.”
“Unfortunately there’s no classification for “Shona gave a brilliant presentation at two of my events” but that’s precisely what she did and impressed me (and more importantly the delegates) so much that I’ve invited her to be part (a major part) of the Six O’Clock Club Small Business Summer School.
Shona has a great story to tell about how she overcame adversity but much more than this is the way she’s using that experience to help stressed out business owners (like me) achieve far better balance and purpose in their lives.
Whether you’re looking for a talented and inspirational speaker or seeking help to work smarter and bring the stress levels down in your business…
Speak to Shona!”
“Quite recently I attended a meeting at which Shona took the speaking slot. I was impressed by the way she engaged the audience immediately and was willing to show some vulnerability which achieved empathy from the audience. Shona talked about her career and the learnings that had brought her to this event.
She has a great message for the attendees in terms of how you can use your thoughts to bring about the best outcomes for yourself.
There were plenty of questions asked after Shona spoke which in my book is a great sign of an audience really thinking about the message.
I would not hesitate to recommend Shona’s speaking ability especially her engagement skills and besides all that she really is a very nice person.”
“In 2021, The Jordan Legacy CIC was blessed to have several inspiring speakers at our very first Hope for Life (UK) COnference and your story SHona was truly inspirations and powerful. I remember thinking at the time, how can one person experience so much trauma and still keep going and actually thrive, not just exist.
If you’re looking to book a inspirational story about triumph over destiny, I can’t recommend Shona highly enough!!”
The Diversity and Inclusion Speakers Agency has been one of the UK’s leading bureaus for inspirational figures of different races, genders, sexualities and abilities since 2020. We supply speakers for corporate and public events across the world, and cater to both in-person occasions and online webinars. Our roster includes athletes, psychologists, celebrities and more, to ensure that audiences of all industries receive tailored, impactful advice on diversity and inclusion.
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