Our Story
We first met – briefly – back in 2008. Nicky was working for TRO*, an events marketing agency, and Sarah was working for Honda, one of their clients.
Five years later, in 2013, Sarah joined TRO* – and that’s when the friendship properly began. Mostly through running. A shared coping strategy, an outlet for stress, and a place to share hopes and dreams.
Here we are pictured above in 2014, running a Race for Life 5k dressed as Pink Lady apples – they were one of our clients!
Two years after that, we ran the Paris Marathon together. Not just the 26.2 miles, but the sixteen weeks of training that came before it. Something happens when you run long distances with someone. The masks fall away. You say things you wouldn’t say sitting across a desk. You find out who someone actually is.
What we found out, while pounding those pavements, was that we’d both been performing (in our personal and professional lives) for a very long time. And that we were both, quietly, exhausted by it.
*A case study of a truly, human-centric workplace. For which we are both very grateful 🙂
Nicky’s story…
I spent eighteen years in the corporate world, and for the most part seemingly thrived in amongst the high pressure. I was good at showing up and putting on a performance – whatever the situation asked of me.
I learned early in life that the “right” response to difficult feelings was to push them down, smile, and put on a good show. And honestly? It worked for a long time – but the cost was quiet, and cumulative.
What I didn’t realise was that, underneath it all, all the performing was taking its toll. I was craving to truly be seen and heard and valued – to belong. And to truly belong, meant showing all of who I was – without the mask and without the performance.
The moment that shifted something was surprisingly small. In a moment of overwhelm I burst into tears in front of my manager – and felt flooded with shame. I rushed in with an apology, but my manager looked at me and said: “Never apologise for showing emotion – it shows that you care.” I remember the feeling of being seen and understood – a kind of warmth and relief I hadn’t expected to find in the workplace… from my boss?!
And on reflection I thought: Why is this so rare? Why does something this simple feel so significant? How can this be bottled and shared with other leaders – it would surely make the working world a better place?
That question is at the heart of everything POINT3 became.
I’ve retrained since then – clinical hypnotherapy, MBSR, CBT, Core Energy Coaching, mindfulness, Mental Health First Aid. But arguably the most important thing I bring isn’t a qualification – it’s having lived the patterns I now help others recognise… and the understanding that this human work is never done – and neither should it be!
Sarah’s story…
I’ve been thinking about authenticity a lot lately. It feels like a cliché – “be yourself, be authentic, I mean, doh, of course?!” And yet. I’ve struggled with this. I think a lot of people do, knowingly or not.
I was good at fitting in. I’d had plenty of practice. I spent eight formative years at boarding school, learning to adapt, to read rooms, to be whoever the situation seemed to need. By the time I reached the corporate world, I was fluent in the language of performance.
And then I spent years chasing status – promotions, titles, a seat at the boardroom table. I told myself it was ambition. Looking back, I think it was something closer to a need to prove myself, to be accepted, to belong. And when I got “there” – I discovered just how lonely it was.
Behind the scenes, I was searching. For validation. For a version of myself I actually recognised. For a life that genuinely felt right rather than one that looked good from the outside.
Some of my greatest “failures” – getting divorced, being made redundant, burning out – turned out to be my greatest learning moments. In 2013, I lost my job and with it, a big chunk of my identity. So I started writing. About the things I was interested in – outside of work. Without a brief or a brand to hide behind. And I got hired – not for my CV, but for my voice. For the first time, being myself was actually enough. Not long after that, I met Nicky.
Since then, I’ve retrained. My qualifications include personal training, mindfulness, mindset coaching and Mental Health First Aid instruction. But if I’m honest, the most valuable thing I bring isn’t on any certificate. It’s twenty years in the corporate world, eight years delivering wellbeing training, and the lived experience of having been the person who needed this work long before I was the person delivering it.
It’s hard to human – as we say all the time. But I’m learning. And I’m still learning.
Building POINT3
For the first six years, we weren’t just two. Siôn was part of POINT3 from the beginning – helping us build, shape and grow POINT3 into something we’re all proud of. The foundations he helped lay are still what we build on today.
And it all began with running. We used to run together to re-energise, to de-stress, to brainstorm, to problem-solve. When we ran together, we weren’t just training our legs. We were, without knowing it, starting to unmask.
We talked about heartbreak. About loneliness. About the gap between the lives we wanted and the ones we had. We held space for each other in a way that most workplaces never teach you to – listening without judgement, being genuinely present for another person even when you had plenty of your own stuff to carry.
We felt safe. Truly safe – to be who we actually were. For people who had spent years learning to fit in, to perform, to wear the mask, that was extraordinary. And quietly, without us realising it at the time, it was the proof of concept for everything POINT3 became.
We realised two things. These are the skills that change everything. And almost nobody was teaching them in the workplace. We wanted to help the people we once were by delivering the training we wished we’d had.
So we built POINT3. And we’re still building it.
What we stand for
We are wholehearted – we put our heart and soul into everything we do, because we’ve learned that half-heartedness is its own kind of mask.
We are brave – we lean into discomfort, our own and other people’s, because that’s where the real work happens.
We are curious – we bring open minds and genuine interest to every person and every organisation we work with.
We behave with integrity – honesty, trust and respect aren’t values we put on a wall. They’re how we actually show up.
We believe in good intentions – and in the ripple effects they create, even when we can’t see them.
What’s next?
POINT3 is eight years old, independently owned, founder-run and B Corp certified.
What we do is constantly evolving. There’s so much more we want to do and people we want to help. Conversations we want to have. Organisations we haven’t yet reached who need exactly this work.
If you’re one of them – we’d love to talk.
This work isn’t for every organisation. It’s for the ones that are ready to get honest about what’s really going on with their people – and actually do something about it.
If that’s you – get in touch here.