After more than 30 years an accountant in the areas of advertising, fashion, retail and property – and also setting up a mobile beauty business after graduating from beauty school – then going on to careers in real estate and graduating from Interior Design School, Robyn Partridge had already gathered wide and varied business experience. But then she added ‘author’ to the list, writing a book on How to Meet Your Dream Man – and Keep Him. She shares with Business Woman Media some of the insights she’s acquired along the way.
Robyn Partridge, What drives you, and prompted you to write the book?
I believe in always trying to improve your mind with the subjects you have a passion for. I really should have been in the champagne business!! My book deals with how to solve the problems of meeting your dream man and once you have found him how to keep him. I cover topics such as Who are You and What do You Want out of Life, Dealing with a partners children, Managing your Finances, Compromise and Communication, Living together, Date Nights, Dealing with Differences of Opinions, How to always look appealing to your Man.
What have been the biggest challenges you’ve faced in your career?
Being a little bit shy with low self-esteem was always a problem for me. I think one of the most amazing pieces of advice that I read concerned talking to other people. It said take the focus off yourself and put it onto the other person by asking questions. Most people like to feel that you are interested and will be happy to provide answers. This helped me in so many situations until I became comfortable with my surroundings both professionally and socially.
In relation to becoming an author my biggest challenge was finding a publisher. I started out by self-publishing as I wanted the book available for reading and to share with women what I had written. I wrote to all the editors of magazines and book distributors but I didn’t receive any replies. This might seem disheartening but I always knew that the women who had read my book loved it and this was proof for me to never give up hope.
How did you overcome those challenges?
In respect of the book I never gave up talking about my book to people and was fortunate enough to have a contact that knew about my book show a friend in publishing. Thank goodness for me they liked it. I just received a phone call from a friend who said she had just read my book, she loved it and said I had the courage to say what others wouldn’t because of this new Social Order we live in. New Holland Publishing came along a few months ago and loved the book so republished it and it is now available in Dymocks.
Robyn Partridge, What are your plans for the future?
Teaching our children and any other child close to me what I have learnt in life and how to live your life as a good person, supporting and motivating then to be the best they can be in their chosen field. My chosen charity that I work with on the Ball Committee is Children’s Cancer and I work each year to improve the dollars that we raise for research.
What are the three top pieces of advice you would give other women?
In a relationship, know how to communicate, compromise and have respect for your partner. These are 3 simple things but we sometimes don’t pay enough attention to them. We’ll never always get it right but being aware of these 3 items is the most important. Always give more than you receive and be respectful of others feelings. My friend’s mother always said to her “Be the best person you can be each day.” What a wonderful statement.
