From educator to celebrant: a bold career change!
It has been a daring challenge and a huge learning curve, becoming a celebrant. My entire career, prior to setting up this business, was in a secure, but highly stressful role as a senior teacher and Head teacher. Whilst I had many transferable skills, I had never been responsible for managing any aspect of business independently.
In 2019, prior to the pandemic lock-down, I had no choice but to make a change; so I set about devising a business plan that I had produced independently, having never developed such a projection before. This secured me a significant half-million-pound commercial investment to buy my own wedding venue. I found and made an offer on a riverside/estuary property. I sold my home and was prepared to invest it all into a business which, with a visionary strategic plan and my hard work, would have had me loan-free within five years…an audacious goal, given my single status after two costly divorces! I was ecstatic at the success of securing this investment and excited at the prospect of hosting and officiating at chic estuary weddings.
But the timing was almost catastrophic. I was thankful and regretful all at the same time when it didn’t complete before the lockdown. Thankful, as I would have lost everything; regretful because of the missed opportunity.
Instead, I had bills to pay, no job, no income, no furlough and no chance of any help or possible employment. The educational career I could have previously relied on was also a ‘no entry’ as all educational establishments were shut down. I had two options: set myself up and keep focused and positive in a gig economy or go under. I kept my head just above water in that time by training with AMC, setting up Latansani and writing and publishing two books:
The Will To Surthrive eBook : Whitney, Julie: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store
Not Lost For Words: How Words Can Help To Destigmatise Dementia eBook : Whitney, Julie: Amazon.co.uk: Kindle Store
Now, how times have changed. My first wedding ceremony was delivered in front of 200+ guests and attended by television’s Big Gospel Choir. Since then, I have officiated at dozens of classy and chic weddings, conducted several vow renewals and baby naming ceremonies, all bespoke and unique in settings, and have led more than three hundred funeral services. They are so rewarding – the privilege of being able to help families in their time of greatest need has been so healing for me, and I hope that my services have begun that process for them.
I am leading the way for diversity and change in the ways that such rites of passage are considered and I really try to push boundaries. I continue to liaise with local councils to ensure that couples can access registrar ceremonies alongside the more bespoke services that I offer, at least until we get the legislation changed; I have ‘appeared’ on BBC Radio Devon on many occasions as a Celebrant/ Author to support community events and to promote myself as a celebrant and Latansani as a business; I support all efforts to change the discriminatory wedding legislation that has not been altered significantly since 1753; and, I hope, I am a real role model to women in the autumn years of their lives or careers because I will never give up. As a ‘novice’ businesswoman in my sixties, I am one of the WASPI generation, significantly affected by the state pension changes but even if this were not the case, my work and my business are pure joy and will keep me young and focused, working in celebrancy well into the next decade.
I kept myself going in that lockdown with a dream to be self-sufficient, successful, and as sassy as ever.
So here’s to 2025!
You can really help me by understanding the significant role that Celebrants can play…spread the word.
And if any of you would like to know more about the work that we do and the ways that we can change outdated and un-serving protocols consider signing up for Celebrantopia. Link below:
Latansani 