7th August, North Shore Golf Club
Women in Business, proudly supported by Phone Plus Group and Purple Ink
As a two-time breast cancer survivor, Karin Horen’s transformative journey has led her to become a published author and motivational speaker. Her battles with cancer not only tested her mental and physical resilience but also inspired her to tackle extraordinary feats, co-found the empowering PaddleOn community for women enduring similar struggles, and help fundraise hundreds of thousands for cancer rehab services in New Zealand.
In her extensive presentation, Karin shared many details about her life before, during, and after her cancer journey. Among the personal anecdotes were several life lessons, particularly focused on growth, strength, and health.
These included:
- Don’t try to do everything all at once. Consistency is the key. One per cent improvement every day adds up over time.
- Ask for help! People around you want to help; once you have their support, it’s like a butterfly effect.
- Likewise, don’t be afraid to reach out to people you feel might be struggling.
- It is possible to combine your passions with your profession. Verbalising that desire will help bring it to reality.
- Each one of us has our own unique superpowers. Find yours and harness them.
She reflected that everything in life is temporary – good times and bad – and there’s much to be learned from adversity. The most important thing is to talk about it. Don’t be fooled by the unhelpful myth that you just have to keep going or that there’s no time to stop and take a breath.
During the subsequent Q+A, one guest thanked Karin for her work with PaddleOn, saying how much a friend of theirs had benefited from this wonderful community.
Karin was gifted a beautiful bouquet, courtesy of Edible Blooms, and two lucky business card draw winners also took home some delicious chocolate treats.
BNH general manager Kevin O’Leary rounded off the event, reminding everyone about the upcoming Business Excellence Awards – which could be the perfect way for guests to celebrate their organisations’ resilience and success in challenging times.
