The Power Within Training: Our Journey to Success

Eight years ago, The Power Within Training was just an idea—an ambitious vision shared by my wife, Enas, and me. We sat at our kitchen table, staring at each other, knowing we were about to go all in on something that terrified and excited us in equal measure.

No guarantees. No safety net. Just a belief—in ourselves, in each other, and in what we were about to build.

And today, here we are.

The Power Within Training is eight years old, and it’s been the wildest, most rewarding journey of our lives.

If you’d told me years ago that I’d be running a leadership training company with my wife, working with leaders and business owners across the country, I’d have laughed in your face. I wasn’t the “business owner” type. Hell, I wasn’t even the “sit still in a classroom” type.

But life has a funny way of leading you exactly where you’re meant to be.

From Apprentice Electrician to International Business Leader

I never grew up thinking I’d be a business owner.

At 17, I left school with zero qualifications, no clear plan, and absolutely no desire to follow in my dad’s footsteps as a carpet fitter. But I knew one thing—I didn’t want to just exist.

I wanted more.

So, I did what I had to do. I picked up the phone, called every number in the Yellow Pages, and landed myself an apprenticeship as an electrician. That one phone call? It changed my life.

Fast forward years of graft, risk-taking, and pushing past every bit of self-doubt, and I found myself in the Middle East, running multi-million-pound businesses, leading teams across different countries, and working with some of the biggest names in the oil and gas industry.

By all accounts, I had “made it.”

The money was great, the job title impressive, and the lifestyle comfortable. Yet, something was missing.

It wasn’t the deals, the contracts, or the boardrooms that excited me. It was people.

I loved helping someone shift their mindset, step into their potential, and completely change the trajectory of their life. That was what lit a fire in me.

The Moment Everything Changed

In 2016, I was offered a senior leadership role in Switzerland. It was meant to be the next “big step” in my career. Big salary. Big opportunity.

Then, out of nowhere, I was made redundant.

No job. No backup plan. And all our worldly possessions were literally floating around in a shipping container somewhere.

That moment, sitting there with Enas, staring at each other, we had two choices:

Panic and scramble to find another corporate job—something safe, something familiar.
Back ourselves and build something from scratch.

We chose the latter.

It wasn’t just about making money. We wanted to create something that actually made a difference. Something that would help people break through their own self-doubt, step into leadership, and build businesses and careers they were proud of.

And the foundation of that? Motivational Intelligence.

The Power of Motivational Intelligence

The one thing that had transformed my own career—from a 17-year-old apprentice to leading multi-million-pound businesses—was Motivational Intelligence (MQ). It wasn’t talent or luck. It was the ability to overcome fear, self-doubt, and excuses.

Motivational Intelligence is what separates those who succeed from those who don’t. It enables leaders to step up, make better decisions, and keep pushing forward—even when things get tough.

That’s what we wanted to bring to our clients. Not just leadership training, but a mindset shift that would transform how people think, act, and lead.

The Birth of The Power Within Training

Starting a business isn’t glamorous. Forget the Instagram-worthy images of entrepreneurs sipping flat whites in fancy offices.

The reality?

It was just the two of us at a kitchen table, figuring things out as we went. At first, we had no clients and no income. We weren’t even sure if this was going to work. But we had belief.

And we grafted like hell.

That first year? Without a doubt, it was brutal.

There were plenty of moments where we questioned everything. However, we kept going.No excuses. No quitting. Just one foot in front of the other, every single day. Slowly, things started to shift.

It started with one client, which quickly turned into two. Before long, two became ten, and word spread. The results spoke for themselves.

Before we knew it, The Power Within Training was no longer just an idea. It was a business.

The Challenges, The Lessons, The Mindset

Let me tell you—building a business will test you in ways you never expected.

Of course, there were setbacks, doubts, and days where it felt like nothing was working.

But here’s what we’ve learned in the last eight years:

Resilience is everything. No matter how many times you get knocked down, doubted, or rejected, you must get back up—every single time.
Self-doubt never disappears—but you learn to shut it up. The difference between those who succeed and those who don’t? They don’t let self-doubt win.
Motivational Intelligence changes everything. Once you understand how to control your mindset and shift your perspective, your entire approach to leadership, business, and life changes.
Success or excuses—you can’t have both. You can tell yourself you don’t have time, you don’t have the skills, you don’t have the resources. Or you can get up and make it happen.

End of.

Everything I’ve learned about success, failure, and getting out of your own way is in my book, ‘You Can Have Success or Excuses, You Cannot Have Both.’ No BS, no sugar-coating—just the mindset shifts that actually make a difference.

The Power Within Training: Where We Are Now

Eight years on, The Power Within Training has grown beyond anything we could have imagined.

We’re now a team of 15 incredible people, and we’ve worked with leaders and business owners across the UK, helping them transform not just their businesses, but their lives.

We’ve helped them unlock their Motivational Intelligence and develop the mindset to lead with confidence, resilience, and impact.

And we’ve built something that matters.

But this? This is just the beginning.

Here’s to the next eight years.

And if there’s one thing I want you to take away from this?

Motivational Intelligence changes everything.

“You can have success or excuses, you cannot have both” – James Fleming

James & Enas Fleming

The Power Within Training
The Motivational Intelligence Company
james@tpwtd.com

8 Years of The Power Within Training: Our Journey to Success