Exclusive interview with Leanne Pero, MBE

Leanne Pero, MBE. Photo Courtesy of Leanne Pero, MBE.

Leanne Pero, MBE, is a multi-award-winning entrepreneur, speaker, author, model, and breast cancer survivor. She chatted about her latest endeavors.

Margaret Mead once said: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” This quote applies to Leanne Pero, MBE.

Daily motivations

On her daily inspirations, she remarked, “I am inspired by working with the members of Black Women Rising. Knowing that our work is changing lives is also a huge source of inspiration.” 

Future plans

Regarding her future plans, she shared, “As well as hosting a yearly Fundraising Gala, which we are already making plans for in 2025, I will be focusing on growing the charity.” 

Career-defining moments

On her career-defining moments, she stated, “My breast cancer diagnosis at the age of 30 was definitely moment that helped define me, especially as it led to me starting the charity and the Black Women Rising project – another big moment.”

The digital age

On being a part of the digital age, she said, “The digital age is a double-edged sword.”

“On one hand, you can reach more people, and connect with your audiences very quickly,” she acknowledged.

“On the flip side, it has been quite detrimental to people’s mental health as well as setting unrealistic expectations which people just cannot keep up with. I find that side of things very scary, considering my work is people centric and one of our main focusses is finding ways to empower them, not bring them down,” she explained.

“So, there has to be a balance to it all,” she added.

Receiving an MBE from Prince William

She opened up about receiving her MBE (Member of the British Empire) award from Prince William.

“It was such a fantastic experience,” she exclaimed. “Prince William was so wonderful, it was a pleasure to have that time with him. A very proud moment indeed.” 

Favorite mottos to live by

On her favorite mottos to live by, she revealed, “I have a few…one of my favorite mottos is, ‘everything happens for a reason’. Then, more recently I have loved, ‘I trust god and his plans for me and my life’.”

And one that I always come back to is, “I’m perfectly imperfect” which has helped so much with my self acceptance. 

Advice for young and aspiring entrepreneurs, speakers, and authors

For young and emerging entrepreneurs, speakers, and authors, she said, “My advice would be to follow your heart. Do the things you want to do, but give yourself grace.”

“I spent a lot of my younger years feeling really burnt out all of the time because I was so hard on myself. I started my first business at 15 years old, when no one else was starting businesses that young,” she elaborated.

“That has changed now of course, but at the time I was the only one of my friends doing it. I was so hard on myself and worked so hard,” she noted.

“So, you have to make sure that you take care of yourself in the process,” he added.

Elizabeth Hurley and Damian Hurley

Pero had great words about Elizabeth Hurley and her filmmaker and model son Damian Hurley. “Elizabeth is a fantastic friend to the charity, she is very supportive of our work and Damian has followed suit with that,” she said.

“We appreciate their support, the awareness they help us raise and their dedication to our charity,” she added.

Success

On her definition of success, she said, “For me, success is not one dimensional. It is all encompassing. I do not think of success as a word just for work. Success is being really happy within yourself. When you are happy, everything else falls into place.” 

“I have always achieved a lot from a young age,” she admitted. “I reached the stage where I was struggling with my mental health but outwardly still achieving. That didn’t make me feel good, but everyone would say ‘oh but you are so successful’.”

“Now, I feel so much better in myself that I enjoy the work success even more, and that helps me to feel fulfilled,” she concluded.

To learn more about Leanne Pero, MBE, check out her official website, and follow her on Instagram.