We Are Power Podcast
The We Are PoWEr podcast spotlights voices and perspectives that need to be heard. Our weekly podcast, with listeners in over 60 countries, delivers PoWErful conversations that inspire, challenge, and empower... from personal life stories to business insights and leadership lessons.
We share diverse experiences, bold discussions, and real solutions. Whether you're looking for career advice, topical themes, or stories of resilience and success - this is where voices spark change.
We Are Power Podcast
This Is What No One Tells You About Being An Entrepreneur
In this episode of the We Are PoWEr Podcast, we sit down with Donna Scully, Joint Owner and Director at Carpenters Group, one of the UK’s leading providers of insurance and legal services.
Donna shares her experience of moving from London to Liverpool for a fresh start, and how she built a successful career as a lawyer and entrepreneur. She reflects on key moments along the way including being once called a “Scally” at school which have stuck with her and shaped her perspective. Donna speaks openly about imposter syndrome, building credibility in new spaces, and what it means to lead with authenticity.
We also explore her powerful belief that kindness is one of the greatest tools for leadership and impact—free, meaningful, and available to everyone.
Find out more about We Are PoWEr here. 💫
Hello, hello and welcome to the we Are Power podcast. If this is your first time here, the we Are Power podcast is the podcast for you, your career and your life. We release an episode every single Monday with listeners in over 60 countries worldwide, where you'll hear personal life stories, top-notch industry advice and key leadership insight from amazing role models. As we Are Power is the umbrella brand to Northern Power Women Awards, which celebrates hundreds of female role models and advocates every year. This is where you can hear stories from all of our awards alumni and stay up to date with everything MPW Awards and we Are Power. Well, welcome to the we Are Power podcast.
Speaker 1:I'm Never imitated, never replicated. Singularly wonderful, everybody's wonder girl. Well, welcome to the we Are Power podcast. I'm. Do you know what? Every week, I talk to some of the most amazing people and I love diving into the backstory. Where did they come from? How did they get there? This woman, Donna Scully, how long have we got? Oh God, how would you describe yourself? In three words, Because it's great, you know you are Carpenters Group co-owner 30 years anniversary, but how would you describe yourself?
Speaker 2:I think Irish, a traveller, an immigrant, you know like I'm not in my hometown or my home country, and I've ended up here and it's brilliant and it's been and I suppose just the journey, just kind of looking back and when I look at those things and things that happen, I think how did I get to here? And it's brilliant and you know it's obviously been. I mean, some of it's been been. I mean some part of it's been really tough, but most of it's been great fun and and when people listen and you know, no one adventure or career adventure is the same.
Speaker 1:Is it? You know, and everyone assumes that if you work in law which you do and you kind of own the business right, but everyone assumes that you have a set path and you went to uni and you had privilege and you had advantage. Where did it start for you? Newcastle.
Speaker 2:No, well, it starts in Dublin, in a convent school in inner city Dublin 40, 45 in a class. And I laugh about this because the only science I did was domestic science, because really the nuns were preparing us to get married. That was the whole kind of, you know, career path that we were supposed to take as women, um, and then, you know, I left school at 16, which was crazy, but further education just wasn't really for people like me and the nuns didn't encourage it. Um, you know, I, my granny, kind of brought me up, um, and you know, they kind of just let me do what I wanted to do. But I did a secretarial course, which they did at the school. So that kind of made me, pushed me, towards being a secretary, but I ended up.
Speaker 2:You start as an office junior, don't you? And then you work away. But I became a legal secretary when I was about 18. So that was my introduction to law and I liked it. I worked for a young lawyer in Dublin city centre and that was kind of that went on, I think, about 19,. I went on holiday, met a Geordie in Torremolinos and then I emigrated to Newcastle when I was 20. And that's kind of it was a legal secretary there for a while, and that's when I started to study law part-time, because I thought there has to be more. I want to do more. You know, I don't want to be a secretary for the next 40 years, so that's kind of how it started.
Speaker 1:And when you were in that role, you didn't have an assistant, did you? Because you could do all your own typing.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah yeah, I mean it's mad, isn't it? Because? And that kind of became quite when I moved to London from Newcastle. That was the weird bit because everybody no one could type. Who was a lawyer? Because they didn't learn to type and I was this freaky lawyer who could do my own typing I'm like 80 words a minute, touch typist and it kind of was bad in a way because they made me do more. Whereas some people got secretary of support, I didn't. But then in a way, I was quite attractive because I was cheap and even now Cost effective, Donna, Cost effective even now.
Speaker 1:I mean cost effective, not cheap.
Speaker 2:That's a bad word, but yeah, even now I mean, I can type 80 words a minute. So which people hate in the business? Because I can type memos to them which are really emails that are really long. But yeah, it's funny enough if you said to me what's the best thing I've ever learned in my life?
Speaker 1:practically it's to type and do you think you've always been one of those people who's sort of flown ahead? Like you know, the is there. There's something in the power in that typing right. Yeah, the speed of it I got. I taught, got taught to type in the navy when I was a radio operator and we had a big keyboard up on the screen and it had light up letters and that's how. And now, oh, it's brilliant, how can you do that without looking?
Speaker 2:it was great, it's brilliant and it really is helpful. You know, if you want to do blogs, I do a bit of writing and I do it all myself because it's much easier. You know, I mean, I have a PA, john, and I share one, but she does all the practical stuff booking things and all that. I do all my own typing. It's just very easy. It's great having it and I'm delighted. I didn't realize where I was. I did have a secretary, you know, as I kind of went up the ladder a bit because they said, oh, it's not cost effective for you to type, we'll get someone, and it was like really weird, I hated it, you know. When I got back into it then I was like, you know, I'd rather do my own typing, it's much better.
Speaker 1:So what brought you from the beautiful Newcastle over to the beautiful Liverpool?
Speaker 2:Well, I went via London, so London was, so the guy Rivers everywhere, right Well the guy that I went I was with in Newcastle, my Georgie boyfriend, who I had for a while. He took up photography and obviously I was studying law. So I was flexible, I was doing the legal exec course and I could do that anywhere that was transferable. So we both decided to go to London together and we did, and we stayed together for a few years down there and then we split up and then I kind of kept on studying law and I worked in a couple of really big law firms in London, which was really Brilliant in the sense of I couldn't believe I was there.
Speaker 2:I mean, mishkondorea was one of the places I worked. But when I look back it really made me very insecure and drowning in imposter syndrome, because everybody there was, like you know, they didn't ask your name there when you went in. They go which university did you go to before your name? And you know, when you go, I didn't go to university, you university, they like, cannot believe that this is your life, you know, and you think God. So that did make me feel quite insecure for a while and then I just battled on.
Speaker 1:But how did you battle that? Because there is that. It's that labelling, isn't it? And back in the day, we didn't give things like imposter syndrome or we didn't give things names. You think it's just, you, don't you?
Speaker 2:I just sat there and thought I feel really inferior and I was used to think, imagine if they saw my house, where I'm from, you know things like that, and I think now I can't give a shit what they think in my house. But at that time, you know, 24, 25 I was like, oh god, I was so in, you know it. Really, I was really um I hate saying embarrassed because it's a terrible word, but you're definitely keeping your head down, you know, and you don't want to be asked too many questions. And the thing I love now about getting older and having worked my way through it all is I don't care, I am who I am, you know.
Speaker 2:But during that time I didn't want to be me and I was very, you know, I definitely didn't want to talk about it. So it's a learning curve, isn't it? And you know you have to get through that really to come out the other side. And it's funny, the people I was friends with at Mishcons I'm still friends with people there and they had a great education compared to me and they laugh because I've ended up with my own business and you know I'm doing things like this and they go.
Speaker 2:God, you know that little scally, you know has ended up doing all this stuff. So yeah, I think the thing for me I like is that if there's kind of people out there like me, I say to them don't give up, Keep battling away, and there will be shitty times and you will feel a bit weird, but just keep going and I think the more people like me that are around, we won't feel so weird. That's kind of why I like social mobility, you know, and you know we need more kind of representation of different people, don't we in all the jobs?
Speaker 1:Absolutely. Here's the total visibility. That's why we seek to thrive and exist, isn't it? Because we want to shine a light on amazing humans like yourself. What was the point where you went? You know what I'm going to be the Scully lawyer, entrepreneur. What was that big leap?
Speaker 2:I think, the big leap for me. I left London and I moved up here because my husband's a Scouser. So I came up here and I was going to get a job in the law firm up here because I was a personal injury lawyer. I had a few years under my belt. I could get quite a senior role. I'd want to be a partner somewhere. And then John said join me. And he had this little niche commercial practice and he said come and join me and set up your personal injury motor insurance work and you know, take it, see how it goes. And I was like Jesus Christ, I mean what does that mean? I mean I've no clients, I've never done, I've never been self-employed, I don't know what I'm doing. So I think another thing along the way is finding this person who believes in you and thinks you're great and you can do this and you don't think you can. And I think he really had this massive amount of faith in me.
Speaker 2:And the other thing I think I say to people, especially if I do some mentoring, is have a go, because what's the worst thing that can happen? I've always said to myself when I left Dublin to go to Newcastle, I got a month's return flight on Danair. So I said if it doesn't work out, I'm going back down there. And I said when I went to London again. I said I can go back to Dublin or I can go back to Newcastle and the same. When I came here I thought if it doesn't work out with John, I'll go back somewhere that I've been, that I liked, and I think for this thought, if it doesn't work out doing it myself and working with John, I'll go and get that job in Liverpool that I was going to get anyway. So I think it's try it. I'm a real, real, like you know proponent of have a go. What's the worst that can happen? And the thing I think is, if I hadn't have done those things, I wouldn't be sitting here.
Speaker 1:And when you sort of had that well, how do I do it? I haven't got any clients. Where did you start?
Speaker 2:Jesus, I started with computers Because I started by saying, if we're going to do this? Because I worked in London and they had great computers but nobody could make them work and nobody was developing them. You know, they were just sitting there like antiques. So I said we're going to get a computer system and we're going to set that up and then we're going to go and try and get the work because we'll show them our great computer system and you know, I know what I'm doing a bit and all that. So that's kind of the start of it. We sort of set that up and then we got a little bit of work, then another little bit and you're just proving yourself. I mean, I remember celebrating. We got one case a week, so so four cases a month off a little insurance company and we went and had a bottle of champagne because it was so exciting, you know. But yeah, you just have to keep plugging away and also getting the right people. Yeah, we've got some good people in.
Speaker 1:And it is about celebrating the small wins, oh yeah, and the big wins.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I'm Irish, I love celebrating, so you know, I think yeah. No-transcript.
Speaker 1:And you talk about small wins, like right now. Your trophy cabinet is immense, right Reigning Merseyside Woman of the Year champion, the only non-scouser or the only first Irish winner which is amazing, well-deserved, literally the weekend just gone, top 100.
Speaker 2:Global insurance people I know Hello.
Speaker 1:They're all laughing in Dublin when they hear that. But this trophy cabinet's getting bigger, right it's funny, isn't it?
Speaker 2:I laugh about this. I was saying this to John, like I've been doing this job for nearly 30 years. I've been up here 28 years this year and you plug away, you work away, and then it's like they're like buses, aren't they? Because I didn't win anything for years, obviously. And then all of a sudden, you know, and I really love what I love about what's happened in the last few years is people have taken the time to nominate me, to go away, like even you know when, when it was your thing, it was like somebody sat down and wrote the story about why I should win. And even for Mayor's Decide Woman of the Year, I know a lot of people got together and put that nomination together and I think that's so touching, isn't it? And like that really like floors me that people can be bothered to do that.
Speaker 1:But you're somebody. Throughout your whole career you've talked about mentoring. You're someone who's been so passionate about giving back, paying forward. You were shortlisted for mentor for northern power women awards weren't you but why is that mentoring?
Speaker 2:so I think, I think I think it's natural because of where I come from. I I feel like when you have my background and you've managed to get to this stage and to have those opportunities and to you know, for it to have gone well, I just feel you have to have this duty, don't you? I have this feeling that it's for me just to do it and say it's great is fine, but quite selfish For me to say I'm going to drag a load of people hopefully with me, you know, hopefully inspire them physically, support them. I mean, the great thing about having a business is it's very powerful and like me. You know, doing a bit of volunteering or helping is one thing, but when I can do it through the business and 1500 people, you know, when I can offer apprenticeships in the business, you know work experience, when I can look around the business and see loads of Donna's not loads of those people at Mishkondorea like there's loads of people like me when I look and we're 50-50 men and women top to bottom.
Speaker 2:Because when you know, 30-40 years ago I wasn't treated very well as a woman, especially in London, especially in posh law firms, you know you were, my education wasn't good enough. You know you're looked at for your looks, aren't you? I mean, there was a lot of sexual harassment, especially before Me Too, so I love that. I don't want to see that there's no room for that in the world, really, and I think a business should, you know, be representative of society. So, you know, I think that that's very powerful and I really like that, and I think I just think that's what we should do.
Speaker 1:And you talk about using that power and owning a business is powerful, but this is about using your powerful good and one of the things that you've been driving is the fans and food banks right you know massive Liverpool fan. How did that come about? Where did that fit in? Not Newcastle? I'm quite observant.
Speaker 2:I am quite observant and I'm I'm a big social media fan, aren't I? And the great part of social media is you find good stuff on there. And I saw them on social media, their Twitter site, and then I went to a game and I saw the van and Dave Kelly and Ian Byrne and Robbie were there. So I went and asked them and said why are you here? You know what's go, what's, what is this about? And they said it's just fan activism. You know, people in Merseyside are hungry, which is like. And they said so we do. We do Everton and we do Liverpool games and we collect food and clothes and anything. And they said this to me. I want to cry when I hear it because it just really hit home. It's like, you know, hunger doesn't wear club colours no-transcript, but I think there's a lot of good goes on.
Speaker 2:And then we set up this kind of breakfast on a Sunday morning fan support and food banks and carpenters and we have it in Birkenhead at the Charles Thompson Mission. So that's brilliant. Some of their volunteers turn up, some of ours, and we just get together. So it's brilliant. And I think they run these amazing mobile pantries. I don't know if you've heard of them, but they're all around liverpool and they're like farmers markets and all the stuff is set out and it's fresh food and veg and everything. You pay three pound fifty and you get about 20 pounds worth of food but you can choose it.
Speaker 2:So it's kind of a step up from a food bank and they're amazing and they do them all around in Liverpool Lodge Lane and you know all that. It's fantastic. They're amazing people and I mean things are bad and have been bad, and Covid they kept going in Covid and helped everybody. So it's just brilliant and Liverpool and Everton support them and they have kind of permanent places now with those grounds. It's just the whole thing has kind of grown and you see a lot of fans now going to the games and they wouldn't go without their tin of soup or tin of beans or their cereal, you know, and they all bring it. It's kind of like bring your scarf, bring your ticket, bring your food, but everyone can be part of that.
Speaker 1:Now it's when you talk about. You've talked about your love of social media.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:And you know we're in a very interesting world right now where social media can play a really bad part. Oh, yeah, but it's important that we try and find the good bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is, and I think I mean I've kind of fallen out with Twitter. I mean I'm not calling it X, but I've kind of fallen out with it because it is so bad on there. But I'm torn because I did loads of good on there in terms of community and charity and donations. And I know people say they miss my stories about the Sunday morning people. You know I used to tell their stories and people really liked it and they say to me I miss it.
Speaker 2:So I probably have I will go back, but you know we just need a bit of a break tell us about the Sunday morning story so the Sunday morning stories when I first did it I'm doing it nearly eight years now, but when I first went there, um and I haven't really volunteered before, I've always done the kind of the easy bit, the donations, the support and all that, but not the hands-on, because I was really busy and the boys were younger. So, anyway, eight years ago, I they said, we set this breakfast up and I thought I'm going to go. But when I first went, oh God, I mean, it's tough, it's tough to see and hear. So my way of dealing with it was I'd come home afterwards and, instead of just sitting there crying my eyes out, I'd get a cup of coffee and I'd get my iPad out and I would get on and say what I heard today and things like.
Speaker 2:You know, I hear it still now and I'm not immune to it, but I think for the first year, those stories really, I mean, you know, I think I once wrote about a man who hadn't eaten for four days. A pensioner came in, you know, um, and it was when, you know, the kind of the cost of living crisis was really kicking in, so he couldn't have his oven on or his cooker, oh god, and I tweeted about that and I got like a million hits and and then I ended up on, you know, bbc Merseyside Granada reports and they came to the mission and they looked, you know, saw what we do and I really and then we got loads of donations on the back of it, as you can imagine. So I realized that it's very powerful. So I get on and I tell stories of sometimes happy stories, of things that would go well for people, but mostly they weren't very happy stories and they were very tough, but I think people said to me they didn't realise how much people were suffering.
Speaker 2:So you realise you have that power and I think the other thing I think when you get older and you have a business and you get a bit of success, is you get a voice and people listen to you and I believe you can use that voice very powerfully. I mean, you do it in a brilliant way, but I think you can use that voice for good. And that's how, by raising the profile of the homeless people and not, I think people thought they'd all be homeless, but some of them are pensioners because it's so tough to make ends meet he a niece, you know things like that. So, yeah, so that's been brilliant.
Speaker 1:You've got to find another outlet for that, Donna.
Speaker 2:You can't. No, I have to go back. You need to bring that back.
Speaker 1:What do your boys? You've got twin boys right who actually we were chatting earlier and I don't know whether we get into the fact that you know they're dressing up as nuns and vicars but that's your Christmas day, right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's what we do on Christmas day. Yeah, I'm the nun and my son's the priest. I mean very normal, just a normal family portrait.
Speaker 1:And did they all Irish dance? No, Because I know you will Irish dance. If we could just clear this glass table out of the way, I'm sure, especially for charity Especially.
Speaker 2:I mean we're all Albert Hall on stage. I've done it in the Grosvenor House Hotel and you know I'm absolutely shite. I mean I don't know what I'm doing, but it doesn't matter. The thing I realised about England is I only had to put my hands by my sides and you think I'm great. So I go for it. Pretend I've had about two lessons. So what I'm really scared about is ever meeting someone who can Irish dance. You know who will expose me. I'm like the emperor's new clothes.
Speaker 1:Fake it till you make it. Yeah, I am, I'm faking it. I've been faking it for years. I'm wanting to move these mugs out of the way right now.
Speaker 2:Oh God, yeah.
Speaker 1:All.
Speaker 2:I'd say is I do need a few glasses of wine, ideally.
Speaker 1:Just to loosen me up, just to oil me up, and you're someone that is so passionate, engaging, just great to be around. What's next for you? Because it for me. It strikes me that this is, it's like an addiction for you to yeah to want to give back to use that power. What's next?
Speaker 2:um, I just keep doing more of the same. I think I'm very good at the thing now is you? You get a great network, don't you? So people approach me now about things that they're doing and I come across things. I mean, the other thing I really love is women's football.
Speaker 2:Massively into women's football have been for a few years actually. So we support, like Poor Vale women, you know, city of Liverpool women, the feds Love all that, and I think you know that's an extension of equality, isn't it? You know we've had, we kind of got equality in the workplace, particularly in legal, say, not so much in insurance yet, but it's on the way. So for me it's like women's football needs that support, needs that, you know. So equality kind of can be in lots of different guises, can't it? And football and sport for women is one of of them.
Speaker 2:But I think you know, yes, spreading myself out, I think I want to do less day-to-day work. I want to do more of that community stuff. Um, yeah, and just kind of, yeah, and the business runs really well, we have a CEO and a great team, so, yeah, it kind of gives me that freedom, doesn't it, to uh, get out there and meet people. I mean Merseyside one of the year has been great because I've met so many. Because I'm a national company based in Liverpool, I wasn't as connected to Liverpool really as people would have expected, but by winning that last year I've got all these new women, scouser friends and Scouser networks.
Speaker 1:More dancing.
Speaker 2:Well, I'm a really honorary Scouser now.
Speaker 2:So, I think that's been brilliant and that's really been different for me this year. I mean, I'm doing a conference on Wednesday, aren't I? For Ellie and MediCity Woman of the Year, the first business conference they're doing and I'm going to speak at that and we're sponsoring it. So I think, yeah, that's opened up more doors for me. So it's just more of the same Mentoring.
Speaker 2:Massively Love the Girls Network, as you know, do some mentoring in London for the Insurance Breakfast Club and I just think I wish I'd had a mentor, certainly at school. You know, I always wonder would I have left school at 16 if the Girls Network had been in my school? Maybe not, but then I wouldn't be able to type. How would I have lived? Type fast, jesus, no, I forget that, it's alright, but yeah. So I think more of that and yeah and yeah, I love, I think, just keeping that fire in your belly, you know, keeping on the move, and just, I think, surrounding yourself with great people who inspire you, make you laugh. You know, sunday morning those volunteers are hysterical and brilliant and hardworking and we have the best laugh in the most horrible circumstances. You know, it's that kind of combination of making the best of it and I just want to do more of that, if I can.
Speaker 1:And what is the one quotation that you kind of live your life by?
Speaker 2:Kindness is free. Spread that shit everywhere. We have t-shirts on a Sunday morning.
Speaker 1:now I was going to say it's going to be on a tote bag, right, yeah, we have got t-shirts, yeah, and it's funny.
Speaker 2:And the people who come in you know our visitors laugh and they go oh yeah, and I go. Well it is. It doesn't cost a penny to be nice to somebody. I mean, obviously, if you can give money and food, that's great, but you know, just a hello or a hug. There's a lot of hugging on a Sunday morning a smile.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and just like a bit of laugh. You know like I think so and I think no judgment, that's really important as well. But I think the kindness thing is it's underrated the best thing ever in the world and it is like a comfort blanket, isn't it? So, yeah, more of that.
Speaker 1:Donna Scully Scully. I've just changed your name now. Oh yeah, I'm trying to see this anyway, doesn't it? Donna Scully Scully Scully? Thank you so much for joining me today. You are a total legend and please keep on spreading that kindness everywhere. Thanks for joining me today.
Speaker 2:Donna, thank you very much. Thanks for asking me.
Speaker 1:Subscribe on YouTube, apple, amazon Music, spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. Leave us a review or follow us on socials. We are power underscore net on insta, tiktok and twitter, or we are power on linkedin, facebook, and we are underscore power on youtube.
