4 Tasty Business Lessons From A Food Fayre
Are you like me these days and you find yourself looking at things that are nothing whatsoever to do with your business through business eyes? I have a feeling that sentence reads like a bit of a tongue twister so I’d better explain! Last weekend I visited Beaumaris Food festival and bought lots of lovely tasty things. As happens most of the time these days though, I found myself looking at everything from a business perspective. I like doing this because sometimes observing a totally different industry can give you a surprising new perspective on your own. And I find that…
Do you have clarity?
I think one of the biggest things that gets in the way when you’re trying to grow a business is feeling completely bamboozled by the number of ideas you have, and the volume of ‘stuff’ that you know needs doing in order to get you there. ‘Idea overload’ is definitely something I’m guilty of myself sometimes! There are always new products or services to be developed, better content or images that need adding to your website, systems to organise your finances so everything is under control, social media platforms to crack, new networking events to try out and it can…
What Does Value Really Mean?
Do you ever have that sinking feeling at the very moment you’re about to tell somebody your price, when your conscience jumps in with the ‘can I really charge that’ doubt? Am I worth that? Do I really deliver that much value? I know this is something that happens to a lot of people (I was only having a conversation about it yesterday) and it’s one of the major reasons that a lot of small businesses miss out on sales that should have been a certainty. You see, two things tends to happen when you have these doubts about your own price….
The Most Important 20 Minutes Of Your Day
Are you one of those naturally well-organised people who starts every day feeling focused, motivated and completely clear on what you’re going to achieve that day? Or are you like the majority of people who start their day by trying to work out which of their 8 billion priorities they should work on first and questioning how on earth they’re going to make a dent in their list at all that day? If you’re more like the second person don’t panic, it means you’re perfectly normal! It also means that the tips I’m about to share will be particularly relevant…
Scheduling Your Way To Becoming More Organised
Are you somebody that loves to have a really detailed schedule for the next few days? Or are you like lots of people running their own business who crave freedom, fluidity and variety in their days? A lot of my clients prefer this approach because often they’ve left behind a job or a corporate role that gave them little or no choice about how to manage their day and left them feeling penned in or held back. So they really value the ability to have free reign over what they do each day. But I’ll let you into a secret. If…
How Do I Hire My First Employee?
I’ve been talking to my good friend and long-time business associate Claire Bentley from Bentley HR recently about the trials and tribulations of taking on your first employee. It’s such a pivotal moment for any business but it can easily seem as though there are a million hoops to jump through to be certain that you’re going about things in the right way. Claire has helped a number of my clients with this over the years so I really value her advice. And she proved just how incredibly helpful she is by putting together this quick starter guide for you. Claire Says: Employing…
The Power of Asking Great Questions
I want to let you into a secret this week that could save you lots of time and energy in your future sales meetings. It’s a great trick that could make those meetings feel much less stressful, run more smoothly and hopefully become a lot more lucrative for you too. Because I know that sales meetings for many people growing a business, are a thing of dread! But they really don’t need to be. The simple fact is that without making sales, a business simply can’t grow. But there’s a way to manage these meetings so that you can feel professional…
How To Write A Super Simple Business Plan
Do you have a business plan that feels like a living, breathing guide for your actions every week? Or is it one of those things that you created once, tucked away nicely in the bottom drawer and have never looked at since? I know that a huge number of people running their own businesses wish they had a plan, and feel like it’s something they should definitely do, but they simply don’t know where to start. How many pages does it need to be? How much detail should it have? How many years ahead should it forecast? And how can…
Are Your Brutal Enough With Your Time?
I’ve been talking to several clients recently who are really struggling to fit everything in. It’s a very common challenge when you’re running your own business! One of the biggest reasons this happens is because it’s easy to give away huge chunks of your time for free without realising that’s what’s happening. Possibly because there are invitations or opportunities that might lead to some juicy work down the line; or because deadlines are a little blurry; or because they’re just really nice people who love to help others. The challenge though is that when you give away too much of your…
Are your Customers Always Testing Your Boundaries?
Do you have customers who always seem to work on the ‘give them an inch and they’ll take a mile’ principle? The truth is that most businesses have at least a couple of customers like that. Often it creeps up on you until you suddenly realise that you’ve delivered way more than a customer has paid for and you’re not quite sure how it happened. Over-servicing has a nasty habit of catching you out like that! The good news is that there is usually a very simple solution to this. Here are a few classic examples that may feel familiar to…
What’s The Definition of Success?
Do you have a really clear image of what your business will look like when it’s successful? I often find that people start a business with a short term financial target in mind. Most people know how much money they need their business to make for it to be sustainable, and they focus on that. I typically find that beyond that point though, the majority don’t have a clear definition of success and that’s when it’s easy to find yourself drifting or to feel as though you’re working incredibly hard but you’re not actually that clear what it’s all for. There…
Why You Deserve A Payrise!
I’ve been talking to several clients recently about their business goals. It’s reminded me how common it is to see people running a business, working tirelessly to deliver a fantastic service to their clients but paying themselves a frankly measly salary. So many people pay everyone and everything else before they pay themselves, and are almost grateful if there’s anything actually left for themselves once everything else is covered. It’s a very British trait. But it’s bad for business! And here’s why … Because You’re Worth It! There’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to earn a fair wage for a fair day’s work….
The Trap of Changing Too Much Too Soon
Are you a shining beacon of organisation? Or are you like most people in business who would love to feel more organised but are too busy dealing with all the day to day challenges so they never have time to sort things out? Have you tried to put lots of things in place, like systems and templates but you quickly get frustrated with them and feel as though they’re just creating extra work so you give up after a few days or weeks? Then I have good news for you! There’s a fair chance your quest for seamless organisation has led you…