Recently, I received an email from my golf club with the subject line of “Cheating!” There have been enough conversations about the perceived bending of the rules to warrant communication to all members. We know it shouldn’t happen. We hope it never does but it has. It’s a nasty word – “cheat”. It conjures up […]
VAT and Why You Shouldn’t Create a Glass Ceiling For Yourself
How much is the threshold before you start paying VAT? It’s £85 000. You want to earn more than that, though, right? That’s the plan when you start a business. You want to build something. If you’ve not registered for VAT, it’s time for you to stop getting in your own way and do it. […]
The Power of Community
Starting out on your own is brave. You just never know what lies ahead. This journey is one of the things — if not, the thing — that makes self-employment so damned exciting. What’s important to realise, however, is that you don’t have to do it all on your own. There’s only so much you […]
How do I retain valuable employees?
You’re a leader. You speak to a lot of people every day. You issue a lot of instructions. They must listen to you, but do you listen to them? Listening is more than just an important skill when it comes to communicating in business. It’s paramount. You can build strong relationships with your employees and […]
Isolation in Business & How a Community Helps
Isolation — it’s one of the harsh realities of business. You’re the one in control. You make the decisions. Often, you work by yourself and you don’t see many people. Let’s face it: it gets lonely. It doesn’t have to stay that way, though. You can change it all by joining a community. Why join […]
How do I appropriately determine my business value?
Pricing strategy — it’s not all just about the numbers. That might seem hard to believe, but it’s true. It’s as much about how you value yourself and your business. Okay, so you have to get the numbers right, but if you don’t have a true, confident appreciation of your own value, you can get […]
The Power Is In You: Leading as an Introvert
Anyone who wants to run a business has got to be an extrovert, right? They’re natural born leaders. Outgoing. Talkative. Sociable. Not afraid to be the centre of attention. At least, that’s what a lot of people think and is what they expect of an entrepreneur. Introverts, however, are a different personality type completely. Quiet. […]
Fight your fears: let your training take over
One of the things I love about this time of year is all the sport that we are surrounded with. Given my background it’s not surprising that I feel this way and I do enjoy getting caught up in the excitement and passion of the various competition that are taking place. We’ve got the (women’s) football […]
The Heat Is On: How to Cope With Pressure
This heatwave has got me thinking about how we cope under pressure. It’s not very pleasant working in this heat (unless you’re lucky enough to have air con) but we can’t change it, so we have to learn to cope. This goes for any kind of unpleasant circumstances in business. ‘With great power, comes great […]
It’s All in the Asking
When a problem arises in business, we dive in and scramble around, looking for a solution. We ask what the problem is; we identify it; we find a solution; we implement it. That’s how it works. At least, that’s how it should work, but you see, business isn’t always straightforward. Sometimes, a solution that should […]
