Last week I asked whether you know you purpose. It sounds like an easy question, but in reality it is far from it. And if you haven’t yet found your purpose how do you go about it? Your purpose – or as Simon Sinek calls it, your WHY – is unique to you and every…
Is this the best investment you’ll make?
This week has seemed a bit like the end of the holidays rather than the beginning. The World Cup, Wimbledon and the summer just seemed to end all together. Soon it’ll be the football season. And just like the England team at the World Cup I wrote about last week, all the teams will be…
They think its all over… it is now!
Later today we will know the winner of the FIFA World Cup 2018 and it’ll all be over. Thank goodness. At least we’ll be spared England’s humiliation at the hands of France (my tip to win before the tournament started). Don’t get me wrong, I am passionate about football and as soon as the Premier…
What does freedom mean to you?
I was asked this question on a recent webinar. So I asked myself: ‘Do I have the power to think, act and say what I want, whenever I want? Do I have the resources I need – primarily time and money – to do what I choose to do each day? Because, to me, that…
New balls please!
There is a science behind building a successful business. A formula. A process. Much like building a bridge, or a car or a house. It starts with planning and preparation, collecting the resources and raw materials required and assembling them in the right order so that they all fit together. In manufacturing it’s called design…
The financial crisis no one is talking about.
Auditing is not a sexy subject. But in recent years the auditors of our major businesses have let the public down to a staggering extent. Let me start by restating why audits were introduced. In the 19th century, to encourage trade, businesses were allowed to become limited liability companies, meaning that the liability of the…
It isn’t Colonel Mustard.
If it was a game of Cluedo the prime suspect would be Amazon, in the high street with a web browser, but the causes of the devastation of retailing in many town centres is actually more complex than this, even though it is easy to blame the increase in e-commerce and online shopping. Like most…
Does your team go the extra mile?
In last week’s Sunday Supplement I wrote about coaching your team for the behaviours you want in your business. No sooner had I pressed the ‘Send’ button than I received an email from Paddi Lund about motivating your staff. He pointed out that a fundamental frustration that almost all entrepreneurial business owners face is motivating…
I’m on the road this weekend.
Today I am at Cheltenham Racecourse for PetLife Festival 2018, the first pet themed music festival in the UK. The event has been organised by the PDSA, of which I am a Trustee, so I am there in my official capacity but also as a volunteer for the day. 200 of our staff and supporters…
This couldn’t happen in your business…..could it?
You may not have heard of the company but you will almost certainly have heard of its brands Bargain Booze, Wine Rack, Bibendum and others, despite which Conviviality plc, the brand owner, went into liquidation last week after making three profit warnings in just over one month. Another example of an avoidable business failure by…