Pardon my frankness, but there’s a lot of hard-core, macho bullshit out there at the minute. Loud, shouty voices telling us that hard work is the only route to success…that we’ve got to put the hours in, that business owners don’t have free-time or time for holidays…that we have to
I’m sitting here under the shade of a large umbrella, looking out over a beautiful clear bluey green sea, and a cloudless blue sky. The sun has been warming my back for several days now, and I already feel refreshed and relaxed after what has been a fun and productive, but
Having your ‘own way of doing things’ is great a lot of the time…it’s good to be original, to be a bit of a maverick on occasion…to want to make your own mark. But when it comes to how things work inside a business, everyone having their own way of
I’ve had a couple of interesting conversations about selling this week, and as I’m about to launch a new online product, it really made me stop and think, yet again…about why people buy stuff. What makes any of us hand over our hard-earned cash to buy a product or a
Don’t we live in a complex world these days – so much choice, so much opportunity, so many things, and people competing for our attention. For us, as business owners there is so much to do every day, so many things that people tell us we must do, should do,
#I’ve been watching the shenanigans in Manchester this week…the inevitable, if painful climax to a United reign rife with under-achievement, embarrassing losses, and the cumulation of all the wrong sort of records. David Moyes seems like a good bloke…he is certainly a very good manager, but whether you’re taking over
Consistency and reliability are the foundations of any successful business, big or small. Consistent and reliable systems developed for one small restaurant in Illinois, helped McDonald’s grow to over 30,000 restaurants around the world. Those systems, and that consistency, are what keep millions of people going back to McDonald’s, and
Distractions…those things that move our focus from one thing to another…are keeping you overwhelmed, doubling your workload…and keeping you poor. Distractions overcomplicate our lives…and they are completely avoidable…we CHOOSE to be distracted. While a few distractions are unexpected, like the phone ringing or someone at the door, the majority begin
I had a conversation this week with someone who was banging on and on ad nauseum about how difficult their life is…how hard they have to work and how poor their results are. It’s not the first conversation we’ve had like that, in fact, truth be told, I’ve been listening
I watched in both terror and awe last night as BBC presenter Alex Jones completed her 1200ft climb of Moonlight Buttress, one of the most monstrous and possibly the most sheer of the huge rock mountains in Utah’s Zion National Park. Video clips of her two and a half day
I come across a lot of overwhelmed and frustrated business people these days. I guess that’s partly because I go looking for them knowing that I can help…but still, there are a lot. People who can’t see the wood for the trees, who feel that the work, or the challenge
The season of lent is upon us. It may be on your radar simply as the run-up to Easter, or maybe as the time you’re meant to ‘give stuff up’…but for me it’s always been a wake up call just when I’ve needed it…a reminder that two months of the
I’ve had a few experiences in the last couple of weeks that have made me question what I am spending my time and money on…and who with, in relation to my personal development. Like you undoubtedly, I could have bought a small desert island with the amount I have invested
I’m going to be brief this Friday, since the business owner that this post is for, won’t have time to read a long one. You’ll be thinking about all the things you planned to do this week that you haven’t got to yet…that you really need to get done…that you’ll
My friend Hannah was given the devastating news last week that she has cancer for the third time in her life. Hannah and I are not close, in fact I’ve only known her for 18 months, but I know her as a courageous and fun-loving woman who goes after life
We’re taught very early on at ‘management school’ that there is no such thing as a problem, only challenges and opportunities. Personally I think there are times when only the word ‘problem’, will do…who can imagine being without the immortal line, ‘Houston, we have a problem’!? But I do prefer
Picture this… You are relaxing with family and friends…the sun is shining and you feel warm and glowing inside and out. You’ve just had another great year, you achieved everything that you set out to again and business is booming. You are a successful and respected business owner with a
I was at a business meeting this week, where the people around the table were talking about their plans for 2014. It was both inspiring and frightening in equal measure. While some had clearly spent a great deal of time time thinking about the coming year, reviewing wins and lessons
I was going to call this post, ‘Beware the Ides of March’…you remember…the warning given to Julius Caesar before he was assassinated. But then I thought, what if you’re not Shakespeare fans, and you just think I’ve gone loopy! The warning is valid though, since so many people effectively ‘assassinate’
How often do you hear business people say, ‘there just isn’t enough time in the day to get everything done that I need to’? How often do we say it ourselves? Once a week? Once a month? How often do we get to the end of the day asking where
It’s the start of another new year, and for me, after the roller coaster ride that was 2013, it’s the most exciting that I can remember! There’s so much to get done, so many new people to work and meet with, so much fun to have doing what I love…I
Is it really the last Friday before Christmas?! Where has this year gone? And how ready are you for the one that’s about to begin? I’m sure that, with so few days left before the big day, your mind is way too full of all the things that you have
If you’re anything like me, you like to think you’re right…that you know what’s best…that if only people would listen to you they’d be so much better off. And of course that’s true 🙂 But what I’ve learned over the last few years is that businesses who tell their customers
Some of you will have seen the tv reality show, The Choir; it’s been going for a while now and I’ve always enjoyed it, as much for Gareth Malone’s enthusiasm and empathy, as the music…I find the whole programme uplifting. What I’m noticing in this series, much more than I
I’ve had a couple of interesting conversations this week. The first with my mastermind group, concerned the fact that a few of us enjoy what we do so much that we forget that there’s meant to be a commercial aspect to it. So busy being busy, doing what we love,
A facebook friend of mine posted this yesterday… ‘You get what you give…. Give everything you got!’. Quite an inspiring challenge, and it really made me think. The recent publication of my book (sorry, I had to mention it) revealed the very generous nature of both people I haven’t spoken
Every small business that has ever been formed, has been done so by someone full of passion. The odds are stacked against them, but they believe that they will be one of the 4% that makes it past year 3 and goes on to huge success. But passion can fade
I was disappointed to read a blog post the other day about BRM, (business relationship management), and how it compared to CRM, (customer relationship management). Why is it that we have this need to label and box up and reduce to an acronym, such important concepts? Even worse, in a
I’ve been pondering this question all week, since someone challenged my assertion that I work with ‘ambitious start-ups’ who are feeling stuck. Knowing a little about my business, they believe that my clients have gone beyond start-up because they have been operating for more than 2 years, and in one
The question why is usually associated with small children… ‘Why is that lady fat mummy?’ ‘Why is the sky blue? Why do I have to wear those shoes? …the bane of every parent’s life, the ‘but WHY..?’ question must be asked a hundred times a day.What a shame we don’t
‘Marianne is the author of four books and is currently working on her fifth whilst regularly writing her blog, we hope you enjoy it :)
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