Fresh from a long weekend in a very sunny village by the sea, I’m wondering…how’s it going with the pixie dust? Have you been putting your heart into your customer experience for the last two weeks? Of course, ‘adding the magic’ as someone like Disney might put it, is no
A couple of weeks ago, I shared with you a story about appalling customer service from Mini, and the damage abdicating your accountability for outsourced suppliers, can do to your brand. So this week I thought I’d balance that dismal tale out with a couple of great stories I heard recently. Two
I was asked an interesting question the other day, ‘Are you a gut or data person?’ ‘Do you make decisions intuitively or do you like facts to support them?’ ‘Neither’ was my reply, ‘I’m a blend of the two’. We all have to trust our gut in life and in
It’s that time again, the start of a new school year. For some parents there will be a sigh of relief as children get back into their routine, for others there will be an anxious wait to hear how the first day went at a new school. I can still remember my
Are you a good judge of character? Can you cut through what’s being said at an interview to get to what really makes someone tick? If so you will have team members who really ‘get’ your business, who celebrate success as if it were their name above the door. They’ll
Like many business owners, I’m guessing you’ve either considered, or have already begun to outsource. It’s a great way to grow your team until you’re ready to employ one, and, if you outsource to specialists, a great way to grow your business without having to hire and train. What many
One of my simple pleasures at this time of year, is the return of the Great British Bake Off. I don’t profess to be any sort of baker (I did once beat the bottom out of the bowl making fairy cakes!) but I do love watching other people have a
Think of a time you had so much to do, you did nothing. Perhaps that day was yesterday. It happens to us all. My sister has been going to update her ensuite, the family bathroom and the kitchen, for the last three years. And yes, you’ve guessed it, nothing has
If you’re like me you’ll have automatically finished that line with ‘perfect’. I think most people would do the same. And it usually does make perfect. There are many very visible examples, particularly in sport, of people who practise so regularly, and with such commitment that they play the perfect
I used to absolutely love school holidays – particularly those six weeks in summer. Thinking of them now, I picture sunny days, picnics, hot rice on the beach (a game not a dish) and hay-making in the local fields. Happy days. But then again, I’m not a parent. My life
‘As a leader you cannot blow an uncertain trumpet’ I don’t know who said that but I really like the phrase ‘an uncertain trumpet’. I’m assuming it’s from the battlefield where the blast of a trumpet was a rousing call to arms. Imagine the effect if the trumpeter had played
‘Sorry my train was delayed’ ‘Sorry I had to take an important call’ ‘Damn and blast – I didn’t get that done when I said I would…again!’ Are you the White Rabbit? Are you always singing ‘I’m late I’m late for a very important date’ or rushing around using much stronger language?
I don’t know what possesses people to sail round the world solo like Dame Ellen MacArthur, but I really admire them. I saw her on a hot, crowded London commuter train once – probably one of the few times that I began to see the appeal of being alone in
“Some people regard private enterprise as a predatory tiger to be shot. Others look on it as a cow they can milk. Not enough people see it as a healthy horse pulling a sturdy wagon.” Winston Churchill Things don’t seem to have changed much since Churchill’s time, do they?
Are you sitting comfortably? Then I’ll begin… Long, long, ago in a land far, far away there lived an old man. Each day he went to the stream with two earthen pots hung from either end of a pole. One was perfect, always full of water, the other was cracked
A Leader is best when people barely know that he exists. When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say, ‘We did this ourselves’. Lao-Tzu (Book of Tao 6th Century BC) The first time I read this, I loved it. Every time I read it I get goose
I heard a story the other day about a man who was worried that his wife was going deaf. One day he thought he would test this out. She was in the living room with the door open and he called from the top of the stairs, “Lisa, can you
Staff! Colleagues! Team members! Lend me your ears! I’m developing a series of Simple Systems for £7 at the moment – ‘How to’ guides for small business owners to help you to set up the simple systems you know you need, but just don’t have time to think about. The
Did you know that the biggest participation “sport” in the UK is fishing? Seriously! I couldn’t believe it either! I tried fishing once, and nearly put my sister’s eye out with a hook but that’s another story. Finding and keeping new customers can be a bit like fishing. Deciding what
A recent study of Alzheimer’s revealed that the best way to keep your brain functioning is not the daily crossword but physical exercise. I didn’t know that. I mean I’ve always known that exercise is good for you in loads of ways, but this particular benefit, was news to me.
This time last year I was planning a trip to see the start of the Tour de France in Leeds. Being a Man United fan rather than a Team Sky fan I went for the spectacle and the buzz, more than the cycling. Although having dragged myself over the Pennines
My blood thirsty theme of the last couple of weeks got me thinking about vampires. Vampires are all the rage these days. We’ve made heroes of our fanged friends with the insatiable thirst for blood. They’re so much more good looking and sophisticated than their old low-budget, laugh-out-loud scary (from
Last week I asked you to kill a snake. Continuing on this blood-thirsty theme, I’m wondering how much time you spend killing moles? You must have seen the arcade game Whack A Mole which is all about smacking cute little moles on the head as they peep out of their holes. Fun
I’d like to introduce you to someone who’s saved me a lot of time and money over the years. He may well have done the same for you. He’s Mr Kipling; not the maker of exceedingly good cakes, but the author of the famous lines: “I keep six honest serving-men
I had a long day yesterday. A full day masterminding, with 4 hours travelling time either end. It was a great day – not only because the content of the meeting and the people I was sharing with were both top quality, but also because I had close to 8 hours of
I’ve decided I don’t like Peacocks! Not the birds, you understand, but the preening, self-congratulatory, loud individuals who can usually be found selling themselves as gurus and mentors – and giving those who actually are, a bad name. ‘Ooh, look at my flash motor’, ‘Look at my fabulous house’, ‘Don’t
I know I’m not alone in being frustrated with a long list of tradesmen who I’ve called to do various jobs around the house. Carpenters, plumbers, electricians, the jobs may be different, but the outcome is nearly always the same. The postman may always ring twice, but tradesmen never do.
I had an interesting conversation with a control freak last week. He was telling me how he hates to delegate – doesn’t trust his employees to do anything without some sort of supervision, because they cock things up, make mistakes, take longer to do the job than he would. “I check EVERYTHING’ he
It’s very easy to get stuck in a rut. Sometimes we don’t even recognise that we’re in one. A rut’s boring, same old same old, dull…right?! And that’s not our life! Well what if it is? Many successful small business owners get stuck in a rut. It’s called The Struggle, and while it’s
Business owners burn out. Even successful ones. And not just in tough times. For those still trying to make it, it can be caused by the inability to switch off, the need to keep all of the plates spinning, to think of everything that needs to be done to get
‘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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