30 THOUGHTS IN 30 DAY (FOR 30 YEARS IN BUSINESS)

30 THOUGHTS IN 30 DAY (FOR 30 YEARS IN BUSINESS)

In 1988 I started my business by accident, I was then pregnant and looking for some flexibility, so I took a chance on my own business and then I learnt how to do it! Since then I’ve delivered thousands of courses, coached and assessed many people, worked across every sector and most business types.

These thoughts are a collection of things I’ve observed, been inspired by and have discovered, often painfully, over these many years! Enjoy….

 

1)    Whatever you think no business or organisation is unique, in fact most of the same issues and problems are repeated everywhere

2)    People say ‘our people are our most important resource (true) yet they don’t treat them that way and wonder why they don’t perform or stay!

3)    Systems are the secret; if you develop good business systems and processes this will liberate you not constrain you #EmythPrinciples

4)    Fail to plan, plan to fail – this is so very true, build in time to your week, to stop, think, plan and prioritise

5)    There must be a solution! I live by this principle and so far, I’ve always found one

6)    If you know ‘WHY’ the ‘HOW’ will take care of itself – this is about the importance of personal vision, mission and focus the critical ‘F’ word

7)    If you are a small business owner read ‘The E-Myth Revisited’ by Michael Gerber, then read it again, every year!

8)    Don’t hide from the money, you always need to know what the reality is in personal and business finance, money knowledge is power!

9)    You can only ever work on yourself, you can’t change what has happened, but you can change your attitude towards it

10)  Learning and development is voluntary, people have to want to learn, but sometimes despite resistance you can light the fire!

11)  Wonderful book recommendation– Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, inspiring

12)  Time Management is a fallacy – no one can manage time, you just need to learn to set goals and priorities (personal and work) and then use the time to achieve them

13) You can tell a great deal about a business by just sitting in their reception, looking around and listening

14)  Analyse your habits regularly (personal and work). What habits serve you well? What habits don’t? Keep the ones that do, delete the ones that don’t as soon as you can, see the difference!

15) Email – don’t let it become your boss, it will always be there, you don’t have to respond, create some good boundaries (rules) about your own email management and stick with it.

16) Thinking you’ve communicated isn’t enough! You need to check the message has been received and understood

17) Inspiring quote “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure” Marianne Williamson

18)  Always work with a contract even with a business or person you know and trust, you have nothing to go back to if you don’t if things go wrong…. and they will sometimes

19) Try to learn something new every year, book on a course, read a book, do online learning, keep yourself, your mind and your work fresh and current.

20) Think about your personal future, the day will come when you don’t want to or can’t work; don’t just be a ‘worker’ develop other interests and activities that will fill the gap and provide balance

21)  Inspirational quote “A life lived in fear is a life half-lived” if you are fearful read ‘Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway’ by Susan Jeffers

22)  The future of work will be very different, many functions/jobs will be replaced by technology of some kind, keep abreast of the changes, be prepared to develop new skills and use new technology

23) Take time at least once a year to take stock of your life, business or job or you will end up drifting rather than steering your own ship

24) SET GOALS… yes even small goals are better than none, try to cover every area of life and work. This applies to businesses too and make sure you review regularly

25)  Great quote by Gary Zukav “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind!”

26)  To succeed you must focus your business on what you customers want not what you want to sell them

27) The public sector often gets a lot of bad reviews but there you will fin a lot of amazing people doing a great deal of essential and brilliant work under very difficult circumstances

28) In management remember that your job is to create the conditions that ensure your staff will thrive and succeed, don’t create a culture of dependency, encourage your people to take responsibility

29) When coaching others, you are in a position of great privilege, people trust you with their struggles and their dreams, treat them as sacred gifts and trust the process

30) Final thought after 30 days….. if there was one piece of advice I would give my 30 years younger self in running a business it would be to dream bigger!

Thank you for reading