“You think you want to own a big business, but you don’t… because when you do, all you’ll hear is ‘Steve from accounts is ruining my life.’ You’re basically full time as head of HR.” I was listening to a talk by an entrepreneur who was head of a 600 people company. His point was… Continue reading Ask not what your company can do for you… but what you can do for your company.
Imagine you’re standing at a bar and the ideal prospect for your service orders a drink. He says to the barman, “Make it a double anything.” “Crikey, that bad?” says the barman. Then your prospect starts to vent about a problem in the area you help people in. He rants on about what his frustrations… Continue reading Why you should join the conversation in your prospect’s head
Is your productivity being undermined by low-value time sucks? These can be anything from general admin to non-urgent emails and meetings. They’re tasks that consume significant amounts of your time but get you no closer to your real outcomes. To counter these low-value tasks use my copyrighted 3D System. Rule one is to only touch… Continue reading How to reduce less productive tasks with the 3D System
My first mentor taught me how to make a lot more money playing poker. His advice included invaluable ideas that I still use today, like to never dwell on setbacks. David’s system was the One Drink Vent. He’d say, “When something goes against you, find a friend who cares and complain about it to them… Continue reading Why asking for mentoring help is the biggest shortcut for your career
Imagine someone’s selling you a holiday. They’re talking you through the airport check-in process, waiting in airport security, your travel insurance requirements, the transfers – all the boring but essential bits you need to do to get to your destination. Do you feel inspired to book? Now imagine, instead, they’re telling you about the hotel’s… Continue reading Sell the holiday, not the flight
Are you making getting new business harder than it needs to be? Recently, I was with a client who asked my advice on using LinkedIn for cold outreach to new leads. I asked why he was doing it. He said, ‘to get new business’. I asked if he’d contacted his current and past clients to… Continue reading Ask this to generate expansion business…
Procrastination is a massive problem for people. In fact, it’s something I’ve been meaning to write about for some time. (See what I did there…) Everyone procrastinates about something – it’s part of life. But if it’s getting in the way of your business growth, you need to do something about it. The key is… Continue reading Is procrastination holding you back?
Do unresolved issues with staff or clients come unbidden into your head when you’re away from work? Stress and anxiety from work can affect your sleep, your ability to be present with family and friends and ruin your enjoyment of work. Here’s a simple tip that I’ve used with people like you that can be… Continue reading Do you suffer stress from work problems?
The most important question you can ask yourself to win business is ‘so what?’ When you’re talking to a client, imagine they could hold up a giant sign with the words ‘so what?’ scrawled across it in thick black marker pen at any point. When you’re talking, your client is always thinking, ‘how does this… Continue reading Do your client pitches pass the ‘SO WHAT?’ test?
It’s normal to feel pressure to be funny in talks or pitches. Humour helps people to like you and keeps an audience’s attention. But it can also sink your pitch in a sentence and often the risk isn’t worth the reward. No one wants to be Liz Truss waiting for the pork belly laugh that… Continue reading Should you try to be funny when you present?