Is it still worth investing in peoples’ training and development when retention is such a serious challenge for most businesses in this day and age? The above statement almost seemed not quite right as I was verbalising it to myself. Surely investment in people has to be an ongoing no brainer ‘Yes’ answer, or is…
The term ‘Outsourced Business Partner’ is not a common usage business term. It’s one we have been using more recently to genuinely reflect the work that we do with clients. It has emerged due to the fact that we work at a far more granular level with them than say a business coach or consultant…
No matter what the size of an organisation, employers are always looking for that special brand of person who has both the capabilities and desire to step up into a leadership role. Without people willing to do that, things stay as they are which limits overall company growth and potential. But of course, how do…
I recall when I was first commencing my coaching journey back in 2000 my mentor at the time made a comment like ‘a consultant is someone you love in the moment because they have provided a solution but dislike in the morning because they have disempowered you’. At the time I remember being intrigued and somewhat…
One of the tenets of Stoic philosophy is what is called the ‘Dichotomy of control’. That means clearly understanding what is within our ability to control and what falls outside our direct control. The resulting generally accepted wisdom is to focus only on what is within our power to control. For example, a student…
“Travel only with thy equals or better. If there are none, travel alone.” – The Dhammapada 5th Century BC Have you ever been in that situation where you are with someone who exudes far too much negative energy and you simply want to run away as fast as you can? However, you were brought up…
“The real voyage of discovery is not in seeking new landscapes but having new eyes.” – Marcel Proust Several years ago, I was looking at an impressive array of business and personal development books on a friend of mine’s bookshelf. At the time he was struggling with his business and it seemed like every second…
If you stand, stand. If you sit, sit. Above all don’t wobble – Unknown Zen Master. One of the interesting things about quotes is that it enables us to use our imagination as to their meaning and interpretation. What a wise sage wrote some 2000 or so years ago and really meant to say is…
Friday’s Off expose the 7 attributes of wise people in the context of decision making “There is something here I do not know, the knowing of which could change everything.” – Neale Donald Walsh Have you ever had that nagging feeling that something does not feel right about the decision you are about to make?…
Steve Clark entered the personal and business improvement industry in the year 2000. Prior to that, he held a number of corporate positions in larger companies, many of those in overseas locations over a 20-year period. Much of that work involved long periods away from his young family, and as a result, his work-life balance…
Friday’s Off Explains why Perfectly Intelligent Business Owners Continue to Make Dumb Decisions Let me say from the outset that any business owner who has built a successful business is smart. Sure, there may have been some good luck or helping hands along the way, but on the whole, they have been smart to get…
Why do we keep searching for new information instead of implementing what we already know? Let me explain. Over the last month of so I have been attending quite a few talks and presentations and was sitting there thinking: This person has simply re-jigged the title but is basically presenting the same or similar…
DISCOVER THE 12 POWERFUL (BUT NON-LETHAL) WEAPONS YOU CAN ADD TO YOUR CACHE OF INFLUENCING STRATEGIES When it comes to influencing others – either to accept your point of view, or to do what you want them to do – you have a number of choices. You could take the approach of Arnold Schwarzenegger in one of…
Picture this. You are relaxing on a beach in a deck chair tapping and swiping your tablet to check the latest results from your business, knowing you can confidently manage your business remotely. IS THIS A POSSIBILITY OR A PIPE DREAM? The reality is it is possible. But it’s not that common as only a…
Sergey Bubka was a Ukrainian pole vaulter (retired in 2001) who held the indoor world record from the 21st of February 1993 to the 15th of February 2014. Sergey held the record for 21 years! Do you think Sergey, when he was competing at the World Championships or Olympics, ever asked the officials to lower his vault heights…
5 strategies to avoid the death rattle and keep your resolutions alive and well Cricketer’s will be familiar with the term ‘death rattle’ which is when they are batting and miss a ball directed at the stumps the familiar sound of wickets breaking can be heard, and your time at the batting crease is over. Research shows…
“Can a young person be considered wise?” I was at a business function recently where this question was posed to the room without much resolution. Some people had their own personal views based on experience, instinct or belief. But there does not appear to be much scientific data to specifically support an answer either way.…
World famous business consultant and author Peter Senge has written in his best-selling book ‘The Fifth Discipline’ that: Real commitment is rare in today’s organisations, 90% of the time what passes for commitment is ‘compliance’. Is he right? WHAT DOES ‘COMPLIANCE’ LOOK LIKE IN A BUSINESS? People merely ‘going through the motions’ to get through…
Willful blindness is a term used in law to describe a situation in which a person seeks to avoid civil or criminal liability for a wrongful act by intentionally keeping himself or herself unaware of facts that would render him or her liable. In other words, turning a blind eye to things that clearly should have been noticed.…
WOULD YOU LIKE TO INCREASE YOUR SHARE OF THE PROFIT PIE? There is a lot that can be learned from a thorough assessment of the gross profit within a business. And from that assessment a number of options for improvement may become apparent. Here we explore seven important ways you can assess gross profit in…
A great deal of my business life as an advisor and business coach has been working with family businesses I enjoy working with them and I will share my four main reasons why. Note these reasons can equally be viewed from the perspective of a non-family employee. There are powerful lessons here for business owners…