This evening I am going to be conducting a seminar for business owners. Although I have done this very same presentation many times over the years, I still feel nervous in the run up to it, and I have learnt that for me this is a good sign. On one occasion when I calmed my nerves down too much I found that when it came to it I was not as sharp or as alert as I normally am, and although the presentation was all right, I felt that I had underperformed.

As a coach I cannot afford to show a lack of energy or enthusiasm, as my clients all need to feed off that. Of course like everyone else I have my downs from time to time, but I simply cannot allow anyone to see this because no-one wants a coach who comes along and moans, essentially draining their energy, rather than energising them!

As a business owner, you too must be aware of this, because your team look to you for inspiration, and draw on your leadership skills and drive. I remember a great scene in the film “Saving Private Ryan” when Tom Hanks is asked if he thinks the top brass have sent them on a wild goose chase, to which he replies that no he thinks they are absolutely correct in their judgement. He then goes on to explain that you should never complain down the line, only upwards, otherwise you would be undermining their authority. Equally well as a business owner if you complain or moan about your lot to your team, you are simply undermining yourself and the vision you have for your company.

It is nigh on impossible to be strong and positive all the time, especially if you are a business owner with no-one to turn to for help or advice. However, if you take on a coach, you will have someone who you can off-load your problems to, and “complain up” to, and you can leave it to your coach to provide the energy for you

I recently read or heard something about “hope” being an essential part of people’s lives. They argued that without hope we would all be in a constant state of depression, because hope gives us something to look forward to and something to believe in. I suppose this has been particularly prevalent in the news over the last couple of weeks with the loss of the Malaysian airliner. The relatives left behind are surviving and keeping going because they still have a small amount of hope that by some miracle the plane has landed somewhere, and their loved ones may still be alive. Of course all rational thought says it simply cannot be so, but even those of us not directly involved hope that there will be a good outcome.

Bringing this back to something more tangible, there is often a huge amount of “hope” in all our businesses. I often meet business owners hoping that things will get better, and latching onto the smallest of life-lines in the vague hope that these will drag them out of the difficulties that face them. However, simply hoping things will change or just miraculously get better is optimism even beyond my levels. To envisage a better life and a better business without having some clear plan and actions in place is sheer folly. Of course it is a good thing to think positively and believe in a better future, but no-one gets something for nothing, so you must also be prepared to make the tough decisions, be they investments, changing staff, or radically overhauling your product/service portfolio, if you really want to make a difference.

But don’t just do one thing and hope it will do it for you, because if that doesn’t work, you are back to square one. So set clear targets, and plan a whole range of actions and changes you want to make, and you will soon see that your hopes for a better life will be rewarded.

Modern life is lived at a frantic pace, technology supposedly makes life simpler, but all it really does is remind us how much needs doing. And how often do we feel totally overwhelmed by everything? More often than is good for us I expect and sometimes it is so hard to see a way forward. Where do you start when everything is so important? Take a moment, sit down and look again. Is that “urgent” task, urgent for you or is it someone else’s “urgent”? Have a think about what really is vital and do that first. Then tackle the next one and bit by bit you will gradually start working your way through, then you’ll see the light at the end of the tunnel, and the finish will be in sight.

If you aren’t sure where to start, take a few minutes to write down what needs doing and rank it, Urgent, Important, Routine. Focus on the one job that you have identified as the most urgent and once finished then move on to the next. This way you won’t feel pressurised by all the other things waiting to be done.

The longest journey always starts with the first step. So focus on what you need to do first and before you know it that list will be all ticked off.

My job is even more of a pleasure at the moment than usual. With the help of the resurgence of confidence, and the general upward trend in business activity, all my customers are thriving, and it is so exciting to share their successes as they go from strength to strength.

I think I can safely say that all the businesses I am working with are all growing significantly. Some are having record months of sales, and others have achieved record years, despite the adverse conditions we have faced even during the last 12 months. The point is of course that they are all thinking positively, and even when things looked bad, they were all determined to find the very best way forward, face up to adversity and make good decisions based on the knowledge they have about their business, their competitors, and the environment around them.

The thing is, they like every other business have been working under the same stressful conditions, and they like every other business have suffered the same problems and setbacks that everyone else has. The difference is that their outlook on life and their attitude to these crises is always to get back on their feet as soon as possible, make it better, and find another way. They don’t look for excuses, they don’t bemoan the fact that they have “such bad luck,” they don’t wallow in their misery for days or weeks on end, they simply take it on the chin, and move on.

So how many times can you keep doing this, because as we all know many of us have been going 2 steps forward and 1 step back on a regular basis over the past 4-5 years. The answer is, until you come out the other side, because if you give up, you’ll never know if this was the last set back before your business starts to fly again – just like all my customers.

So if you need someone to keep you going or to get you back on your feet again, come and talk to me. I have plenty of positivity and optimism for everyone.

Spring is upon us, and with a bit of warmth in the sun and some blue sky up above us, it is amazing how people’s outlook on life changes so quickly. From doom and despondency everywhere, what with flood damage and the crisis in Ukraine, to the feeling of hope and positivity in no time at all.

Having just been to a Business to Business exhibition, quickly followed by a networking lunch, I could feel a general air of expectancy all around, with people all talking about recovery and growth. Of course things aren’t yet back to the giddy heights they were prior to the recession, but there is a definite sense that we are on our way, and it will only be a matter of time before the feel good factor will have spread throughout the country.

It is all about attitudes. If you think positively, positive things will happen. If you surround yourself with positive people, again you will find yourself being lifted. At the networking lunch, someone asked about the networking I do and whether it brought me business. The answer to this was that “Yes” it did bring me some buisness directly, but perhaps more importantly, indirectly. By that I meant that I only ever go to networking meetings where I feel energised by the people there. So although they may not physically bring me a referral, by being fun, full of energy and positive they help inspire me to go out and do more, and generate business from the actions that I take following these meetings.

So remember, there is a lot more to networking than a simple financial return on investment. Surround yourself with like-minded people all determined to grow and thrive, and you will reap many other benefits.

I know I will have talked about this before on a number of occasions, but fear can be such a limiting factor for so may people. What I mean is, that it is the vision of something horrible or bad happening, as consequence of some action you may have taken, which very often stops people from even giving things a go in the first place.

This came back to me very strongly last week when I was taking my son to look at a few universities, to see which he liked most. As a very keen cricketer (and a good one) he was invited by one of the universities to join their training session. As my son knew this would include a few 1st and 2nd XI county players, he was well aware that he would be stretched to the limit. Naturally enough, my son was nervous, and as we got closer to our destination he became quieter and quieter and developed an interesting shade of whitish grey. He also suddenly started complaining of severe neck ache (apparently sustained due to a sneeze the day before) and I realised he was angling for a way out. However I wasn’t prepared to let him off so easily, and told him once he started he would forget the neck pain. And of course he did. Once people start bowling at you at 80-85mph it tends to focus the mind a little, and I’m delighted to say he weathered it well.

The boy who left that university that evening was a different person. More confident, and so excited about the chance of going there. Had he “bottled out,” he would never have known what he can and can’t do, and might have decided it wasn’t the place for him.

So next time you want to do something different or perhaps take a chance at work with a new idea, give it a go. Remember, always focus on the positive that could come from it, not the negatives. And if you can’t get the confidence yourself, get a coach to help you.

As a business coach I am many different things to different people, although of course all my knowledge and services are available to all. The thing is, all my clients have various strengths and weakness, and no one person is generally good at every aspect.

For some people it is getting them to let go. Stop doing all the small, time consuming tasks, and learn to delegate and trust their team, so they can concentrate on the key aspects of strategy and growth. For some it is team issues, not knowing who to employ, or indeed for which role. Having the wrong people in the wrong places, and worse than that, not being good at managing them. And for most of my clients it is the money side of things. Not understanding cash flow or break-even. Not knowing where they are making money, and where they are losing it. What their margins are, and what they need to do to increase their turnover and margins.

But above all these things, I have recently been reminded that it is the motivational aspects and confidence giving which my clients most value in the long run.

No-one can pretend that all businesses always run smoothly. All of us get knocks from time to time and recently it has been harder to get back up. That is where I come in. Every time you get knocked down, I will be there to pick you up, dust you down, and re-enthuse you to strive for greater things once more.

The confidence to do the things that my clients know they should be doing, also comes from my always being there to advise and support. Two comments “Chris you give the confidence to know I am doing the right thing,” and “I just needed to hear you say what I already know,” are recent things I have heard from clients which have made me remember exactly how important my presence as a coach can be.

I have recently had an event in my life which has caused me to take a step back and think more about what is important in life, and what doesn’t really matter so much. After all you never know when misfortune could strike, so it is important to live for the day, and make sure that you don’t miss out.

I like to think that by and large I do live life to the full, but I suppose as I have become older it has become easier and easier not to do things, rather than get out of my comfort zone, and before you know it, you can find yourself drifting quietly along, but not necessarily accomplishing much. My children are now growing up and gradually leading their own lives more and more, and it is so important to grab all the opportunities that you can with your close family before it becomes too late.

So short term we immediately relooked at our year’s budgets to see what we might have to do to allow us an extra holiday with our children. Identifying a destination, and then looking at the costs, and then putting the figures in the cash flow budget, immediately makes it more defined. Now it is a question of working out who to target and how to ensure that we convert enough new business to make it all happen. But at least it is in “tablets of stone” now, and the chances of us achieving this are far higher than just by thinking about it, and wishing it might happen.

At the risk of becoming repetitive, writing things down (goals in all walks of life) is always a good thing. I was sitting next to a lady at a networking meeting this morning, who assured me that she was going to be really pushing for new business in February. I asked her if she had written down her ideal target profile, so she could know where to find them, and she said that it was in her mind who she was looking for. Of course most of us will feel that is sufficient, but I’m prepared to bet that those of us who write things down in terms of actions and targets, are far more likely to achieve them, than those who don’t.

The Kevin Pietersen sacking has recently brought to a head the argument about how best to manage the maverick. Some say you can’t get rid of one so talented, whilst others say he is a disruptive influence, and causes problems all around him. I have to say I tend to be in the latter camp, but the whole issue has made me question is it really the best option to sack your most productive team member.

Essentially I suppose it does come down to management. Allowing a head-strong, self-opinionated, arrogant person total freedom of how he or she conducts themselves around their work colleagues cannot be a good thing. However, to tie them too tightly to the rules and regulations will simply stifle them, and they will probably leave anyway. It is a fine balance. If you allow one person to get away with things that others are not allowed to do, then you will cause ill-feeling and resentment in the team.

So how should you work with such a person? Having thought about it long and hard, it is still vital that everyone (maverick or not) must stick within the general rules, and agree to commit to the culture of the business. However, you should encourage creativity, and autonomy within each role as much as possible, so that you allow your “difficult” staff the chance to do their own thing, within reason. This doesn’t mean that they can set up new systems and go off in their own direction, but it does mean that they can suggest better ways of doing things and challenge the equilibrium, thereby satisfying their need for individual growth, and your need to do things the best way. In other words be strong, and manage these types, rather than just give up and get rid of them.

I have been dealing with a company who have really wound me up recently, not because their product is bad, but because everything else around it is, or more specifically their support service.

I suspected that part of it wasn’t working quite as it should be, so I called to get some help and advice. Initially I could only ever get an answer phone, and so after calling a few times I left a message asking for a call back. A day or two passed with no response, so I tried again, and again I left a message. Still no response, so in desperation I sent an e-mail to one person who had at one time been quite helpful in the past. This time it achieved an immediate call back from the technician. He was evidently annoyed at having been made to call me, so was quite aggressive, obstructive and unhelpful. In the end he reluctantly agreed that things may not be quite right, so told me he would get a technical team to look in the following week. My wife stayed in all day to greet them, but they never turned up, and once again the technician who had “arranged” this was not on hand to answer the phone. We finally got a team to have a look today after much chasing and complaining, and I should add, that they have been extremely helpful.

The point is that all of the ill-will and bad feeling I now have for this company could so easily have been avoided. Answering the phone, honouring what you say you are going to do, and being honest and apologetic would all have helped. Sorting out a problem well can create life long fans of your business rather than trying to avoid it, deny it, or blame someone else, which has left me wishing I had never brought from them in the first place. They certainly won’t be getting any referrals from me, and in fact I would actively warn people off them.

So if you ever receive a complaint from a customer, always be quick to acknowledge it, face up to it, and rectify it as soon as possible. Taking an initial small financial hit to sort something is far more likely to pay dividends in the long run.