Category: COACHd

I wake up this morning having watched a game of football last night that saw Liverpool crowned as Premier League champions. It has taken 30 years, £1.47Bn spent, 239 different players and nine permanent managers to achieve it. But it means so much beyond just the field of football.

We see a manager, a leader that has pulled together the culture of the club, the temperaments of the players and the ego of future achievement and capability.

Isn’t this what we need in business?

The ability to get the best band of people together to do the job. To adapt to the changing scenarios, to celebrate the wins and defeats as opportunities to learn, grow and become even more higher performing.

As small business owners, it is unlikely that we will have the same spending options as Liverpool, but we do have the capability to act in the way of champions by defining who we are and how we work with our clients. We too, can beome champions in our own right by adopting a passionate and focused path to what is our objective.

Along the way, we will pick up some skills, some knocks, some disappointments and some wins. This experience invigorates us to be the one we are.

What I am trying to do through this weekly COACHd piece, is to share tips, tricks and thoughts that have helped to get me to where I am. Although this is very much still work in progress and far far away from me being a champion, my route is clear.

Although not specifically coaching, a great example of a hand down technique – a few years ago, I was designing an intervention with a friend that was going to be delivered by email to clients on a regular basis. Now, of course, we have an abundance of the online capability to help us formulate approaches – but then email was about as good as it got. When we were researching for a particular sequence, we came across an online piece by the American Jim Rohn. Jim is epitomized in the quote

“Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems, wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenge, wish for more wisdom.”

One method that has stuck is a story about financial choice. He suggests a robust method to deal with money. For every cheque he earnt, he suggested:-

• 70% of the money is used to live off
• 10% on active investment (savings)
• 10% on passive investment (nest egg space)
• 10% worthwhile causes

Adapting this for business is therefore straight forward and leads to some financial prudence. I use a bank account from Starling Bank since it opened. In Starling, there are areas called spaces and you can have as many of them as you want. I have one for VAT, reserves, savings, Corporation Tax, and paid clients but not yet delivered. Every time I receive an invoice payment,

1. I put 20% straight away into the VAT,
2. 10% into reserves, and
3. at the end of the month bump anything above running costs into the savings space.

If I pay myself dividends, I take 20% and put it in the corporation tax space. Similarly, when I receive payment for programs, I place this into the paid clients not delivered – transferring it only to current when I have delivered.

Next month we are meeting for Co-Coaching but this is walking outdoors. Usually, we meet in a pub and walk from there but having contacted a few pubs, some are focusing on just getting their COVID service sorted out – so we will revert to the street wisdom idea of guided self-reflection in your area… please come and join the fun over here.

Have a great Friday and I hope to see you soon.