Business Success | Need A Dream Team Board Of Directors?

Is your business successful but you are working way too hard?  Is your business stuck right now and you don’t know how to take it to the next level?

Are you feeling a bit burnt out with your business and losing enthusiasm fast?  Is your business at a crisis point but you don’t have anyone to talk to?

Perhaps you have what seems like an insurmountable obstacle to success and you can’t see your way round it, under it, over it?

Well, we know just how you feel – because Judith and I have both been there!

Several times.

So get a cuppa, because I have a story to tell you…..time to read and digest, 5-10 minutes tops.

When I was at burnout with the Money Gym in 2006 and thinking of giving it up, what I really wanted was a business mentor or business advice that I could trust.  From a proven successful business person, not some time-for-money consultant from the government bodies.

Or – eureka!! a Board Of Directors to work with on an ongoing basis.  I didn’t need investment but I badly needed experienced advice on how to grow the business from something good that had sustained me (and the hotel!!) very well for three years but which I was trapped working “in” rather than “on”.

I loved the clients and the great results they got but I really couldn’t face going through the 10 Financial Intelligence Modules again with one more new client, lovely people or not.

Not good.

And worse, I felt ungrateful because most coaches would kill for a lovely niche business like The Money Gym with great demand, that captured people’s imagination and which almost sold itself .

I also wasn’t massively keen on giving up any shares which investment would have meant.

So I was researching and networking to find out how the whole non-executive Board of Directors thing worked.  Non-exec meaning that they didn’t do any of the work but advised me, coming to a board meeting once a quarter to hear about progress and make suggestions.

I was looking everywhere – both online and offline for them.

Then, bummer, I discovered that each Director (Sales & Marketing, Finance, Operations) would expect to be paid about £10,000 – £15,000 per annum plus expenses, unless they invested in the business and you gave away substantial amounts of shares.

I also had Steve to consider, as we were partners in our internet business by then, but he did loads of work in The Money Gym too and if I was giving away shares in the Money Gym then he should get some.

Remember the E-Myth way of looking at it?  I knew that, when designing a successful business, you need a director for each key area – and those are…..

The Five P’s

Promise – the marketing & sales
Product – operations / delivery / production
Pounds & Pence – the finance
Place – office, equipment, telecoms etc
People – customer service & partners / staff / freelancers

I wanted to do the Promise, was delivering the Product but didn’t want to anymore and didn’t have time to create other products, needed help urgently with the Pounds & Pence because while self taught, I didn’t know how to strategically plan our finances, Steve did the Place, and People, but wasnt’ massively keen on the latter LOL

I also knew it had to be someone I respected so that I would up my game.

So I outlined the qualities of the new business partner I wanted

1. Knew & believed in the Money Gym ethos (ex-client?)
2. Ideally had coaching skills so that they could do the coaching for me at least for a while
3. Good with people so we were forced to improve out customer service
4. Had PROVEN successful business background as most of the Business Link / Enterprise Centre advisors had no real business experience, and swapped time for money.

When I was driving along one day

Read more..

Business & Money – You Have Your Say!

Business & Money – inextricably linked according to our latest Money Gym survey. 50% of you who responded want a successful business with over 27% of you wanting to run a successful business that you can work on, and travel with, anywhere in the world.

Trailing in way behind was “a million pound property portfolio” desired by just 13.5% of you, with only another 13.5% of you wanting to be debt free. I’ll tackle those two topics later in the week, but I bet the property portfolio would have been higher this time last year!

What is a successful business?

Everyone has a different definition and I think it depends what kind of a life you want. If you want a nice easy quiet life, with lots of time for leisure activities and hobbies, then a nice home-based or lifestyle business would be good for you.  You might want to look at a network marketing opportunity like Avon, Telecom Plus, Virgin Vie or Success University.

Or even something more down to earth and local like a babysitting business, gardening or something where you buy into an existing successful system, like Judith’s Cleaning Biz opportunity.  My friend Kim – a great hairdresser – has made a great business working from home 3 days a week, in her lovely salon, entirely depending on word of mouth referrals and able to pick her kids up from school and knock off early if she wants to.

If you want a bit more excitement then you might want to build a global business with lots of staff and a high-flying lifestyle.  If you want high-flying but no team, then a consultancy business might be for you.

By any definition, a successful business is one that covers all its overheads, pays its taxes, makes enough profit to create a long term financial cushion to be able to ride out peaks and troughs in the market or economy, and pay you a handsome salary AND dividends on top!

When I was in my 20’s and 30’s, I would have defined a successful business as one that paid me enough to pay my household bills, without having to work away from home.  My expectations have been raised quite dramatically since then!  As have my outgoings.  But also my income luckily.

Not without a lot of pain though, due to having NO CLUE about what a successful business looks like, acts like or needed from me.  About 100 books, and at least FIVE business mentors later, I might be getting there.

I think it also depends on your level of corporate or business experience when you start, where you set your expectations, and whether you have read any of the great wealth creation or business books like “Rich Dad Poor Dad” by Robert Kiyosaki or “E-Myth Revisited” by Michael Gerber which are certainly eye-openers.

Working with Judith Morgan, serial successful entrepreneur, and hanging out online with gurus and business coaches like Rich Schefren has changed the way I think about business for ever, too.

There is no right way or wrong way to think about what a successful business means for you, but do try and define it. If you begin with the end in mind, you will find it a lot easier to put the plan in place to achieve that success for you.

Here’s a recording of our weekly live TV show where my guest Sarah (who’s in the startup phase of her business) discuss the challenges and why she’s even bothering!

Businesses seem to go through phases…in the early days it’s all about attracting clients or customers and so many don’t get past that hurdle.

When we then surveyed our mailing list about what was stopping them creating a successful business some interesting answers came up….

Read more..