Making our Mission Possible

How to keep motivated when things get tough

This month I have been chatting to several of my close business contacts who have all been telling me that they have been finding it tough lately - the credit crunch, trying to find funding to grow, companies taking longer to make decisions.

When I asked them all how they manage to keep going - all of them have said that whilst its tough, they know that indeed the challenges have partly helped them.  This is because they have realised they are capable of more than they thought and in digging deep for ideas, contacts, belief etc. they have found a reservoir of goodwill too.  The people who really look out for them have come to the fore, and it has helped them to focus on what's really important within their business.

Whilst I do not advocate that everyone has to endure some sort of hardship, I do think that if you ask those who have been successful in business, what has been their greatest learning - many of them quote those dark moments and how it helped them to put situations into context.  It's during tough times that you have to remind yourself of why you are doing what you are doing - its Step 1 - The Defining Moment in my Steps to Success. Ask yourself - what prompted you to get started in business anyway?  What are the benefits to you?  What is really important? The answers to those questions help you re-evaluate where you are going and can help keep you motivated.

The team grows

Today was exciting because we welcomed two new members to the Mission Possible management team.

Vanessa Wilson joins us as Marketing and Finance Director. She is a bubbly, enthusiastic and highly experienced accountant  (is this an oxymoron?!!) who has also got lots of talent in marketing and operations - all those areas that are not my strengths so I breathed a sigh of relief!

Lynn Harman, who has been working with us for a while and currently co-ordinates our Swindon network, has also taken on the role of Sales Director for the business.

At our board meeting today I thought it was great to see so many talented people around the table, all of whom have complementary skills and a common passion to help women achieve their potential within business. 

Growth means benefits and also challenges.  Others ask those penetrating questions that mean you have to own up to not being quite as organised as you think you are - and being held jointly accountable for your actions.  Now with five of us in the management team - I will have to improve my office organisation skills - yikes!

Tips from the Queen of Networking

Last night I attended one of Carole Stone's regular Monday evening "salons" - and had a great time too!
Carole is highly regarded as the "Queen of Networking" and has over 30,000 contacts on her database.  Just as some might accrue pens from conferences, Carole gathers contacts, but not in that sort of manner where one feels marketed to once she has your business card. No, Carole is a traditional networker, genuinely interested in you, remembers your name and introduces you to others.  It's like going to a great restaurant and marvelling at how wonderful the service and food is - Carole has created the art of good networking.

With a little trepidation I arrived, only to be met with a smile and encouraged to take the plunge and start chatting to one or two people in the throng.  Whilst its a relatively small flat in Covent Garden, its like an Aladdin's Cave of interesting people.  You don't know who to speak to next because there is such a rich diversity of knowledge and experience in the room. It seemed to me that there were at least fifty people there, and there's no hope for you if you like a little personal space.  Perhaps its the rubbing shoulders that does it - it certainly means you see the whites of other peoples eyes. 

I was having a conversation with a man with a distinguished miltary background and he mentioned a quote from Charles Handy - the legendary thinker and specialist in organisational behaviour and management.  We considered it and carried on talking.  The next moment we were joined by a grey haired gentleman and his wife.  I introduced myself and so did he - it WAS Charles Handy!  Such is Carole Stone's ability to attract people from all walks of life to her salons.....

Of course, follow up is a vital part of networking - and as one might expect by 8am this morning a lovely message from Carole was waiting in my inbox to be read.  It raised the networking bar to a new level for me  and gave me hope that networking can be fun when the right environment is created and people are genuinely interested to be there. 

Variety is the spice of life

The last few weeks have taken me to some interesting places and put me in touch with several new contacts who have inspired as well as educated me.

Belfast - Michelle Mone was also a fellow speaker at a businesswomen's conference, and it was interesting to hear the latest instalment in her business journey.  Michelle featured in my last book and one of her tips was to keep your feet on the ground, not matter how successful you get and her presentation reflected this.

                                                                                 

Ireland - The IrishBusinessWomen.com conference was really a lot of fun - lovely people, great speakers and the "craic".   I collected loads of commitment cards from the audience (they are cards I use to encourage people to write down an action they will take as a result of what they heard me talk about) so it will be good to follow up with those people in due course and learn what they have done...(or maybe not?) 

Have a look at the photos!

Jenny Bristow, Celebrity Chef, Internationally acclaimed author and TV personality spoke about how her business has developed from her desire to fit in work with family and to do what she loves. She runs a number of enterprises from a beautiful farm near Cullybackey, in County Antrim, where she lives with her husband and their three children. One of her finest moments she recalled was when her book went to no1 in the best seller list putting Delia Smith's book into no 2 place!

Cruise to Iceland - Amongst the lecturers was Roger Lovegrove, former RSPB Director for Wales and an inspiring person who couldn't help but get you fascinated to learn more about the birds and wildlife that we were seeing.  A fantastic role model for nature and with loads of knowledge on the subject.  Made me think about those teachers at school that made a subject come alive.....

 

(A chilly morning in Iceland)

All of this variety brought home to me the amazing ways in which people earn their living and do what they love at the same time.  So make sure you "do what you love and love what you do"!

Back from adventures

Its been a busy few weeks, with going to Ireland to speak at a conference and then off on a cruise ship for 10 days round Iceland and Faroes speaking there too.  I have lots of things to write about on the blog, so more news will appear very soon....