From Armchair to Action

I am delighted to have been shortlisted for the Women's Advocate Award - one of the National Women on their Way Awards 2010. www.womenontheirway.co.uk

Extraordinary Women Entrepreneurs all in one room....

What happens when you bring eight of the UK's most extraordinary entrepreneurs together with the media, and 100 other women in business?   Who knows- but I can't wait to find out!

On Women's Enterprise Day, 18th November, Women Unlimited have arranged a fantastic evening of fine dining and networking with women that include Julie Meyer (Ariadne Capital), Karen Hanton (TopTable) and Kanya King, founder of the MOBO awards.

My role in the event is to host a table and speak about what I have learned about extraordinary women entrepreneurs. Can't wait.  My challenge is now to find a sponsor who could underwrite the cost of providing one of my books - Secrets of Successful Women Entrepreneurs to all who attend.  They would have fantastic exposure for their business and even be able to get their company logo on the front cover of the book as a special edition- so if you have any bright ideas of who I should approach, then get in touch.

Rate of Change - from women to vegetarians

Earlier this year, the Equality and Human Rights Commission's annual report which looks at women in top positions of power and influence across the public and private sectors, suggested a worrying trend of reversal or stalled progress.  The Commission identified that it will take 200 years for women to be equally represented in Parliament.

Today I heard a radio article talking about the increase of people turning vegetarian in the UK, and it was reported that if the rate remains constant, it will take 86.8 years for everyone to become vegetarian.

I think it is quite horrifying to think that we can all become veggie quicker than the time it will take to get equal representation in Parliament - I see an opportunity to get out of supporting women and into veggie burgers!

In another world

I spent Christmas on a cycling trip in the Southern part of Morocco, enjoying the sun and stretching my legs!  It was great to get away from work completely and to enjoy a change of scene and have come back ready to focus on a New Year with new challenges - Happy New Year!

Have a good Christmas

As I prepare to have a nice break for the holidays, just wishing you all a very happy Christmas and prosperous New Year!

Women's Enterprise Day

Thank goodness Women's Enterprise Day is over.....only because it was so busy - I spoke at three events in one day!

Women in Rural Business - This event was organised by Business Link and had around 80 women attending.  It was held at a wonderful venue on a huge parkland estate with wide open views and sun streaming in....makes you appreciate everything there is about the rural environment.

Then I came back to Oxfordshire where we were running an event for local business women focusing on the topic of celebration by thinking about how to maximise your strengths.  Did you know that when Gallup did a survey a number of years ago, only 20 % of people strongly agreed that they had an opportunity to use their strengths at work every day?   I believe if we can focus on what we are great at and leverage that within our businesses, then we can often ensure that the added revenue we can generate can pay for outsourcing the jobs we are not great at.  Sometimes it needs for us to value and recognise our strengths in order to achieve this.

Lastly I had a wonderful evening with high flying students at Oxford University. This was part of their new student society Oxford Women in Business.  I received a great reception here and approached the event with my usual interactive style, asking questions and encouraging discussion about some of the topics I was introducing.  This seemed to be something out of the ordinary and was enjoyed by those in the audience.  

So what did I learn?   That it does not matter, if you run a business from a rural location, or are thinking of starting up, or indeed are already established, people love real life stories and to be inspired.   We all need motivation at times and to think about issues related to our business from a different perspective.  There was a lovely rich mix of backgrounds, ages, experience and knowledge that it was an exhausting day. Thank goodness it only happens once a year!

Sun, sea and stress

It's been a busy last two weeks, and I have been away sailing across the Atlantic to the Carribean and Deep South on the Oriana entertaining people with my adventure stories.  The challenge of any small business owner however, is to have systems and people in place that can manage things in your absence.

For some of our projects this worked really well, and for other things I was working on personally this represented a challenge!  Whilst on the high seas I had to complete a tender proposal and therefore relied on technology to make sure I could send it to my colleague by the required date.  Now I have written so many times on this blog about not relying on technology that you would think I could take my own advice - but no - everything will be fine I thought, until the ship's internet link was down for the first few days.

That meant we had one port of call for 1/2 day which HAD to have internet access.  I was being a tour escort and therefore was visiting Santiago de Compostela for the morning - armed with my laptop we arrived.  The town is quite small but luckily at the best hotel in town, there was internet access - and it was free too.....so all ended well with the document being emailed okay.  These types of issues do make business stressful.....so I must learn for next time....
 

After a while though I did remind myself that we don't need to be a slave to our emails and that accessing them once a day, at a VERY slow speed of access, meant that all replies were short and sweet and I cursed anyone who sent large file attachments.....

Speaking of women, I saw this great statue at Key West and thought that the man lying at the foot of it seemed to  be enjoying the scene!

Learning from the other side of the table

This week we carried out our interviews for our Managing Director role.  It was an insightful experience for me for it felt as much like we were making a business pitch to the potential candidates as it was them sussing us out to see if they would like to work with our company.  And what comes through from both sides of the table are values versus written communication - do you "do" what you say you do?

It reminded me of the initial coaching session I have with clients when I always notice if their non verbal communication matches the stated goals for the session.  If there is a mismatch a bit of detective work is always required to get to the "real issue" and its nearly always related to values and beliefs.

This was just the same at the interviews - I am sure our values shone through and hopefully matched up to our stated aims, and it was the same for the candidates.  The quicker I can connect with someone at that meaningful level, the easier it is to work together. So I was reminded that authenticity is what counts....and lasts....in good working relationships.....

Building a strong executive team

Today I have just put the finishing touches to the job specification for Managing Director of our company, Mission Possible.  It's an exciting time, preparing to hand over the reins of something I have worked hard to build, and hoping that the strong foundations will support and help a new person leverage even more opportunities for the business.

I am not leaving but believe that my strengths and talents can be balanced by someone who can bring complementary skills and experience - and different ideas too!  Research shows that getting the right people in your team is the biggest and most critical investment that a small business can make.

Too many small businesses suffer because the owner is reluctant to give up control and consequently it can limit the growth of a business and the ability of the employees to maximise their strengths. So, with a deep breath, I have taken the plunge and now wait to see what happens.....

Will keep you posted!

The I's have it

Technology - love it or hate it, you have got to admit that it has transformed our lives over the last few years - especially the I's. This week the I's have it - three things that have been really beneficial to me....

1.  iPhone - I have got a fab new gadget - the iphone bluetooth headset - its sleek, compact and has a very good sound quality.  Still think the iPhone is the best gadget I have got this year!

2. Interactive - Doing a radio interview with a Spanish radio station - how its so clear on a telephone line to Spain.

3. iPlayer - to catch up on all the Olympic coverage I missed when its convenient.