Afternoon all,
So here I am back at the office after a fairly exciting morning learning about social enterprise legal structures and rubbing shoulders with some very inspiring social entrepreneurs. Went for a coffee with one of them and it was good to hear I wasn't the only one who found building a social enterprise a bit lonely at times. Also great to see people at all stages of the journey to construct a business or charity.
Also had a fabulous chat with one of my best friends, who said she felt like it sounded like the right direction for me. She also inadvertently ended my doubts about whether I'd done the right thing walking away from a big corporation. I'm not saying I'd never work for a blue chip company again, quite the opposite in fact. She just made me realise that I have to do this because I'll never really be able to settle in one until I've tried.
So achievements for the day:
* Clarified legal structures for social enterprises
* Met with social entrepreneurs
* Completed core values work
* Continued to read course text book
* Continued course journal
Words of wisdom today:
Don't leap into setting up until you're sure the business has longevity.
Thursday, 26 September 2013
Wednesday, 25 September 2013
Whacked Weekday
Hello all,
Well I'm certainly feeling sleep-deprived today. Leaves me thinking of all those times I have seen someone struggling at work when really the problem is at home. Anyway enough said about that, I have a wonderful little family of whom I am most proud and a lot to be thankful for. One really nice moment was when without even thinking about it I found myself telling an old work colleague and friend about my plans for the business.
She was so supportive and kept saying "Wow" and "Sounds good". So nice because I think unconsciously I'd been a bit apprehensive about telling my former work mates about my plans as whilst still in the management vein it's a big step away from moving for a blue chip corporate. So I guess for this reason it was 'super-nice' that it was quite obviously so very well received as an idea. Again.....
I also had a good moment this afternoon when I realised my homework for the course was actually something which I'd have been quite happy to do in my own time as it were.
So what have I done today:
* Course journal work
* Course core value work
* Read course textbook
Words of wisdom not surprisingly perhaps come from the course notes:
Well I'm certainly feeling sleep-deprived today. Leaves me thinking of all those times I have seen someone struggling at work when really the problem is at home. Anyway enough said about that, I have a wonderful little family of whom I am most proud and a lot to be thankful for. One really nice moment was when without even thinking about it I found myself telling an old work colleague and friend about my plans for the business.
She was so supportive and kept saying "Wow" and "Sounds good". So nice because I think unconsciously I'd been a bit apprehensive about telling my former work mates about my plans as whilst still in the management vein it's a big step away from moving for a blue chip corporate. So I guess for this reason it was 'super-nice' that it was quite obviously so very well received as an idea. Again.....
I also had a good moment this afternoon when I realised my homework for the course was actually something which I'd have been quite happy to do in my own time as it were.
So what have I done today:
* Course journal work
* Course core value work
* Read course textbook
Words of wisdom not surprisingly perhaps come from the course notes:
Archimedes: Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world.
Tuesday, 24 September 2013
Great Guns
Hello readers whoever you are ;)
Well it's been a productive afternoon and it's course practice this evening, so it actually turns out to be quite a productive day.
Highlight for the day was being told by the potential designer for the company web-site, "I think it's a great idea", had to double check he was talking about my enterprise, but he was! He also added that he hadn't heard of anything like it before, which is a recurring theme that I must look into at some point. Even better he seems quite keen to work with my developer other half, so I think I might have two of the country's best on my team :)
Achievements
* Registered interest in applying for a place and grant at the School of Social Entrepreneurs
* Reread chapter one of social enterprise book
* Gave potential web designer a heads-up
* Looked into courses with Common Purpose
* Started writing text for the web-site
* Attended course practice group
* Did course homework
Words of wisdom come from a comment made about me, by a local Director of Marketing, which I'd forgotten until I watched Robert Ashton's web-site video today. Supporters talk about how he makes things happen, he gets things done. I'm pleased to say I think the Director in question had a very valid point, which summed me up quite well.;)
I get the feeling you also get things done!
Well it's been a productive afternoon and it's course practice this evening, so it actually turns out to be quite a productive day.
Highlight for the day was being told by the potential designer for the company web-site, "I think it's a great idea", had to double check he was talking about my enterprise, but he was! He also added that he hadn't heard of anything like it before, which is a recurring theme that I must look into at some point. Even better he seems quite keen to work with my developer other half, so I think I might have two of the country's best on my team :)
Achievements
* Registered interest in applying for a place and grant at the School of Social Entrepreneurs
* Reread chapter one of social enterprise book
* Gave potential web designer a heads-up
* Looked into courses with Common Purpose
* Started writing text for the web-site
* Attended course practice group
* Did course homework
Words of wisdom come from a comment made about me, by a local Director of Marketing, which I'd forgotten until I watched Robert Ashton's web-site video today. Supporters talk about how he makes things happen, he gets things done. I'm pleased to say I think the Director in question had a very valid point, which summed me up quite well.;)
I get the feeling you also get things done!
Monday, 23 September 2013
Magic Monday
Hi,
Well after a lovely weekend with the family, I feel like I have been hard at it today. Met up with another business owner today. She inspires me and I felt even more sure that I'm doing the right thing, giving this a go.
We had a good catch up and one lesson struck me in particular and it's that I am not keen to have a business partner not now not ever! Her own business is now incredibly successful and in reality the only real problems have been when that partner decided to leave.
From there I met for lunch with a friend who was previously and English teacher. I forgot entirely that I was meaning to ask her to spell and grammar check my web-site when I get to it, but actually I feel like once again trying to tell someone about my business plans, really helped to hone my thinking and perfect my elevator speech. I feel so thankful to have people like these in my life.
After that I rang a friend who happens to name one of his specialisms as 'social enterprise', which makes me feel that my own relentless networking during my career break has really paid off. Anyway as I said I must be getting clearer in my thinking, because he actually said, "sounds like you've got it all sorted", which felt like praise indeed from someone who works in the field.
Achievements:
* Spoke with specialist in social enterprises
* Spoke with Social Enterprise Works
* Registered for a free social enterprise surgery
* Did course homework
* Set up course practice group
* Networked with a business owner
Words of wisdom today come from the founder of Slimtone who, on her very inspiring web-site for her diet plan of which I am a huge fan, says six wonderful words:
I put my dream into action
Well after a lovely weekend with the family, I feel like I have been hard at it today. Met up with another business owner today. She inspires me and I felt even more sure that I'm doing the right thing, giving this a go.
We had a good catch up and one lesson struck me in particular and it's that I am not keen to have a business partner not now not ever! Her own business is now incredibly successful and in reality the only real problems have been when that partner decided to leave.
From there I met for lunch with a friend who was previously and English teacher. I forgot entirely that I was meaning to ask her to spell and grammar check my web-site when I get to it, but actually I feel like once again trying to tell someone about my business plans, really helped to hone my thinking and perfect my elevator speech. I feel so thankful to have people like these in my life.
After that I rang a friend who happens to name one of his specialisms as 'social enterprise', which makes me feel that my own relentless networking during my career break has really paid off. Anyway as I said I must be getting clearer in my thinking, because he actually said, "sounds like you've got it all sorted", which felt like praise indeed from someone who works in the field.
Achievements:
* Spoke with specialist in social enterprises
* Spoke with Social Enterprise Works
* Registered for a free social enterprise surgery
* Did course homework
* Set up course practice group
* Networked with a business owner
Words of wisdom today come from the founder of Slimtone who, on her very inspiring web-site for her diet plan of which I am a huge fan, says six wonderful words:
I put my dream into action
Friday, 20 September 2013
Friday Funday
Hello all,
One of those days today where I'm really not sure where the day went. Took my returns for my work wardrobe to the post office first thing. It seemed to take an age for me to get them packed up, still it was nice to get them out of the house and come home to my new work wardrobe! Also spent some time packing up birthday presents for my friend's children as she was coming round this morning.
So it was that the tenacious trio were reunited to start another term and I got back in touch with my role of Mummy again, as I chatted with two of my best pals. I find these catch ups really grounding and though I struggle to record them as work time, I feel like they provide me with so much stability I simply can't erase them from my week. It's also where today's words of wisdom come from, though I am still looking for a suitable version on line of the favourite analogy used by one of these friends.
Since lunchtime I have been looking at web-sites recommended by the social enterprise book I have been reading. There were over fifty in total and whilst I set out simply to get some ideas for my own web-site, I have finished feeling totally overwhelmed by it all. I feel sure I do have a good idea and it felt so so right just a few days ago, but frankly turning into something that will create meaningful difference in the way these organisations have, just feels daunting at the minute.
I feel like I'm a one man band and I desperately need a sounding board. The irony of that! Ha, setting up a mentoring and coaching business and needing a mentor. Anyway I have contacting my marketing mentor for a session and may also get in touch with my career coach next week too! Also seeing one of my mentees at the weekend, which I'm certain will give me a wee boost.
So achievements for the day:
* finalised work wardrobe
* bookmarked 50+ web-sites
* emailed mentor
* organised get together with mentee
* did course homework
Wisdom for the day is the analogy of the monkey on your shoulder. The idea is fairly simple we are all given the same number of hours in each day. We all must choose which responsibilities we take on, which problems we make ours. The monkey represents these. When someone comes along with a monkey on their shoulder we must decide whether to take it onto ours. We must always remember though that if we do, not only will we take it on, we will have to feed and care for the monkeys we have acquired, however many there are of them!!!
Read more here: http://www.kingfahdweb.com/library/self-develop/monkey.pdf
And with that I'm going to drink my glass of red and look forward to a fresh start on Monday, when I will start working my way through the social enterprise book's actions recognising I can't write a web-site until I've written a business plan and once that is done, given the best web-sites seem to say the least it actually won't take very long at all. :D The good news being I don't feel I have any unwanted monkeys on my shoulder and it feels sooo good :)
One of those days today where I'm really not sure where the day went. Took my returns for my work wardrobe to the post office first thing. It seemed to take an age for me to get them packed up, still it was nice to get them out of the house and come home to my new work wardrobe! Also spent some time packing up birthday presents for my friend's children as she was coming round this morning.
So it was that the tenacious trio were reunited to start another term and I got back in touch with my role of Mummy again, as I chatted with two of my best pals. I find these catch ups really grounding and though I struggle to record them as work time, I feel like they provide me with so much stability I simply can't erase them from my week. It's also where today's words of wisdom come from, though I am still looking for a suitable version on line of the favourite analogy used by one of these friends.
Since lunchtime I have been looking at web-sites recommended by the social enterprise book I have been reading. There were over fifty in total and whilst I set out simply to get some ideas for my own web-site, I have finished feeling totally overwhelmed by it all. I feel sure I do have a good idea and it felt so so right just a few days ago, but frankly turning into something that will create meaningful difference in the way these organisations have, just feels daunting at the minute.
I feel like I'm a one man band and I desperately need a sounding board. The irony of that! Ha, setting up a mentoring and coaching business and needing a mentor. Anyway I have contacting my marketing mentor for a session and may also get in touch with my career coach next week too! Also seeing one of my mentees at the weekend, which I'm certain will give me a wee boost.
So achievements for the day:
* finalised work wardrobe
* bookmarked 50+ web-sites
* emailed mentor
* organised get together with mentee
* did course homework
Wisdom for the day is the analogy of the monkey on your shoulder. The idea is fairly simple we are all given the same number of hours in each day. We all must choose which responsibilities we take on, which problems we make ours. The monkey represents these. When someone comes along with a monkey on their shoulder we must decide whether to take it onto ours. We must always remember though that if we do, not only will we take it on, we will have to feed and care for the monkeys we have acquired, however many there are of them!!!
Read more here: http://www.kingfahdweb.com/library/self-develop/monkey.pdf
And with that I'm going to drink my glass of red and look forward to a fresh start on Monday, when I will start working my way through the social enterprise book's actions recognising I can't write a web-site until I've written a business plan and once that is done, given the best web-sites seem to say the least it actually won't take very long at all. :D The good news being I don't feel I have any unwanted monkeys on my shoulder and it feels sooo good :)
Thursday, 19 September 2013
Infinitesimal Inspiration
Well here I go again,
I'm going to start with achievements for the day some of which I am yet to do but will have done by close of play so it's all good.
* Added some new blogs to read for inspiration in keeping up my blog habit
* Booked NLP training, which will take me up to June to complete!
* Did course homework
* Spent an hour being my own PA and diary planning
* Went through all my new work clothes and decided which to keep and which to send back
So all in all today has not been a day of huge leaps forward, but rather of lots of tiny steps, which have all left me feeling really much more confident in my future and the future of my company. This after waking having one of those dreams about it all, which though I can't remember it now, I am certain the title would have been "Cold Feet?".
Words of wisdom for today come from the editor of Glamour magazine, who has persuaded me that sorting out my work wardrobe is a priority and as it's 4pm I think I can now legitimately crack on with it:
Our outward appearances are certainly not the most important thing in life. But sometimes, when you change it up, good things can happen.
I'm going to start with achievements for the day some of which I am yet to do but will have done by close of play so it's all good.
* Added some new blogs to read for inspiration in keeping up my blog habit
* Booked NLP training, which will take me up to June to complete!
* Did course homework
* Spent an hour being my own PA and diary planning
* Went through all my new work clothes and decided which to keep and which to send back
So all in all today has not been a day of huge leaps forward, but rather of lots of tiny steps, which have all left me feeling really much more confident in my future and the future of my company. This after waking having one of those dreams about it all, which though I can't remember it now, I am certain the title would have been "Cold Feet?".
Words of wisdom for today come from the editor of Glamour magazine, who has persuaded me that sorting out my work wardrobe is a priority and as it's 4pm I think I can now legitimately crack on with it:
Our outward appearances are certainly not the most important thing in life. But sometimes, when you change it up, good things can happen.
Wednesday, 18 September 2013
Ashton's Advice
Back again,
So today my principal focus has been finishing the social enterprise book I have enjoyed so much. I could hardly put it down when I first started it and then the need to get some additional training sorted took over and I have been constantly trying to find five minutes to continue. So today I set out to finish the book and I've done it. To be honest I was finding very little could happen before I did, because every step I went to take relied heavily on my fully understanding social enterprises and social entrepreneurs. I may still have a lot to learn, yet I feel I do now have a really good grasp of the basics.
Funny then that the last chapter should be on work-life balance, given that today more than any I was starting to concern myself that, driven by actions from my course, I had spent possibly too much time on pursuing my own goals and perhaps not enough on the business. Now I can see just how valuable that has been and even at the time I must admit to being aware of the incredible people I have in my social network that can help me with work.
Went to my church group. I am leading in a few weeks time, which will be a great chance I hope for me to share my current energy levels and hopefully leave people feeling positive about things. It will also be a much needed chance to lead a group and a sort of half way house to doing some public speaking, which is a skill I am looking for opportunities to develop for my new venture.
Also had some more positive feedback having bumped into one of the gym Mums, who when I told her my plans said 'good for you' and told me I was always really 'positive and approachable', which made it a good choice for me. I had a similar reaction talking to a complete stranger who has joined my old firm. She said, 'wow I think that's really exciting that you're setting up your own business'. I must confess though I haven't yet had a negative reaction which has been fab. I'm not naive enough to think there are no doubters, I'm just glad they're staying silent and I can enjoy what is proving to be an exciting experience.
So today's achievements are fairly few, but focused at least:
* did course homework
* completed social enterprise book
* found some good blogs to follow
* looked into brightspace offices
* 'had a nosey' at some successful local web-sites
Words of wisdom come from the author of the social enterprise book I have just finished, Robert Ashton:
The most successful people are those who know themselves well and are comfortable with the way they are.
So today my principal focus has been finishing the social enterprise book I have enjoyed so much. I could hardly put it down when I first started it and then the need to get some additional training sorted took over and I have been constantly trying to find five minutes to continue. So today I set out to finish the book and I've done it. To be honest I was finding very little could happen before I did, because every step I went to take relied heavily on my fully understanding social enterprises and social entrepreneurs. I may still have a lot to learn, yet I feel I do now have a really good grasp of the basics.
Funny then that the last chapter should be on work-life balance, given that today more than any I was starting to concern myself that, driven by actions from my course, I had spent possibly too much time on pursuing my own goals and perhaps not enough on the business. Now I can see just how valuable that has been and even at the time I must admit to being aware of the incredible people I have in my social network that can help me with work.
Went to my church group. I am leading in a few weeks time, which will be a great chance I hope for me to share my current energy levels and hopefully leave people feeling positive about things. It will also be a much needed chance to lead a group and a sort of half way house to doing some public speaking, which is a skill I am looking for opportunities to develop for my new venture.
Also had some more positive feedback having bumped into one of the gym Mums, who when I told her my plans said 'good for you' and told me I was always really 'positive and approachable', which made it a good choice for me. I had a similar reaction talking to a complete stranger who has joined my old firm. She said, 'wow I think that's really exciting that you're setting up your own business'. I must confess though I haven't yet had a negative reaction which has been fab. I'm not naive enough to think there are no doubters, I'm just glad they're staying silent and I can enjoy what is proving to be an exciting experience.
So today's achievements are fairly few, but focused at least:
* did course homework
* completed social enterprise book
* found some good blogs to follow
* looked into brightspace offices
* 'had a nosey' at some successful local web-sites
Words of wisdom come from the author of the social enterprise book I have just finished, Robert Ashton:
The most successful people are those who know themselves well and are comfortable with the way they are.
Tuesday, 17 September 2013
Business Babe
Dear all,
Well here I am after two days training at the weekend, feeling quite chuffed at how everything's going. I was told on the course that I was a natural, which I have to say at the end of the two days is how I felt about it too. In true me fashion I dived in a bit head first on the first day, on some pretty tough topics and consequently found myself really struggling with role playing the client. By the second day I'd learned to choose my topics carefully so that I really could concentrate on learning the coaching techniques and skills.
So my first task of today was to continue with my course homework, which I have found to be really quite useful already. I have also booked on the full nine month course having enjoyed the introduction so very much. In fact the only thing I've really struggled in was training on a Sunday, as I really was too tired too do anything in addition to the training. I tried this time taking the Friday and Monday off to concentrate on home and keep a day for God and this seems to have worked reasonably well, it just takes a bit of getting my head round.
Had a fantastic chat with one of my best friends. He was very encouraging. He reminded me that I have 'helped him a lot' and immediately said 'I'd recommend you', which was so good to hear. After a chat about his own life, we talked about my plans for the business and I asked him what he thought. He offered that infectious enthusiasm that I choose my friends for. He said, "definitely, go for it 100%".
He reminded me to "concentrate on all the positive, think of the positive and if you are worried look at what you've done. You are going to get knocks, but there's always a way. People in business don't fail because they go bankrupt, going bankrupt is just part of the learning curve. They fail because they give up. Don't measure your success on money, measure how you feel you're doing in yourself. Once you're a business person that's what you are. I'm a dormant business person." I chuckled to myself on this last point because we both know it won't be for long.
Bizarrely after a weekend on a fairly challenging course, this was exactly what I needed to hear and it was completely unscheduled as discussions go. It got me back to the business side of starting this enterprise which was just what I needed post training. It tied in with what I'd already decided on the course, which was that I was going to simply concentrate on all the good stuff in my course, for my business and even for my life generally.
It's true there will always be difficult times in business just as in life, but since I could walk nobody has ever got me down for long (or kept me quiet for long for that matter). As for the dormant business person, I've been quite literally working in business since I was four, passing out brochures for my father's company. I've been long enough making the decision to have my own and it feels so so good and I don't plan on giving up easily.
What's more deciding to build a social enterprise means not only can I use all my experience in business, but I also get to do what I'm good at and lead and encourage. My love of administration won't go amiss either from what I can tell! My friend finished up by remarking "people are finding what they're good at". How true is that. I look around me and the people close to me are finally doing the things they love. Well one or two still have a leap of faith to make, but they will in their own time. The good thing is we're all starting to know what we want and that makes for exciting times. I can also see now how it takes experience of life to get you to this point.
Achievements for today include:
* Booking the NLP and coaching course
* Doing course homework
* Contacting members of practice group
* Read social enterprise book
* Started a business account on Tumblr
* Learned about video blogging
* Spoke to a close friend / business associate
So this leads me to my closing word of wisdom, which must surely come from my friend who having run a successful business for several years know what he's talking about when he says:
People don't fail in business because they go bankrupt, going bankrupt is just part of the learning curve people fail in business because they give up.
Well here I am after two days training at the weekend, feeling quite chuffed at how everything's going. I was told on the course that I was a natural, which I have to say at the end of the two days is how I felt about it too. In true me fashion I dived in a bit head first on the first day, on some pretty tough topics and consequently found myself really struggling with role playing the client. By the second day I'd learned to choose my topics carefully so that I really could concentrate on learning the coaching techniques and skills.
So my first task of today was to continue with my course homework, which I have found to be really quite useful already. I have also booked on the full nine month course having enjoyed the introduction so very much. In fact the only thing I've really struggled in was training on a Sunday, as I really was too tired too do anything in addition to the training. I tried this time taking the Friday and Monday off to concentrate on home and keep a day for God and this seems to have worked reasonably well, it just takes a bit of getting my head round.
Had a fantastic chat with one of my best friends. He was very encouraging. He reminded me that I have 'helped him a lot' and immediately said 'I'd recommend you', which was so good to hear. After a chat about his own life, we talked about my plans for the business and I asked him what he thought. He offered that infectious enthusiasm that I choose my friends for. He said, "definitely, go for it 100%".
He reminded me to "concentrate on all the positive, think of the positive and if you are worried look at what you've done. You are going to get knocks, but there's always a way. People in business don't fail because they go bankrupt, going bankrupt is just part of the learning curve. They fail because they give up. Don't measure your success on money, measure how you feel you're doing in yourself. Once you're a business person that's what you are. I'm a dormant business person." I chuckled to myself on this last point because we both know it won't be for long.
Bizarrely after a weekend on a fairly challenging course, this was exactly what I needed to hear and it was completely unscheduled as discussions go. It got me back to the business side of starting this enterprise which was just what I needed post training. It tied in with what I'd already decided on the course, which was that I was going to simply concentrate on all the good stuff in my course, for my business and even for my life generally.
It's true there will always be difficult times in business just as in life, but since I could walk nobody has ever got me down for long (or kept me quiet for long for that matter). As for the dormant business person, I've been quite literally working in business since I was four, passing out brochures for my father's company. I've been long enough making the decision to have my own and it feels so so good and I don't plan on giving up easily.
What's more deciding to build a social enterprise means not only can I use all my experience in business, but I also get to do what I'm good at and lead and encourage. My love of administration won't go amiss either from what I can tell! My friend finished up by remarking "people are finding what they're good at". How true is that. I look around me and the people close to me are finally doing the things they love. Well one or two still have a leap of faith to make, but they will in their own time. The good thing is we're all starting to know what we want and that makes for exciting times. I can also see now how it takes experience of life to get you to this point.
Achievements for today include:
* Booking the NLP and coaching course
* Doing course homework
* Contacting members of practice group
* Read social enterprise book
* Started a business account on Tumblr
* Learned about video blogging
* Spoke to a close friend / business associate
So this leads me to my closing word of wisdom, which must surely come from my friend who having run a successful business for several years know what he's talking about when he says:
People don't fail in business because they go bankrupt, going bankrupt is just part of the learning curve people fail in business because they give up.
Thursday, 12 September 2013
Decisions Decisions
Wow,
Busy busy day. I managed to track down the people from the local training provider I had been after yesterday. I got hold of them just after nine and today has been a manic whirlwind of trying to gather information about my top two training companies ever since. In the end it came down to pure geography simply because I could not choose between them based on either standards of teaching or standards of service.
So I have gone with the local one and start the day after tomorrow! The owner of the business does about half of the training himself and comes highly recommended by my career coach. The alternative also came highly recommended by my husband and in the end it made sense to do the one on my doorstep.
Also went to a high intensity fitness class today. Not sure what 'I' did could be classed as high intensity, but it felt good to be in with people who must surely be in the top 10% of fitness. What's more it was fun and the personal trainer that leads it is really excellent.
Came back and reread the course details, had a last consultation with the other half and gave the alternative providers a courtesy call to let them know I was going local as it were.
Booked up my course, so will spend the rest of the day doing a short piece of homework they have set to be done prior to the course. Plan to take a day off tomorrow as will lose time at the weekend and am determined not to work a seven day week.
Also got details of an accountant and have rung him and asked him to get back to me with his thoughts on accounting for a social enterprise.
Achievements:
* Spoke with an accountant
* Booked course
* Completed pre course homeowork
* Created a system for receipts and invoices
* Continued reading social enterprise book
Words of wisdom come from the personal trainer who took the class this morning, during the post exercise stretching, with reference to the exercise routine, which was frankly pretty hard core:
We're just going to keep on getting stronger.
What a brilliant thing to say to someone when you're feeling something has got the better of you...
Busy busy day. I managed to track down the people from the local training provider I had been after yesterday. I got hold of them just after nine and today has been a manic whirlwind of trying to gather information about my top two training companies ever since. In the end it came down to pure geography simply because I could not choose between them based on either standards of teaching or standards of service.
So I have gone with the local one and start the day after tomorrow! The owner of the business does about half of the training himself and comes highly recommended by my career coach. The alternative also came highly recommended by my husband and in the end it made sense to do the one on my doorstep.
Also went to a high intensity fitness class today. Not sure what 'I' did could be classed as high intensity, but it felt good to be in with people who must surely be in the top 10% of fitness. What's more it was fun and the personal trainer that leads it is really excellent.
Came back and reread the course details, had a last consultation with the other half and gave the alternative providers a courtesy call to let them know I was going local as it were.
Booked up my course, so will spend the rest of the day doing a short piece of homework they have set to be done prior to the course. Plan to take a day off tomorrow as will lose time at the weekend and am determined not to work a seven day week.
Also got details of an accountant and have rung him and asked him to get back to me with his thoughts on accounting for a social enterprise.
Achievements:
* Spoke with an accountant
* Booked course
* Completed pre course homeowork
* Created a system for receipts and invoices
* Continued reading social enterprise book
Words of wisdom come from the personal trainer who took the class this morning, during the post exercise stretching, with reference to the exercise routine, which was frankly pretty hard core:
We're just going to keep on getting stronger.
What a brilliant thing to say to someone when you're feeling something has got the better of you...
Wednesday, 11 September 2013
Weird Wednesday
Well frankly I find it rather strange that people appear to be reading or at least looking at this blog, but it certainly makes me feel like continuing! Strange, but nice is what I mean.
So today started with our first family pet dying, so it's fair to say that in moments like this I can see why the point of getting an office outside the home will be an important milestone for my business. Still I did get straight back from getting the children to breakfast club and crack on.
Started by getting on with populating my new calendar and generally being my own PA. Then received a call back from one of the course providers, which was very positive.
Went out mid morning to my study group, where it turned out we were not doing bible study this first week back, but rather having a social brunch. Everyone was a bit flat, which left me wondering whether people suffer post Summer holiday blues, especially Mums. Anyway had a good chat with one of the girls in the group, who it turned out unbeknown to me is a life coach. She also trained in NLP with the Coaching Academy and was able to tell me about that.
Came back and cracked on with diary planning. Now have a completely populated diary from which to work and can see now the benefits of having an online one shared with my other half, something I have certainly put off.
Also continued my enquiries into courses. Have found a brilliant one that runs in Bristol starting Saturday. So now feel literally spoilt for choice. Have spent the rest of the day looking at the course details for the two top contenders. So achievements for the day:
* Narrowed down search for training to two courses and spoke with NLP trainer
* Realised I had one life coaching contact I didn't know I had
* Populated google calendar
* Continued reading social enterprise book
* Emailed my career coach!
Words of wisdom for today come from a company web-site, which I worked on, which has stuck with me through the day:
“If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe” Abraham Lincoln
So today started with our first family pet dying, so it's fair to say that in moments like this I can see why the point of getting an office outside the home will be an important milestone for my business. Still I did get straight back from getting the children to breakfast club and crack on.
Started by getting on with populating my new calendar and generally being my own PA. Then received a call back from one of the course providers, which was very positive.
Went out mid morning to my study group, where it turned out we were not doing bible study this first week back, but rather having a social brunch. Everyone was a bit flat, which left me wondering whether people suffer post Summer holiday blues, especially Mums. Anyway had a good chat with one of the girls in the group, who it turned out unbeknown to me is a life coach. She also trained in NLP with the Coaching Academy and was able to tell me about that.
Came back and cracked on with diary planning. Now have a completely populated diary from which to work and can see now the benefits of having an online one shared with my other half, something I have certainly put off.
Also continued my enquiries into courses. Have found a brilliant one that runs in Bristol starting Saturday. So now feel literally spoilt for choice. Have spent the rest of the day looking at the course details for the two top contenders. So achievements for the day:
* Narrowed down search for training to two courses and spoke with NLP trainer
* Realised I had one life coaching contact I didn't know I had
* Populated google calendar
* Continued reading social enterprise book
* Emailed my career coach!
Words of wisdom for today come from a company web-site, which I worked on, which has stuck with me through the day:
“If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe” Abraham Lincoln
Tuesday, 10 September 2013
Health and happiness
Wow,
What a day! I'm full of a cold and after all the highs of yesterday, I was definitely feeling a bit emotional today. I feel overwhelmed by the possibilities of what I might achieve with my business, which is pretty weird because it's all really positive. The fact is though that I really feel I have everything I need to go forward which is an exhilarating feeling, which actually is making me feel a bit heady with it all.
I keep thinking of the bit in the social entrepreneur book, which tells me that social entrepreneurs must take especially good care of themselves and this must be even more true for a social entrepreneur who plans to coach and mentor.
I have also been to the eye hospital and things are looking good there and my consultant has offered to put my business cards around which was great news. He was also very positive about it all telling me how he thought it was a great way for me to use my transferable skills, which to be honest I hadn't really thought of so clearly.
Today I also found out that the second of two friends (in the space of a week) who were having tests for cancer have got the all clear. Brilliant news and a roller coaster of emotions. Mainly I'm just so thankful that I will have them both by my side for this adventure.
So with all this as context, I have devoted most of today to my own health and well being and the achievements for the day, consequently look like this:
Work
* Signed up to a timesheet recorder app written by Mr K no less
* Enquired about NLP courses
* Received an offer to distribute business cards from Mr J
* Continued to read social entrepreneur book
Life
* Did an online foodshop in my lunch hour!
* Booked on a couple of new fitness classes.
* Did some meditation
* Ordered some clothes
Wise words for today come from the MotivateHopeStrength thread on Facebook:
If you change nothing, nothing will change.
What a day! I'm full of a cold and after all the highs of yesterday, I was definitely feeling a bit emotional today. I feel overwhelmed by the possibilities of what I might achieve with my business, which is pretty weird because it's all really positive. The fact is though that I really feel I have everything I need to go forward which is an exhilarating feeling, which actually is making me feel a bit heady with it all.
I keep thinking of the bit in the social entrepreneur book, which tells me that social entrepreneurs must take especially good care of themselves and this must be even more true for a social entrepreneur who plans to coach and mentor.
I have also been to the eye hospital and things are looking good there and my consultant has offered to put my business cards around which was great news. He was also very positive about it all telling me how he thought it was a great way for me to use my transferable skills, which to be honest I hadn't really thought of so clearly.
Today I also found out that the second of two friends (in the space of a week) who were having tests for cancer have got the all clear. Brilliant news and a roller coaster of emotions. Mainly I'm just so thankful that I will have them both by my side for this adventure.
So with all this as context, I have devoted most of today to my own health and well being and the achievements for the day, consequently look like this:
Work
* Signed up to a timesheet recorder app written by Mr K no less
* Enquired about NLP courses
* Received an offer to distribute business cards from Mr J
* Continued to read social entrepreneur book
Life
* Did an online foodshop in my lunch hour!
* Booked on a couple of new fitness classes.
* Did some meditation
* Ordered some clothes
Wise words for today come from the MotivateHopeStrength thread on Facebook:
If you change nothing, nothing will change.
Monday, 9 September 2013
Manic Monday
Hello again,
Well here I am on my first Monday back at work and I'm fairly convinced that the universe is conspiring to assist me in my endeavours. I have also noticed that I might actually have some good people reading this, so just to recap, here's where I'm at: I am setting up a social enterprise offering coaching and mentoring services. The general idea is that we will provide private coaching and mentoring services to individuals and that a tenth of the money spent by private clients will fund coaching and mentoring of those who can't afford such services.
Today has been 'fairly' manic. My planned session with a like minded business woman was cancelled due to illness, so I got off out to get some exercise as scheduled. The class trainer at the gym failed to turn up and so the only other attendee and I set to work on the spin bikes by ourselves. Turns out she works in program management at the MoD and they are looking at how they might provide mentoring to their staff in that area. This just added to my instinct that now is a really good time to get into paid mentoring. Equally she seemed a little curious herself as to whether I might help her with her career, so I gave her my contact details and made a mental note to get into gear with my web-site and business cards.
Next I spoke with another young woman who is on maternity from the MoD and was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the choices she has open to her at present. I bestowed my details on her as well, after she volunteered that she might be interested herself.
I also caught up with another business woman I know, who having had to give up her singing career is looking to set up an organisation which helps parents with parenting. We had a fantastic discussion about how we both hope to reach those without the money to access or services. We also discussed BusinessLink, Women in Business networks and tax! We have agreed to keep in touch.
From here I went to the mall to collect some clothes I'd ordered on line and was lucky enough to hit the shops fully stocked with new business wear in my size. I have come away with three new work tops and perhaps more importantly the feeling that this morning's discussions have convinced me that this really is an area which leaves me feeling energised and full of excitement for what I might achieve with people.
I have come back to the office and read up to 40% (thank you kindle for the stats) in my social enterprise book, which to be honest I am struggling to put down. That said my determination to not work at all on a Sunday has paid off, because I almost literally jumped out of bed at 6 this morning.
So achievements for the day will look like this:
* Made two new contacts and renewed another
* Purchased three work tops for meeting clients
* Read up to 40% in Social Enterprise book
* Created Google share calendar for childcare etc
* Agreed use of gym café with gym manager who was pleased to be asked and very encouraging
* Spoke with another business friend who offered to give a personal testimonial or help in any way they can big or small. She has recently completed a course herself in which the trainer was super keen on the power of testimonials on web-sites.
Spoke with a communications expert at the weekend as well and she was really supportive and said she thought I'd be brilliant at this and that it all sounded great. She also suggested that it would be useful to have on the web-site examples of what people had achieved through coaching or mentoring, to give people an idea of what they might expect to achieve or areas they might want to consider.
Started this blog mid afternoon and have only just got back to it having realised last minute I had a personal appointment that I'd booked before starting all this. Hence I have now set up a google calendar to keep track of everything for work, home and also share what's going on with my wonderful husband, who is currently being an absolute superstar supporting me with all this, despite having a lot on his plate at present.
Right that's all folks, just a little word of wisdom to finish me thinks. This one comes from John Speden Lewis. It is about the move he made to making his business a partnership, but reading the social enterprise book I am reading reminded me of it. There is an underlying theme in the book that sometimes social entrepreneurs are going forward with something that the majority do not really see the value of. John Speden Lewis must have known this when he said:
"Rightly or wrongly I feel quite certain that the general idea of substituting partnership for
exploiting employment is now-a-days in the air and will spread through industry of all kinds.
It is already dear to many hearts besides my own, for it makes work something to live for as
well as something to live by. Here may be the new source of working energy of which our
country is in such grave need".
The words, which really speak to me though are:
'for it makes work something to live for as well as something to live by'.
Well here I am on my first Monday back at work and I'm fairly convinced that the universe is conspiring to assist me in my endeavours. I have also noticed that I might actually have some good people reading this, so just to recap, here's where I'm at: I am setting up a social enterprise offering coaching and mentoring services. The general idea is that we will provide private coaching and mentoring services to individuals and that a tenth of the money spent by private clients will fund coaching and mentoring of those who can't afford such services.
Today has been 'fairly' manic. My planned session with a like minded business woman was cancelled due to illness, so I got off out to get some exercise as scheduled. The class trainer at the gym failed to turn up and so the only other attendee and I set to work on the spin bikes by ourselves. Turns out she works in program management at the MoD and they are looking at how they might provide mentoring to their staff in that area. This just added to my instinct that now is a really good time to get into paid mentoring. Equally she seemed a little curious herself as to whether I might help her with her career, so I gave her my contact details and made a mental note to get into gear with my web-site and business cards.
Next I spoke with another young woman who is on maternity from the MoD and was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the choices she has open to her at present. I bestowed my details on her as well, after she volunteered that she might be interested herself.
I also caught up with another business woman I know, who having had to give up her singing career is looking to set up an organisation which helps parents with parenting. We had a fantastic discussion about how we both hope to reach those without the money to access or services. We also discussed BusinessLink, Women in Business networks and tax! We have agreed to keep in touch.
From here I went to the mall to collect some clothes I'd ordered on line and was lucky enough to hit the shops fully stocked with new business wear in my size. I have come away with three new work tops and perhaps more importantly the feeling that this morning's discussions have convinced me that this really is an area which leaves me feeling energised and full of excitement for what I might achieve with people.
I have come back to the office and read up to 40% (thank you kindle for the stats) in my social enterprise book, which to be honest I am struggling to put down. That said my determination to not work at all on a Sunday has paid off, because I almost literally jumped out of bed at 6 this morning.
So achievements for the day will look like this:
* Made two new contacts and renewed another
* Purchased three work tops for meeting clients
* Read up to 40% in Social Enterprise book
* Created Google share calendar for childcare etc
* Agreed use of gym café with gym manager who was pleased to be asked and very encouraging
* Spoke with another business friend who offered to give a personal testimonial or help in any way they can big or small. She has recently completed a course herself in which the trainer was super keen on the power of testimonials on web-sites.
Spoke with a communications expert at the weekend as well and she was really supportive and said she thought I'd be brilliant at this and that it all sounded great. She also suggested that it would be useful to have on the web-site examples of what people had achieved through coaching or mentoring, to give people an idea of what they might expect to achieve or areas they might want to consider.
Started this blog mid afternoon and have only just got back to it having realised last minute I had a personal appointment that I'd booked before starting all this. Hence I have now set up a google calendar to keep track of everything for work, home and also share what's going on with my wonderful husband, who is currently being an absolute superstar supporting me with all this, despite having a lot on his plate at present.
Right that's all folks, just a little word of wisdom to finish me thinks. This one comes from John Speden Lewis. It is about the move he made to making his business a partnership, but reading the social enterprise book I am reading reminded me of it. There is an underlying theme in the book that sometimes social entrepreneurs are going forward with something that the majority do not really see the value of. John Speden Lewis must have known this when he said:
"Rightly or wrongly I feel quite certain that the general idea of substituting partnership for
exploiting employment is now-a-days in the air and will spread through industry of all kinds.
It is already dear to many hearts besides my own, for it makes work something to live for as
well as something to live by. Here may be the new source of working energy of which our
country is in such grave need".
The words, which really speak to me though are:
'for it makes work something to live for as well as something to live by'.
Friday, 6 September 2013
Tenacious Trio
Hello again,
Well this is actually working out to be quite a good way of keeping motivated in my new venture. I was up late last night telling a good friend of mine all about my plans for this new venture, consequently I was up late this morning, but knowing I was planning to check in here later today I have actually had quite a productive afternoon.
Something I was talking about with my friend was my being conscious than in order to maintain my current high levels of happiness with and enthusiasm for life, I felt the need to continue with some supportive activities. My main hesitation in going forward with this company is I confess the lack of time with other people i.e. the working alone in the first instance. Having spent several years as a full time parent, I am conscious how important social contact is.
I have decided to punctuate my week with three key activities. I plan to go for a run with a friend at the start of the week, meet a bible study group at my church midweek and finish the week with my usual coffee with two trusted friends at the end of the week (the tenacious trio). These three events will keep me on track I believe and full of energy both to coach and mentor others as well as drive and lead the company forward. So today's achievements are:
* Brainstormed ideas for my new company with a good friend
* Downloaded and started reading first new business text on Kindle
* Ordered a mouse mat!
* Set up a company pinterest account
* Opened a cloud account for document storage
Today's words of wisdom come from the school mum friend of mine, who summed up my decisions regarding next steps with my career in less than ten words:
Sometimes the first thing is the right thing.
After my first (if short) working week, I am already feeling instinctively that perhaps she was indeed very right in this. Coaching has been my first thought whenever I have thought of specialising and as I progress with it, it just feel more and more that it is something that I am good at. It is certainly true that everyone who knows me well seems to say very sincerely 'I think you'd be really good at that' and there's wisdom in listening to those who know you well.
Well this is actually working out to be quite a good way of keeping motivated in my new venture. I was up late last night telling a good friend of mine all about my plans for this new venture, consequently I was up late this morning, but knowing I was planning to check in here later today I have actually had quite a productive afternoon.
Something I was talking about with my friend was my being conscious than in order to maintain my current high levels of happiness with and enthusiasm for life, I felt the need to continue with some supportive activities. My main hesitation in going forward with this company is I confess the lack of time with other people i.e. the working alone in the first instance. Having spent several years as a full time parent, I am conscious how important social contact is.
I have decided to punctuate my week with three key activities. I plan to go for a run with a friend at the start of the week, meet a bible study group at my church midweek and finish the week with my usual coffee with two trusted friends at the end of the week (the tenacious trio). These three events will keep me on track I believe and full of energy both to coach and mentor others as well as drive and lead the company forward. So today's achievements are:
* Brainstormed ideas for my new company with a good friend
* Downloaded and started reading first new business text on Kindle
* Ordered a mouse mat!
* Set up a company pinterest account
* Opened a cloud account for document storage
Today's words of wisdom come from the school mum friend of mine, who summed up my decisions regarding next steps with my career in less than ten words:
Sometimes the first thing is the right thing.
After my first (if short) working week, I am already feeling instinctively that perhaps she was indeed very right in this. Coaching has been my first thought whenever I have thought of specialising and as I progress with it, it just feel more and more that it is something that I am good at. It is certainly true that everyone who knows me well seems to say very sincerely 'I think you'd be really good at that' and there's wisdom in listening to those who know you well.
Thursday, 5 September 2013
Second sitting
So here I am back again with an update on today's activities. First thing this morning, I felt the urge to set up a blog to ensure I had some record, or some public accountability at least, for how I spent my time in this new enterprise. This turned out to present far more choices than I might have ever imagined. There are countless successful blog sites and google pages and communities also appear to be an exciting way forward for an organisation such as mine.
So after consulting with my expert friend, I have decided to give all three a go. After several failed attempts and actually a few more passionate and personal drafts, I finished up with a very basic and in my own opinion dull account of my working day! I am nevertheless feeling buoyed by the excitement that is going public with my enterprise. So here I am back again with what I achieved today.
* selected blog site and published first blog
* opened organisation's google plus page and community
* created a twitter feed for my new company
* popped out and purchased a kindle for doing background reading
* ordered laptop
Also getting a clearing idea of how to describe my company's activities: a social enterprise offering coaching and mentoring services to all that wish to access them.
For today's words of wisdom, I will finish with the wise words of a lady I met in the queue at Waitrose at the Easton-In-Gordano services:
You've got to push yourself
So after consulting with my expert friend, I have decided to give all three a go. After several failed attempts and actually a few more passionate and personal drafts, I finished up with a very basic and in my own opinion dull account of my working day! I am nevertheless feeling buoyed by the excitement that is going public with my enterprise. So here I am back again with what I achieved today.
* selected blog site and published first blog
* opened organisation's google plus page and community
* created a twitter feed for my new company
* popped out and purchased a kindle for doing background reading
* ordered laptop
Also getting a clearing idea of how to describe my company's activities: a social enterprise offering coaching and mentoring services to all that wish to access them.
For today's words of wisdom, I will finish with the wise words of a lady I met in the queue at Waitrose at the Easton-In-Gordano services:
You've got to push yourself
Basecamp blog
Hello everyone,
Well this is me signing in to be a blogger. Having started my first social enterprise yesterday, I thought it might be useful to keep track of my activities in the form of a blog. To give you a bit of context, I am starting a social enterprise which aims to offer coaching and mentoring services to all who wish to access them. This is a self funded venture at present, so I am keen to be as productive as possible.
Yesterday, I tackled my first obstacle in that our home computer has died. I quickly realised that just about every step I wanted to take involved a computer. Initially I set off to the library to see if I could order some books for background reading to my venture, so I would like to note here that the library is shut on Wednesdays, lest I forget next week! Undeterred I took the opportunity to pop into nearby Tesco and stock up on some basic stationary for my new office.
I carried on to Waterstone's to see if they had the book I am after in stock, but unfortunately not. So my next stop was John Lewis for a chat with a very helpful chap by the name of Mark about current laptops on the market. So I have now narrowed down my options for a laptop to three models of Sony Vaio. Having run them past my in house expert (my husband) I am pretty sure we will end up with the a silver, touch screen version with a nice fast processor.
After this I spent the rest of the day clearing out the study that it might become the aforementioned new office and it looks pretty good if I do say so myself. So in summary progress for day one is as follows:
* procured office stationary
* selected laptop
* performed "The 5 Ss" procedure on the home office
* agreed working hours with partner
I finished the day at the hairdressers and was encouraged by my entrepreneurial friend who encouraged me and reminded me to 'have a nosey' at what others in my field are doing. Made me chuckle because this is really such brilliant business advice and my years of specialising in competitive intelligence (CI) were summed up in these three simple words, which in many ways summarise CI activity perfectly. So next week I will be scheduling so time to:
Have a Nosey.
Well this is me signing in to be a blogger. Having started my first social enterprise yesterday, I thought it might be useful to keep track of my activities in the form of a blog. To give you a bit of context, I am starting a social enterprise which aims to offer coaching and mentoring services to all who wish to access them. This is a self funded venture at present, so I am keen to be as productive as possible.
Yesterday, I tackled my first obstacle in that our home computer has died. I quickly realised that just about every step I wanted to take involved a computer. Initially I set off to the library to see if I could order some books for background reading to my venture, so I would like to note here that the library is shut on Wednesdays, lest I forget next week! Undeterred I took the opportunity to pop into nearby Tesco and stock up on some basic stationary for my new office.
I carried on to Waterstone's to see if they had the book I am after in stock, but unfortunately not. So my next stop was John Lewis for a chat with a very helpful chap by the name of Mark about current laptops on the market. So I have now narrowed down my options for a laptop to three models of Sony Vaio. Having run them past my in house expert (my husband) I am pretty sure we will end up with the a silver, touch screen version with a nice fast processor.
After this I spent the rest of the day clearing out the study that it might become the aforementioned new office and it looks pretty good if I do say so myself. So in summary progress for day one is as follows:
* procured office stationary
* selected laptop
* performed "The 5 Ss" procedure on the home office
* agreed working hours with partner
I finished the day at the hairdressers and was encouraged by my entrepreneurial friend who encouraged me and reminded me to 'have a nosey' at what others in my field are doing. Made me chuckle because this is really such brilliant business advice and my years of specialising in competitive intelligence (CI) were summed up in these three simple words, which in many ways summarise CI activity perfectly. So next week I will be scheduling so time to:
Have a Nosey.
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