Working for yourself or running your own small business can be very rewarding. There’s the freedom from the daily commute, you no longer have to answer to your boss, and when things go well the money can be fantastic. However, one of the biggest issues facing small business owners is self-motivation. When you’re an employee most of the time you’ll have a manager or senior who’ll be there to guide you, pick you up when you’re...

ARE YOU CREATING NEW JOBS? THEN YOU NEED THE JOBS ACTION PLAN The Jobs Action Plan is designed to give businesses an incentive to employ new workers and expand their enterprises. Under the Plan, businesses that increase the number of full-time equivalent employees for a period of at least two years, will receive a payroll tax rebate following the employment of each additional employee in a position that is a new job. The Jobs Action...

Do you go about your business, or your life with a sense of urgency? I’ve been reading a little of Brian Tracy in my recent travels, and have to agree with him that perhaps the most outwardly identifiable quality of a high performer is their orientation towards action.I find there is definite correlation between those who make commitments and follow through to their level of success…. where those who procrastinate and think too...

How current are you in your business? Are you “Now” or in the Past? Here’s a book with some steps to follow to make sure you are keeping your business fresh and interesting. The first chapter called “The Time Is Now” tells us how we need to be current and constantly innovating, being careful not to become an endangered species like checkout chicks, books, CDs and cash. Life is fast but we need to stop and look...

Here’s a great system to follow for managing change successfully. John Kotter has written this fable of a penguin colony faced with an imploding iceberg and the need to do something for their survival. Initially the penguin discovering the problem doesn’t know who to turn to or trust, and is scared of the potential outcasting that has gone before by someone sticking their neck out. He finds an ally in one person on the...

Here is a simple and powerful technique for changing the way you think about any particular problem In the early eighties Edward de Bono (who coined the term ‘lateral thinking’) created the “Six Thinking Hats” process.  He recognised that we do not use anywhere near the full capacity of our minds, so developed a framework to help improve the quality of our thinking and therefore our decisions. The six hats represent...

Having had a fantastic weekend of sailing last weekend – screaming along in a fresh breeze on my Laser on the Saturday, then yacht racing with friends off Newcastle on Sunday… I was thinking about the differences between being an employee and a business owner.  You see… an employee, like a train is pretty much set on a track as they: Run to someone else’s agenda and not necessarily in the direction they want to...