Bite Sized Business Tips

"The most valuable businesses of coming decades will be built by entrepreneurs who seek to empower people rather than try to make them obsolete." I'm not as sure as Thiel is. But I'm absolutely sure that this is a choice we can make as we build businesses. From his insightful ...

One of the most consistent challenges leaders grapple with as they grow (which is always!) is ambiguity. The continual search for certainty, to define things in a way that is black and white. Whether it's creating organisational structures, or dealing with performance issues, or promotions, or creating comp plans - ...

Business has an obsession with growth. And usually unlimited growth. A target is set, and we always laud people for beating it. Sometimes with an accelerator for beating it significantly. But although growth is seductive, without scale, it ends up destructive. That's because the growth that we tend to focus ...

A really common refrain I hear from company owners is that no one else on their leadership team thinks like an owner. I have on occasion heard from owner CEOs that they're frustrated that even other *owners* aren't thinking like owners. Scaling effectively needs more than the right processes. It ...

So here’s the thing. We all play at these different roles we have. We get a job, and we play "professional". We found a company, and we play "CEO". We assume some self importance, some aura of authority, and feed an ego at some level with our level of importance ...

We will get to a normal. What it looks like, how new or not it will be is open to debate. But in times like these, I always like to remember that volatility disrupts as much as it presents opportunity. I was asked for the umpteenth time on a podcast ...

2021 will be a turning point for business. The rising swell we've seen for businesses to strengthen their social purpose, to build on values will become more mainstream. And if you lead a company, it will be a genuine choice you face. Which side of business history do you want ...

2020 was a year that gave me some real hope. - Many companies stepping up to support their employees and communities;
- The environmental impact of lockdown;
- Our sudden collective appreciation of all the NHS and its staff does for us;
- How companies, universities and governments worked together at breakneck speed ...

The table stakes on leadership just got higher in 2020. And that's a good thing.We need to make impossible balances. Impossible because they won't work for everyone. And more impossible because we've got to be sensitive to the fact that they won’t work for everyone, while still trusting in our ...

As much as leading is a responsibility and a privilege, it is an art and a craft. When you watch the best footballers play (RIP Diego), the ball looks like it's just an extension of their body. They are so natural and comfortable with it, it really doesn't sit apart ...

As much of Europe goes into the second lockdown, and the psychological, mortal and economic costs mount up, we congratulate or berate world leaders for responses they've made. We wait for vaccines and either wonder why they're taking so long or marvel at a human mind that can create something ...

"Joy. And pain. Like sunshine. And rain" Anyone old enough (or South London enough) to remember that from the 80s? It's what we need right now. As second wave accelerates, as the days get shorter, as the economy tightens. We don't need to add more dark. Make an effort to ...