There is something sexy and sizzling about entrepreneurship. Smart young things collaborating in trendy cafes. Moving at the speed of light. Serendipitous meetings of minds, values, skills and funds to launch ‘the next big thing’. Innovation by nature is new. Fresh. Sparkly. There is an energy, optimism, positivity. Fist-in-the-air-woo-hoos. But – is that just a business fairytale? Is hiking off in unchartered territory, finding the road never travelled actually the way t

I love social media. I love meeting people and learning stuff and getting breaking news and knowing that there is a whole world of folk who I can call on for help – all without having to leave my desk (or couch); without having to put on make-up; without having to engage in one-on-one small talk. But I hate what social media is doing to small businesses: Luring them into a false sense of security that as long as they have a Facebook page, or a profile on LinkedIn that they

Few people will voluntarily put their hand up and ask for the poo to hit the fan let alone yell “throw it to me, throw it to me”. But all those clichés about “what doesn’t kill you....” and “when the going gets tough....” can actually be true, if you are in the mindset to embrace change. In fact the steeper the challenge, the higher the mountain, the bigger the risk, the more likely you will be forced to tap into super-human strengths that you didn’t even know you had. I

I met with a client recently who shared with me that she would rather turn away business than take on board a client who has unrealistic expectations or for whom she believes her service is not a good fit. That takes real guts. If you are a relatively new business the survival of the business depends on generating income. But if you take on board customers for whom you won’t enjoy the experience, or knowing it will not match their dreams, you can do more damage to your busine