Secret

When you’re starting your own business you should only have a short term plan, but ensure that you can make it a success. Don’t get too carried away with lots of grand business plans and projections and financials because they cost time, they cost you… read more

Secret

If you’ve come up with a new idea or a new invention, the obvious is that you’ve got to get it patented and go through the right steps. Get yourself protected because once you launch something into the public domain, someone with a bigger company or… read more

Secret

I went and spoke to customers and said, “I’m thinking about doing this and if I did would you be interested? And would you hire me?” They all said yes. So go and ask your customers what they think about your idea and if they like it, which fortunately… read more

Secret

I didn’t have a detailed plan. I had an idea, I had a thought process. It was nothing documented, it was all in my head. I thought, if I was to do a good service and people trust me and they realised they could depend on me then I’d be given an… read more

Secret

You have the responsibility of financial debt. You need to service that debt and pay your loans back. Use the overdraft only for business issues, business expenditure. It’s a completely different world, a different culture to your personal spending.… read more

Secret

Make sure you get your bills paid on time. The old saying, cash is king, is still relevant. Profit is great, and you need to be profitable, but more important is cash flow. Don’t get carried away by turnover or any other measurement in the beginning.… read more

Secret

When you’re first starting out in business, you can’t delegate anything. You’ve got to understand the pain and problems, the opportunity, the responsibility, how you’re going to achieve your objectives. It’s all a big learning curve, and you need to… read more

Secret

In terms of expanding the business, it’s important to study the data, to study the opportunity, and study the needs to develop that opportunity. Look at how you can overcome the challenges and then move forward. Ask yourself, are we diversifying into… read more

Secret

In 1991 when we were going through the recession, I was advised by my bank manager, my accountants, professional bodies and some businesses to, using a Geordie term, ‘bump the business.’ We had no orders, we had a huge amount of debt, and the bank pulled… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

You’ve got to have self belief; you’ve got to be determined, focused, and not give up. Just keep going. You’ve got a lot of opportunities, but you’ll also get a lot of challenges. It’s the challenges that frighten some people off, but you’ve got to… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

Your gut reaction’s a very good measure. If you have a gut reaction that tells you you’re onto something good, then you probably are. These days there’s a lot of advice out there, so talk to people and get feedback, but always run with your idea. Give… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

If you have an ambition and a dream, to achieve it you’ve got to keep going for it. It is there and it is available.… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

I don’t think business gets easier or harder. I think you just get different issues to deal with. If you’re a small company starting out, there’s challenges. If you’re a medium sized company, there’ll be different challenges to face. If you’re a… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

Retirement is to be in a position to do what you want when you want to do it. But then again, so is being chairman of my company. To have the time to think about the business, coach the team and the staff and help them develop the company: to me that’s… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

Work hard, play hard, and if you can give something back. I genuinely believe that works.… read more

Pearl Of Wisdom

If you have a feeling that you want to start a business, if you have an idea or a thought that you’d like to process, do it. If you don’t do it, you’ll regret it. If you do it and it fails, at least you’ve tried. There’s nothing to lose by going into… read more