I was recently asked to do a talk about my experience of starting and running a business for a brilliant charity called The Launchpad Collective and I thought I would share my advice here.
These are my Five Top Tips…
Not only Nike’s advice but my advice too! If you have a business idea, just do it!
My advice is from personal experience is to stop thinking and talking about your idea and do something by taking the first steps to start your business at the smallest scale possible, ideally alongside other work (so that you have income).
I started a Tutoring Agency and my first Holiday Club whilst continuing to supply teach, which was beneficial. On the first day I had just 4 children attending the club, but I was chuffed to bits as it proved that parents and children had bought into my concept – only 4 of them, but still!
Starting small helped me get it right and I have such fond memories of the early days. What happened set the foundations for the future and it worked as by the time of selling there were over 3,500 children attending!
There can be a tendency to think you need to spend lots of money and have absolutely everything in place before starting but I would suggest for many it is best to start small and just take the first step and do something! Not only are you testing the concept, gaining a following, having a trial run but you have started and will allow for momentum to build and for your business to start developing and growing before making a huge financial outlay.
If you have a business idea – think about what it would look like if you started in it’s smallest form.
When you first start a new business you wear all the hats and not all of them will suit you!
I found this out when I started my childcare organisation, I worked so hard and did every aspect of the business and there were areas that were not my skills set or interest and still aren’t today, but I did it because I had to and needed to. I would spend hours working late into the night to get everything done. At the end we had managers for every business function
My advice is as soon as you are able to employ experts…
– Define and own your strengths and weaknesses and play to your strengths as much as possible
– As a leader you don’t need to have all the answers you just need to know where to find the answers
– When financially able to employ others to do the functions you don’t enjoy or aren’t very good at, this will give you the best chance to develop and grow your business to reach your goals.
– If you can’t afford to employ someone or don’t have enough hours to hire someone in a permanent role, consider employing on a freelance basis and pay for the job or by the hour*.
*Since starting Hexagon Hive I have taken my own advice and outsourced much earlier than I did last time.
When you are the founder of an organisation your personal values will be intrinsically linked with your company values.
Values create the culture that people see and feel when they interact within your environment or with your team and this creates the experience for everyone – the team, clients/customers, suppliers and other stakeholders.
When my sister joined me after a few years in becoming joint CEO, our family values were even stronger than if it had just been me or if we had been a married couple or friends working together as we grew up with the same values.
We defined the company and family values and created and shared a presentation with the team and all new team members with photos and stories from our childhood which related to the value and how that translated into the organisation. This helped to make it memorable and embed the values from day one.
One Value was Fairness – I grew up with two sisters and fairness was definitely at the core of how our parents treated us – from presents at Christmas to how we were treated day to day, even in place to this day!
Within the company we made sure we were always fair to the team and the other stakeholders with any decisions made – this doesn’t mean it was always the same for everyone as individual needs, circumstances and life events may mean adjustments need to be made but decisions were made with fairness and equity in mind to give everyone the best chance to thrive. This was shared throughout the company with decisions the team made day to day.
What can you do to embed Values?
– If you are starting a new company write down your personal values, this will help you define your company values from day one – you can add as you go along.
– If you have a company and you haven’t done so already define and articulate your personal and company values – see where the value comes from.
– Ask your team to define what they feel the company values are.
– If you have company values in place – revisit them, are being adhered to? Do they need amending or do they need to be embedded.
– Once you know your company values share them widely with all stakeholders and especially with your team and within your Job Specifications.
If team members align with your company values then it is a great place to start. If their values don’t align with your values there will most likely always be a disharmony about one or more values and this will have an impact. The more your team align to your vision and values the more likely you and the team are happy and able to achieve what you want to achieve and for retention levels to remain high.
Do you find yourself saying YES to opportunities? In the early days of your business, I would suggest saying YES to as many opportunities as possible as you don’t know where it may lead. These opportunities may be big or small but being open and considering if it could be an opportunity, is key.
Soon after setting up my business, I was being approached by schools to open new clubs. I would say yes pretty quickly and then work out how I was going to make it happen, it’s not a strategy that works for everyone but it was a strategy that worked brilliantly for me and led to strong and fast growth, far exceeding my expectations.
– Did I have the team in place to fulfil opening in new locations?
– No
– Did I have the confidence that it would work out ok?
– Yes, probably because I’m an eternal optimist!
– Did it work out ok?
– Yes – because I had trusted my instinct and I had the ability and I worked hard to make it happen
As the business grew and developed more time would be taken to consider which opportunities were right for the overall growth plan and it would be considered within the Management Team.
Once your business is more established then it is important to focus and say no to things that may distract you from your goals.
Since starting Hexagon Hive I have said yes to opportunities that have led me down a different path and I’m loving it!
The question I now ask myself before saying yes to an opportunity is ‘Is it me?’ If I’m interested, it feels a good fit and I have time I say yes. This was a mantra that came about when I did a programme as part of The Happy Start Up School and has really helped me to focus going forward.
Doors that have opened recently to me saying yes…
– A Consultancy Project for a new Wraparound Care Setting starting in September
– A place on the board of an International Education Provider as Business Development Advisor
– Co-organising the leading Conference for Out of School Providers
– All of this alongside my day-to-day mentoring, consultancy and training
I’m loving the variety. How do you decide what you say yes to?
What are your thoughts on ‘Leading with Kindness’? Do you think you can be ‘too nice’?
I was once told ‘You’re too nice!’ by one of our Senior Leadership Team in relation to a staffing matter that I gave a final decision on. I don’t feel you can be too nice or too kind at work, unless it is at the expense of your boundaries. Some people may not agree with this, but it served me and our organisation well and we had a team that were happy, hardworking, loyal, and stayed, often saying it was the best place they had ever worked.
Reasons to lead with kindness:
- It’s important to remember that we don’t always know what someone else is going through, whether it’s related to work or a personal matter. Support and understanding can make all the difference.
- When we lead with compassion and empathy, it inspires others to do the same, creating a ripple effect throughout the organisation. This can only be a good thing.
- A culture of kindness is the foundation of a positive and productive work environment. When employees feel valued and supported, they are happier and more engaged.
- Avoiding gossip and not speaking behind people’s backs are crucial aspects of a kind and respectful workplace. This builds trust and fosters a sense of community and safety among team members.
- People don’t forget acts of kindness and if the team are treated with kindness by the management team they will be inclined to remember this and may go above and beyond at another time when needed.
If you would like to discuss any of these ideas please do get in touch sam@hexagonhive.co.uk