This Week’s Problem(s)

Last week, I promised I'd answer three of your burning questions! First off, a huge thank you to everyone who shared your questions; my inbox was flooded. I wish I could answer them all. For now, here are the answers to YOUR burning questions...

Q1: How important is it to build a personal brand when running a business?

My *No Bollocks* Answer:
Let's consider how important brand is when building a business. Brand is essential because most markets today are highly saturated. Whether you're an online influencer, running a marketing agency, offering financial advice, or managing bars and clubs, you're likely in a crowded field.

In such markets, the primary factor that helps you stand out is your brand. A strong brand allows you to charge more, attract better staff, and provides an unfair advantage. It's your real estate, your pathway to gaining people's trust and attention.

When you recognise the importance of having a brand, you face a choice: build a business brand or a personal brand. Statistics show that people resonate more with personal brands than corporate ones. Personal brands are relatable and tangible. For example, people love the Virgin brand, but they love Richard Branson even more. Tesla's success is closely tied to Elon Musk's personal brand. Similarly, Apple is strongly associated with Steve Jobs and now Tim Cook.

Building a personal brand offers several advantages:

1. Relatability: People connect more with individuals than faceless corporations.

2. Longevity: Your personal brand stays with you forever, regardless of changes in your business ventures.

3. Opportunities: A personal brand can lead to unexpected opportunities, such as collaborations, media appearances, and networking.

Consider Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson; his personal brand ensures anything he touches turns to gold due to his vast reach and trust.

In conclusion, building a personal brand ranges from incredibly beneficial to utterly essential for success in business today.

Q2: I want to learn new skills. Which skill should I start with?

My *No Bollocks* Answer:
If you're looking to learn new skills, it's crucial to consider your current stage in life, your existing skills, and your business needs. However, there are three fundamental skills that are universally beneficial: sales, marketing, and finance.

1. Sales: Sales is an essential skill for everyone, whether you're in business or not. At its core, sales is about persuading others. Whether you're a financial adviser, a real estate agent, a manager, or a parent, you need to be able to sell ideas, products, or services. Mastering sales means being able to communicate effectively and convince others, which is vital in nearly every aspect of life. For instance, as a manager, you sell ideas to your staff; as an employee, you sell your value to your bosses when seeking a pay rise.

2. Marketing: Marketing is crucial because every business's success hinges on its ability to generate leads. Understanding marketing helps you attract customers and create awareness about your product or service. Even if you're not running a business, marketing skills are useful for promoting events, personal projects, or even yourself in your career. If you can't generate leads or make people aware of what you do, you haven't got a business. Moreover, good marketers are often hard to find, as the best ones tend to work for themselves, so having this skill yourself is highly beneficial.

3. Finance: A solid grasp of finance, particularly understanding accounts, is fundamental for managing money effectively in any business. This knowledge helps you evaluate the quality of your accountant's work and ensure you're making informed financial decisions. If you don't understand accounts, how do you know if your accountant isn’t stealing from you or simply not providing the best advice? Knowing how to read and create accounts can also provide advantages in raising funds and minimising taxes. For example, creative accounting can mean the difference between a business that can raise a lot of money and one that cannot.

These three skills—sales, marketing, and finance—form a strong foundation that will support you in any business endeavour or professional path you choose.

Q3: What do you look for when outsourcing or hiring?

My *No Bollocks* Answer:
When it comes to outsourcing or hiring, my approach isn’t one-size-fits-all.

For outsourcing, I’m all about skill, track record, and the ability to deliver. Price, cultural fit, and response speed are nice to have, but not deal-breakers. Outsourcing is usually short-term. We’ve recently employed an external marketing agency, for example—they may not be my ideal full-time employees, but they’ve done the job well enough as outsourcers.

Hiring, on the other hand, is all about attitude and cultural fit. Sure, they need to be good at their job, but a great attitude is key. You can teach skills, but you can’t teach a good attitude. One bad hire can wreck a business, so it’s crucial to hire for attitude and be ready to fire quickly if it doesn’t work out.

I also want to know why someone wants the job and their long-term plans. Hiring is expensive and time-consuming, so I don’t want someone who’s just using us as a stepping stone. For key roles, stability matters.

In the end, I want highly competent, hungry people who fit our culture— people with a strong work ethic who won’t mind a Saturday morning message from me. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but it’s how we operate.

Don’t forget, if you want a black-and-white, no-bollocks solution, I’m here to help you avoid the mistakes I’ve made in my years of owning businesses. I have lived and learned, and now I want to share my knowledge with you. Book a call here.

Guest Of The Week

Get ready for a podcast episode that's going to change the way you think about empathy! We kick things off by breaking down the key differences between empathy and sympathy—it's more important than you think. Discover the game-changing benefits of empathy in both your personal life and your career. We dive into the benchmarks for classifying depression and share practical tips for developing empathy skills that will set you apart. Learn how empathy can skyrocket your business success and get strategies to tackle big issues head-on. Want to be a great listener? We've got the tactics you need. And should empathy training be just for management, or for everyone? We debate it all.

Don't miss out on these juicy insights and key takeaways that will transform your understanding of empathy and make you 10000x more successful.

> 👂🏻listen here <