So many of us know that as leaders and business owners, we need to be more strategic with our days, weeks, months and years.
 
We know we need to spend more time on big picture thinking, thinking about where our market is going, thinking about how to solve our clients’ problems in a new and unique way, thinking about and forward planning for the pipeline of work coming in the door and making sure the team and the people around us are performing to the best of their ability.
 
So why do so many of us find it difficult or get uncomfortable when we think about or even go to take some time out of our weeks to stop and think creatively and strategically?
 
The answer lies in the conflict in your mind between the different parts of your personality.
 
Let me explain.
 
You see, you have different parts of your personality that want different things for you.
 
You have a driver / achiever part of your personality that only ever wants you to be actioning things, ticking things off your to-do list and to k...

I hope you are super well and are having an amazing start to your week.

I've just finished a live coaching call with everyone in my Boardroom program. Today was a clarity call, so helping all of my clients in the program get unstuck, move past roadblocks and clear the way to make good quality strategic decisions.

It was a really powerful call, and my main takeaway was really that no matter what is going on in your world – good, bad or coasting - there are always going to be challenging and difficult things to do. 

Growth is hard. Consolidation is hard. Winning work is hard. Losing clients is hard. Hiring is hard. Firing is hard. 

There are always going to be things that we have to do that are uncomfortable.

And this is some of the advice that I gave everyone on the call today – when things get hard or difficult or challenging - it's so important to come back to your why. 

Who am I doing this all for?

When you have a hard decision to make. When you've got an uncomfortable thing t...

I was talking with a client recently about a common frustration in the engineering market at the moment - which is that it’s really hard to find good people.

There is work on everywhere, but business leaders and business owners are finding it hard to actually deliver the work because they don't have the teams in place to deliver good quality work to their clients.

When this happens, there can be a tendency to just hire the next person that walks in the door....regardless of their personality, skill or ability.

A bum on a seat is better than none........right?.........wrong!!

Today I want to explore with you a concept to help you ensure that you are recruiting the right person – every time.

Recruit slowly!!

Don't rush the recruitment process. Find the right person to fill the role, even if it takes WAY longer than you want it to - otherwise you will forever be paying the price.

Yes, it can be hard when clients are frustrated that you aren't delivering quick enough - and this can ...

Today I'd like to explore with you a really simple, but highly effective technique my clients are using right now to set their weeks up so they win.

It all comes down to being really intentional with how you start your week.

Most leaders and business owners get to work or get to their office on Monday mornings and they just start 'doing'.

They just start answering emails or phone calls and get stuck straight into delivery mode. 

I'd like you to do something completely different with the start of your week. I'd like you to block out 2hrs somewhere on Monday morning which will be your time to get intentional and strategic about your week.

In this 2hr block I'd like you to think about, strategise and get clear on your actions around the following:

1)  Business development. This could mean reaching out to a potential client for coffee or lunch, strategising about who you're targeting next with your BD strategy or even sitting down to write a proposal.

2)  Existing client relationshi...

As an engineering leader or business owner in the industry at the moment - building and showing the traits of a resilient leader is so critical right now.

The people around you need someone to steer the ship. They need someone who is calm under pressure and who makes decisions quickly when they need to. 

Your team and your business can't afford to have someone at the helm who is unsure, hiding and cracks under pressure.

Now resilience is a difficult skill to master - particularly when you are trying to navigate your own emotions, thoughts and feelings through this busy period as well as being there for your team and your business.

Today I want to give you 3 strategies to become a more resilient and more effective leader during these busy times.

1) Build Awareness

The first step is building awareness of yourself, your thoughts, your feelings and your emotions in any given moment. The easiest way to do this is to set reminders for yourself on your phone throughout the day as a remi...

Today I want to explore with you an area that a lot of engineering business leaders and business owners aren't getting right at the moment.

Everyone is rushing around so busy, with a million things on their action list and just trying to get enough done to keep their head above water.  

Because of all the rushing - rushing to do BD, saying yes to everything, rushing to get projects done, rushing the delegation process to internal teams etc. - no-one is pausing long enough to get clarity on what it is that they're actually supposed to be doing and actually trying to achieve.

The problem with rushing and the problem with taking action without clarity - is that it leads to mistakes, it leads to rework, it leads to unhappy clients who may start looking elsewhere, it leads to wasted money and resources and it leads to not profitable projects - all of which is completely unsustainable.

If you're looking to thrive right now (which I know you are) then you need to be ensuring that you and ...

Recently I realised there were a few areas of my life and in business where I wasn't 'all in' - meaning areas where I wasn't 100% committed to what I was doing, the outcomes I was looking to achieve and the effort I was putting in.

I also realised that these were the areas of my life and business that I wasn't get great results in. And because I wasn't getting great results or outcomes, this just further added to my attitude of "why bother" & "there's no point" & "why put effort in here, when the outcomes aren't paying off".

But I also realised that these areas where I wasn't getting great results was actually my choice! 

I wasn't putting the effort into these areas of my life - so how could I expect the results to be stellar?

So I decided to make a commitment to myself, my family and my business - to be 'all in' in every facet of my life.

When I'm with my wife and my kids - I'm all in! I'm right there, in the moment playing, engaging and being open and present.

When I'm with fri...

Today I want to explore with you why being busy means that you can't and won’t be a good leader or business owner…

Big statement I know!

You see, most of us are so conditioned to being busy. We think that being busy and ticking things off our to-do list, running around all day every day and getting to the end of every day exhausted is the way to achieving the success that we want to achieve.

However, the issue with being busy all the time and trying to get things done all the time is that you're never slowing down and taking the time to think strategically about where your team or your business is going.

Let me explain.

By being busy all the time you are robbing yourself, your team and your business of your ability to think creatively, your ability to think strategically and your ability to set a vision for where your team and your business is going.

So by being busy all the time and rushing around all the time and trying to fill your days full of busyness all the time you are ac...

So many conversations I’m having with clients and leaders in our industry at the moment go something like this:

“I’m struggling to get to all the things – there’s not enough hours in the day”

“I have so much to do, I don’t even know where to start”

“I feel so overwhelmed right now that it’s impacting my ability to get stuff done”

Sound familiar?

Team, it’s no secret that it’s busy right now.

So many opportunities to pursue. So much current work on to deliver in insane timeframes. Trying to think about the future & strategy, whilst also trying to manage and deliver what’s already on your plate.

Overwhelm and burnout are very real factors on the table right now.

Right here, right now – I just want you to do one thing… breathe…

Just slow down and breathe…

Now, today I want to address with you that if you don’t do the things you need to do to look after yourself – you’re no good to anyone.

If you’re pushing hard right now and those feelings of overwhelm and burnout are creeping ...

There is one word that I can't stand - HUSTLE......

It seems to have become a massive buzz word in the world of leaders, business owners and entrepreneurs.

I firmly believe that if you set your team and your business up smartly and you have the right systems and processes in place - then you don't need to hustle. Your team is performing well, your clients love you and the work you do for them and your project pipeline is full.

But today I'm going to break my rule and talk about one area that does require an amount of hustle....

...and that is in the follow up!!

Most people think that a potential client will either love them or hate them after one coffee meeting. They think they'll either get work out of them straight away or it wasn’t meant to be.

But that’s absolute nonsense.

If you're a stats person (which most engineers are!) then the latest stats are that a new client will need on average 8 touch points from you before they will make a purchasing decision with you. 

Now for...