LAUNCHED We succeeded because of
YOU!
CHAYA
Business Card Reader Review
The Name’s
BANKS... JENI BANKS
LIVERCOOL SEXY NETWORKER NOMINEE
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CONTENTS
Cover • • • •
May Fifteen Chaya Bar & Restaurant Business Card Reader DLIB Livercool 09 Awards
Team Talk
Mark Brake explains why flies keep dying on your window sill and wants to know what you think.
Technology For business
CHAYA
We take a look at a key time saver and why it’s a must have must do. We try out a Business Card Scanner.
Chaya Bar & Restaurant
08
Do bars and restaurants have split personalities? apparently so. Chaya tells us why they appeal to business and the trendy clubber.
DLIB Livercool Awards 09 Categories & Nominees listed right here.
What’s Coming & What We got Wrong This month Have your Say Ask The Expert
• Business Coach • life coach • Solicitor • Tax Accountant • Humour Consultant Our panel of experts are offering their expertise to the members. Also get an insight to what they see effecting us this month and what advice they have.
06
May Fifteen
Jeni Banks, Sexy Networker nominee shows us the elegant side of networking.
September Rewind
The Success of the our launch party is because of the great support. we say thanks to those who helped and introduce you to them. The Lauch event in pictures Out & About in September
Networking In October
The months events all in one place. Arrange your month in advance and target the events more effectively.
18
32
John Haynes Gets His Hands On Someone Offers To Readers
TEAM TAL
Why Do Flies D Your Window
W
hen I have anything to write for this magazine, I usually do it from home and I usually sit with my laptop in my dining room, (as I am now), which is actually a conservatory. Now, despite my conservatory having 2 solid walls to it, there is still a large proportion of glass, which as you can imagine gets a little warm on the odd occasion in this country when the sun comes out. When this happens, I either open a couple of windows, or one of the doors, or sometimes even both. Wow this is riveting stuff isn’t it, well perhaps not, but please bear with me, I do have a point. You see, occasionally a fly will come in through the open window or door and I noticed something very business like about them that I have found fascinating. So I often find myself watching, timing and measuring their actions, allow me to explain why. When a fly comes in, say through an open window, it has a little scout around to see what’s going on, obviously doesn’t find what it’s looking for and decides to leave. Now here’s the thing, it
never goes out through the window it came in. Instead it usually goes to approximately the same place and fly’s straight into a pane of glass. A fairly painful experience I’m sure, but does the fly think to itself, “bloody hell that hurt, I won’t be doing that again”, not at all. In fact what the fly does is takes a bit of a run up, (so to speak), and has another go. BANG, ok that didn’t work again, what if I hit the same spot lots of times really quickly? 10, 20, 50, 100 times, to no avail. The open window may well be only centimetres away, but does the fly go to it? Not often. In fact I reckon that only about 5% make it back out. The flies generally keep banging their heads against the same point over and over again until eventually they die. On your window sill. Ok, so what’s that got to do with business? Well for a start, they do say that 95% of all new businesses fail in the first 12 months. So what makes the difference between the ones that make it and the ones that don’t. Some people, especially if they are in business for the first time, have a dogged determination
LK
Die On Sill?
Is your business acting like a dying fly at the moment? Before you end up dead on the window sill, STOP, take a step back and have a look at what’s going on around you. Re-evaluate your position and then get back in there. You may have to do this several times, but at some point you’ll find the opening you’re looking for.
GOOD LUCK.
Click Here To Comment On This Article
By
Mark Brake
that they are going to sell what they have and nothing else, then each time they don’t manage to sell anything like what they had previously predicted, they take a run up, so to speak, and have another go, “I know what I did wrong, not enough advertising, prices were wrong, my aunties uncles second cousin let me down”, it’s always something else, only 5% of the time do they say, “hang on a minute, I’ve just banged my head and it bloody hurt, maybe I should reposition myself ever so slightly and have another go”.
TECHNOLOGY forBUSINESS E
arlier this week I was presented with the opportunity to have all of the business cards I’d collected over the past year to be added to my database and outlook account. Since I had a shoebox full I wasn’t going to turn this down. After thinking about it for a couple of minutes whilst the conversation on the phone continued something clicked in my head, why would someone just sit there doing data input for me? My gut felling was right, nobody would be so kind to carry out what is known to be such a monotonous job, they had a business card scanner.
bile phone. Relieved I grabbed the scanner and cable and took it to my desk to get started. It was a bit of a pain having to download the drivers from the internet as I was not given the driver disk but pressing on I really started to get excited about this. The software isn’t much of a looker but it works. Simple to navigate and self explanatory. Insert card, information side down and it draws the card in slightly to secure it from moving. Select “single/double sided card” option on the screen and click “start”. The scan swiftly processes the business card and dispatches it out the other side. It took about 10 seconds. Not only was it very quick to scan but the clever thing is that it recognises the details on the card and automatically places the numbers, postal address, email address, website, name etc… into the relevant fields within its database. AMAZING!
Units are available from £30 upwards, but the variation is usually the software function opposed to the actual hardware function. So, as it stands, it’s a good bit of kit that can really save you time and ensure that you are organised and can be on top of your networking game at all times.
What we liked about this product is that it came with a man? At least ours did. This man will sit with you and arrange the structure of your database and the cards that will be inputted into it. Now I made the software sound easy, and it is. It’s just that there are good and bad ways of managing data and then turning that data into leads, then “A what?” prospects, then sales. This is where “the man” comes in. He will help It’s the morning of the long you with this process. Smart ICT awaited delivery of the business Factory are a local provider of this card scanner, in it comes. Conservice and for a half day session cealed within what looks like a (training etc…) including the scanlaptop bag, it’s plonked on the ner will cost no more than £300. desk in front of me. Talks go on Not only will you get the scanner for 15-20 minutes about the spec but you will be safe in the knowland its capabilities. This thing Once you have finished all of your edge that you can utilise what you sounds impressive, no wonder scanning you are left with a saved have effectively and can continue it’s so big. The meeting over, I comprehensive database which you to do so for as long as business started to stretch and warm up can then export into different for- cards are on paper. The service my muscles to drag this thing mats. The usual being .CSV (comma doesn’t just teach you how to scan back to my desk. Then, the separated value). The .csv format the cards. What it teaches you is guy picks up this bag and puts it is then importable into excel, ac- how to categorise and arrange the around his shoulder to walk out. cess, outlook, and most other data data so that when exported into Confused, I asked for the reader entry/storage programs. This will excel, access, etc… You will have and was directed to look down to save you a bunch of time. It did full control of the manipulation of where the bag was. All that was for me. the information. This is important there was a small leather pouch as this is when the data becomes and a USB cable. By small I mean What’s the damage? Well, that very valuable to you. By having it’s not much bigger than a mo- is where you’ll be very surprised. collected the right information
and arranging it to suit your needs and workflow, you are able to really define your targets for generating sales enquiries through specific marketing practices.
Capturing and understanding the right kinds of information can make the difference between profit and loss, and win or lose. Your data is one of your most valuable assets and following the processes outlined by Smart ICT Factory can increase that value ten fold.
The device we used is the Targus AWU04EU Mini USB Business Card Scanner and they supplied the software. Here is a basic device description and some specifications & requirements.
BUSINESS CARD SCANNER
CHAY B A R
&
R E S T A U
YA R A N T
T
here are thousands of restaurants, bars and venues in and around Merseyside. Each month we will be featuring one of them for you to take a look at. Each one of them is, like a fingerprint, unique. Sometimes there are specific themes, sometimes they are very different and sometimes the differences are subtle. Chaya, (formerly The Tea Factory), is a well established bar / restaurant with entrances on both Wood Street and St Peters Square. The bar became Chaya two and a half years ago, with the current owners taking over for just the last 12 months. The bar has what I can only describe as a split personality. You see on a Friday and Saturday night there is a substantial and loyal crowd that enjoy the clubbing scene, there to see some top performances from first class local DJ’s. But through the week, Chaya becomes a different place. It’s chilled out and relaxed atmosphere makes this an ideal meeting place for businesses in the city, with private booths with table service and free wi-fi you can’t go far wrong. You can even book a private area for up to 45 guests for either a party, or a networking event. For the more adventurous, you could book the entire place, which has a capacity of 500 standing and 120 seated. Whilst the bar side of the business has a very comfortable and relaxed feel to it, the restaurant, which is over towards the St Peters Square side, has a much more modern feel. The single seasonal Mediterranean influenced menu served from lunch, (except Monday’s), through to dinner in the evening will surely have something to wet everyone’s appetite. The light and airy restaurant has a capacity of 43 settings, but with plenty of space in the main bar area for any overflow, your never going to feel crammed in.
The team at Chaya love to hold special events, one of the most popular being the Quentin Tarentino night they did a couple of years ago to coincide with the release of one of his films at Fact, a neighbour of the bar, and they actually had Tarentino himself turn up on the night and spend time with the guests in the bar. If you would like to put an event on at Chaya, they even have their own dedicated events management team on hand to help you with as much or as little of your event as you would like. Industry night is a popular night with all of the Chaya team. They like to recognise the commitment and dedication of all restaurant and bar staff throughout the city and periodically put on a night out just for them. These industry staff can also get an industry card, which enables them to get discounts in Chaya at any time. For those of us not in the industry, they do offer an early doors promotion, that’s a 2 for 1 on all cocktails between 5 and 8pm. So if you’ve never tried, or haven’t been in to Chaya for a while, why not call in and see just what you’ve been missing, the team will make you feel very welcome and you never know, you may just find that Chaya is one of Liverpool’s hidden gems.
www.chayabarandrestaurant.co.uk
Livercool Awards 09 Catagories & Nominees
SEXY NETWORKER OF THE YEAR Male:
Roy Gronow - Entwistle Group Ged Jones - Camps Solicitors Martin Wilcocks - Wilcocks Associates John Chambers - O2
BEST DOWNTOWN BAR/ REST OWNER/MANAGER
Gary Millar - Studio2 at Parr Street Rob Preston - Alma De Cuba Vince Margiotta - Il Forno Chris Edwards - Palm Sugar Lounge
Female:
Jeni Banks - May Fifteen Vicky Jaycock - Live’smart Abi Mooney - Entwistle Group Kate Smolibowska - L3 Living Holly Wood - My Networking PA
YOUNG ENTRPRENEUR OF THE YEAR
BEST BUSINESS SERVICES PRO
John Haynes - International Coaching Jon Aindow - Redwood Alan Robson - Innov8 Safety Solution
PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR
Bryan Adams - Ph.Creative Gavin Sherratt & Paul Court - It’s About Websites Paula Whittaker - L3 Living
Carl Cross - Rensburg Sheppards Bill Doherty - Hill Dickinson Susan Sherry - DWF Denise Walker - Brabners Chaffe Stre
BEST MARKETER
BEST BUSINESS PARTNERSHIP
Dougal Paver - Paver Smith Nicola Rowlands - Ubiquity pr John Egan - Aurora Media Leisa Maloney - Fire Management
Dr Daz Singh & Dr Sudarsh Naidoo – O Stephen & Michelle Helsby – Evolve Paul, Julian & John Flanagan – Flana
TAURANT
OVIDER
g Academy
ns
R
eet
P
Ollie & Darsh
agan Group
BEST P.A. / OFFICE MANAGER
Kerry Clayton – Rathbones Katrina Skelland – Midas Capital Charlotte Tompkinson – Austin Smith Lord
PROPERTY PROFFESIONAL OF THE YEAR Alan Bevan – City Residential Dave Cornett – Snow Architects Bill Addy – Iliad Mike Carr – NSG UK
WINNERS WINNER
Richard Mathias – DWF LLP Richard Wallace – Red Hot Media Paul Nixon – Perfect
CAS
TY OU
VO TE HER E
R
& Your Business E-Zine has teamed up with Click Liverpool, the constantly updated local online news paper. Click Liverpool will be running some of our features in their business section. If you’ve not seen Click Liverpool before, then please simply Click on the link here and have a look. They are a rapidly growing and always up to date news source. In fact, a recent example was of the Michael Shields release. Click broke that story and for some time were the only news organisation in the world to have it. So to keep up with your daily news, updated throughout the day, Click Liverpool is the place to be. Your Business eZine will also be on Viigo. Why not download Viigo** for mobile so you can read us on the go. **Available on Viigo from later this month
WWW.CLICKLIVERPOOL.COM What we got wrong this month
O
k here we go again. My least favourite part of the magazine. Well I suppose that’s why I have left it until last. So an admition, as I type this section, the final thing to write, the time is 0905am on 25th September. The significance of this is that we are late. The magazine is released on this day and should be available for you to read from the moment you rise in the morning. At present I would estimate it being out by 11am. This simply isn’t good enough and whilst I can think of 1000 reasons why this happened, they would all be excuses. Sorry, we must try harder for next month, in fact this will not happen again next month, if it does, I’ll eat my hat and publish the photo’s to prove it. Brendon’s World was a feature we ran in our preview edition of the magazine. We were unable to get information to support this feature last month, (it was intended to be a regular one), and the same has happened again, so I can only apologise and tell you that we will not be running this now and will instead have something different for next month. The forms to fill in on most of the pages from last month’s edition did not work very well at all. They were confusing and would not work at all in full screen mode. This is something that does appear to be a real issue with the software people, so this month we have gone for buttons to click on instead. These should bring up an email for you to fill in and send. Please let us know your opinion and we will work on making your interaction with this magazine as simple as possible. There were several typo’s from last month and I’m going to be perfectly honest, there may be some in this month too. With the best will in the world, despite all of our proof reading, something always gets through. In our defence, we are none of us journalists, we do tell everyone that this magazine is written by local business people, for local business people and spelling and grammar is not necessarily our strong point, but we’re working on it. That’s it for this month, I would dearly like to have nothing to write here next month, but I have a sneaking suspicion that won’t happen.
HAVE T YOUR S AY
his section of the magazine is for you, the local business people of Merseyside. It is a platform for you to voice your opinion about anything you feel you need to say. If you’re particularly not happy with something, maybe it’s something holding you back, then let us know, we may even be able to help. Also, if you are particularly happy with something or someone, tell us about it here. We are not a news paper and we don’t need to push doom and gloom to push our readership. We believe there is a lot of positivity around at the moment and it’s good to share that. So we are happy to print genuine testimonials for people, (not a blatant advert though). Here at Your Business E-zine we also believe that working together makes us all stronger. People whom you may have traditionally thought of as your competitors can actually be your greatest allies. If you need support in a certain area of your business, why not let us know, we could put you in touch with the right people to fill your particular gaps. Maybe you have a proposal or an idea that you just want to put out there and see what response you get, this is the place for you to do that to. Your Business E-Zine also believes that business should be fun. There is nothing wrong with enjoying what we do and even our extra curricular activities. With this in mind we have a proposal we would like to put to you. We would like to organize an event for next sum-
mer. Something fun that we can all get involved in. My thoughts are to run a soap box derby. Each company building there own machine, fully logo’d up of course, and we would get a suitable road closed off somewhere in or around the city centre, build a bit of a track and race down it. Prizes for the winners of course and even a podium with champagne spraying etc. What do you think? Is it something you would get involved in, either taking part or helping to organise? Let us know, or any alternative suggestions you may have. The previous edition of this magazine had in excess of 50,000 views. That was our launch edition, it’s only going to increase from there and increase substantially. So use us to your best advantage and have your say, we will put your name and your company name after your piece. Let me tell you, the exposure won’t hurt. We look forward to your comments. Mark. Team member Your Business E-Zine.
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Ask The Ques
Ask The Exper
stion
rt
Business Coach Life Coach Commercial Solicitor Tax Accountant Humour Expert
Ask The Expert
Busine Richard Dickinson
Richard started out in his working life in the Navy, were he served for a number of years, travelling around the world learning some fantastic skills and meeting people from many different cultures. After leaving the navy, Richard entered the world of banking and finance, ending up in a role as East Midlands Region Development Manager for a high street bank. Richard then decided he was ready for another challenge, so he left the bank and set up his own national insurance brokerage, which he ran for 5 years, until selling the business in 2005. Given Richards extensive experience over the years in dealing with businesses and more importantly business people, Richard felt he would make a very good business coach. He then trained and was accredited by the Adler School of International Coaching and took on a franchise from Ology Coaching, which gives him the support of a multi national company, whilst at the same time still being able to give a local personal service to his clients. We are very pleased to have Richard on board and are sure you will benefit from his wisdom and experience.
Building
W
e watch the star sportsman calmly make the final shot, score the winning goal, or lead his team to score a try in the final minute of the game. We marvel at their talent and their determination, but what we value and admire most is the supreme confidence they display – they know they will succeed. Confidence is an attribute that is alluring, attractive, valuable, desirable and contagious. Almost everyone aspires to greater levels of it, even if they feel confident most of the time. It is a trait that will help us create greater results for ourselves and when leading others. Any trait with this amount of benefit is one worth developing. And yes… you can develop and strengthen your confidence. Consider these five steps as the building blocks for greater confidence in any part of your life:
Your
Confidence
1. Remind yourself of past successes – you have an enormous breadth of things that you do well! Confidence builds on past success. Since you have had success before, you can (and will) have it again. We strengthen our confidence in any activity when we review or remind ourselves of past successes. If you are trying to build confidence in a new area, past success can still help us strengthen our confidence. For example, if you have had success in doing something new in the past, review those experiences when trying something else new – even if it is in an entirely different part of your life. 2. Read and listen to positive materials. Fill your mind with positive and affirming words, ideas and stories. Read things that enhance your skills or knowledge in the area in which you want to build your confidence. Read materials that are
generally uplifting and affirming, and read biographies of successful people. You will find that many of them had troubles in life, came from tough situations and still succeeded. If you have ever thought… “Well, if they can do, I could too.” Then you realize that we can build our confidence by reading about others’ stories. Reading and listening to positive materials is about reinforcement, encouragement, and learning. All three of these components are needed for greater confidence.
3. See your future success. Olympic athletes, corporate executives, and successful people in all sorts of endeavours visualize future success. Confidence will grow when we see ourselves succeeding. Think about it, if you know you will succeed, your confidence will soar, right? Visualizing future success does that very thing for us. Our
ess Coach ASK the things that you are good at, have skills, experience or a track record in and where you know you can perform well. Give yourself a large piece of paper and think outside the box – you will be surprised 5. Take confident action. You at how big your Confidence List is! wanted confidence to help you try Here are some ideas as to what to and succeed in new ways, right? include: So get out there and get at it! You have to put your confidence to the • Work successes Specific skills test. You have to practice… and, • while you are taking action, make • Team building experiences it confident action! Remember that • People management suc4. Reframe failure. Thomas if you act confidently, you will be cesses Social achievements Edison spent a long time trying to more confident. Review the other • Sports and leisure skills create an incandescent light bulb – steps you have been taking to build • to create light from electricity. He your confidence. If you are driv- • Projects you are proud of Times you wouldn’t be is attributed with saying… “I have ing towards your new action step, • not failed; I have discovered twelve remind yourself of past successes, beaten Times you have succeeded hundred materials that don’t again. Visualize the successful out- • work.” 1,200! Perhaps you feel come, again. Build your confidence against the odds you can reframe your failures as at every step of the way, but relearning experiences – as a chance member it all must lead to action. Keep this list and use it daily to to find out what doesn’t work… but These steps are a regimen for remind yourself of your strengths, would you be able to do so 1,200 strengthening and building your achievements, experience and suctimes? Know that failures will oc- confidence in any life situation. cesses – you have a lot to offer! cur - and your confidence won’t be Use these steps and you are guaras shaken when they come. Use the anteed to be more confident! failures as an opportunity to learn. Now as an exercise, write down all minds cannot tell the difference between something real and something vividly imagined. So vividly visualise your success. What will it look like, smell like, and taste like to have succeeded? Who will be with you, what will you be hearing and where will you be? How will you be feeling at that moment? Putting this much detail into your vivid picture improves the likelihood of success and supports greater confidence!
Realize that every failure puts you that much closer to success. When we reframe our failure as a learning experience we reduce our fear and increase our confidence.
Ask The Expert
Life C Lisa Madariaga
Lisa is a life coach of some distinction. She is what you might call one of life’s achievers. Allow me to explain. Lisa is a qualified Barrister and a Chartered Accountant. She has worked around the world for both NYSE and FTSE 100 companies. Then one day, in November 2005, she collapsed in her London office. Not only was she unable to work, but could barely get out of bed for 5 months. As her health slowly improved, she was able to re evaluate her life. Lisa found that with her unique experiences of life, she was able to help others. She re trained and is now also qualified with the Institute of Leadership and Management, (ILM), as a life coach and executive business coach. Lisa is the founder and trainer of the Finance Coaching Academy of RSA, (formerly Royal and Sun Alliance). Soon to publish a self help book for people living with or recovering from ME, we are truly privileged to have Lisa contribute for us. So, don’t be shy, use this fantastic opportunity and ask Lisa some questions and don’t miss her articles, they may just change your life.
Tell me what you want… what you really, really want.
T
he Spice Girls made it sound so easy didn’t they? Just tell them what we really, really want. If only it was that simple – if only we knew what it is that we really, really want.
are doing right now? If this is not a question that you have already asked yourself, or a game you have played with your friends and family, you may find the answers quite surprising!
We all get caught up in a life in which we are familiar, with a nice, cosy, “comfort zone” surrounding us. No, it need not be the riches and finery that so many of us desire, it may not even be a happy, loving and calm place. An individual’s zone can be one of misery, of stress, of failure, but to that individual, it is where they feel is right for them. Sad, but true.
To begin with, people say they will holiday, buy big cars and houses, see their nearest and dearest are provided for and secure, and then the answers become harder and truer.
When you win the lottery, what are you going to do? Would you continue working? Would you remain doing exactly what it is that you
So what would you really, really do if you won the lottery? Once you had tired of fabulous holidays, shopping and partying with your entourage, then what? Would you set a new company or business? Requalify in a new area? Live abroad or try to trace that love of your life that got away? Whatever it is, you
are getting nearer to what you really, really want.
There are a number of other tools that we can use to identify our desires, our true life goals. My personal favourite is to identify the three people we most admire, respect or envy! Then, to identify what the reason is for our admiration, respect or envy, and to copy them, thereby becoming that which we value most in these other people, or person. One of my top three people is my best friend, Al, she has always been an “action woman”. She travelled the world when she was 21 years old, she bungee jumped, sky-dived, she runs 10Ks and she went to yoga classes before they were discovered and endorsed as cool by the
Coach ASK Hollywood A list. Then one day, I decided that if all this was working so well for Al, then why could I not get in on the act too? I started slowly and joined a yoga class. I loved it, and three years later I am studying for a diploma in teaching yoga – and loving it. I am now building up my running and hope to complete my first 5K before 2010. By emulating those we most admire, we are allowing our brains to fantasise, visualise and thereby create in our mind what it is like and how it feels to actually be that person, thereby creating the specific emotion, trait or mindset that we desire. The old adage “fake it til you make it” comes true. This technique is particularly effective when developing new skills or trying to create a new ability. For
example, who amongst us has never felt the flutter of nerves in our stomach, or tightness in our throats or sweat on our palms when faced with a room full of people that we have to speak to? For some, just entering a party can be a fearsome event, for others, the same reaction may only be felt when delivering a speech to a hostile audience of a thousand people. Whatever the situation, the solution is the same. Who is the person you know could walk into your situation and react / act the way you wish you could? Is it someone you know personally, or an actor, or a politician? Identify that person and then allow your brain to concentrate completely on this person and how they would feel walking into that room, or onto that podium. Allow your mind to
be free and to create the most vivid scene of how your chosen person would feel and think, what they would see, smell or hear as they approached your situation. When this picture is as clear and real as it can be, then imagine yourself feeling like that as you approach the situation. Then “fake it” in reality – whatever the skill or ability is, recreate it for yourself. It may be to walk as your person walks, to say the things they would say or handle a situation in the way they would. So, next time Mel, Victoria or Emma run up to you demanding your response – you can now tell them what you want, what you really, really want!
Ask The Expert
Solici Bernadette McDonald is the managing partner at bmd:law in Wavertree. After working as a lawyer for over 10 years she set up her own practice to serve the needs of SME’s and their owners 2 years ago. The firm deals with all aspect of business and personal law and has a very friendly ethos. Bernadette is a Sweet and Maxwell Law Prizeman and lectures on the post graduate legal practice course at Liverpool JMU on business and taxation subjects.
A CUSTOMER OWES ME MONEY. WHAT CAN I DO?
A
common problem, especially in this economic climate. But what can you do?
Firstly, determine if they are an individual or a limited company or limited liability partnership as the remedies differ slightly. Next, how do you wish the business relationship to continue. If you never wish to trade with them again you can play hard ball. If you anticipate dealing with them again, you may need to go a little gentler. Options After you have written a nice-ish letter to the debtor reminding them to pay and then a warning letter giving 7 days before you take further legal action, then you need to decide what action to take.
Statutory Demand
This is basically a formal demand for payment where the debtor owes more than £750. There are different types for individual and corporate entity. If the debtor fails to comply
with the demand, ie pay, you can petition for their bankruptcy (individual) or winding up (corporate). Quite a harsh route to take! Whilst it is a relatively simple form to complete, it does come with some pro’s and cons. When dealing with an individual, they have a legal right to set the demand aside. This means that they can go to court and state that they have a reason not to pay and should be given an opportunity to have this reason heard. This is where the demand can be a double edge sword. Whilst the reason they have may be utter rubbish or a lie, the court will not look at the validity of the reason so long as it sounds relatively plausible. The court will then set aside the demand. This means it has no validity and you have to take another route. The insult is that the court can award the debtor its legal fees for setting the demand aside which means it has actually cost you money!! Companies don’t have the same rights to set demands aside.
One of the pro’s of this procedure is its speed. The debtor effectively has 21 days to pay. But the sting in the tail is that if they don’t pay you then need to petition the court for their bankruptcy/winding up. Whilst a strong threat that will often result in a speedy payment, if they don’t pay you will have your bluff called. What you must decide next is whether to actually make that petition which could cost you upwards of £500 in court fees. The second major con is that if you opt to go ahead with the petition you will probably need a solicitor (more money to spend out) and most importantly you will NOT rank any higher in the list of creditors, so if your debtor owes lots of money to lots of people (or even worse the tax man) the chance of you getting the full debt, or even anything is rather slim. And its cost you hundreds of pounds to get that far. If you are considering stat demanding someone consider (1) how scared will they be by receiving the demand, (2) could they have a genuine reason for non-payment (3) do
itor ASK they have viable business/assets that would be at risk by a petition (4) do they have lots of debtors (5) do they have any assets?
has 14 days to pay or defend (this can be extended to 28 days in certain circumstances) if they don’t pay or defend you get a default judgement (yippee!) which you then need to enforce. If they do defend, there is lots of to-ing and froing and eventually (after a couple more sets of court fees) you get in front of a judge to say your case. With luck you will win and then get a judgement (yippee!) to enforce.
can take many forms from using a bailiff, getting the debtor before a different judge to spell out what he earns, owns and spends (always fun), getting an attachment of earning, or a charging order on the debtors house. As expected this costs you more money in court fees and still may not be the end of the matter if they don’t work, have no home, tell the bailiff they have no assets...
Court fees have increased in recent years (they are on a sliding scale according to your debt) but you can claim them all back.
This is the biggest con with the system. Getting to a court day can take between 3 and 6 months and although you can claim daily interest, your cash flow is hurting especially with all the court fees. When you get to court you may not recover all of your debt (if there is a valid reason for this). However, getting a judgement is not the end of the story...
The procedure is simple. You issue a claim and the defendant debtor
Now you have the fun of enforcing your judgement. Enforcement
In summary, at the present time, legal proceedings aren’t always the best answer but sometimes debtors are not paying ‘just in case’ and take the attitude that the money is better in their bank than yours! Taking some legal step, even if its only a solicitors letter can actually give them the push they need. My other tip, don’t let any customer have too much credit and the sooner and firmer you act the sooner you will see some cash.
Issue Proceedings
A more commonly used and simpler system. Can be used with equal force against individuals and businesses. You can claim (1) the amount you are owed (2) interest (3) fixed solicitors costs. The amount of interest depends on whether you are suing an individual (County Court Act 8%) or a qualifying business (Late Payment Act anything from 10-13% depending on when the debt arose plus a fixed fee).
Ask The Expert
Tax Ac Pat Cobham
Pat Cobham owns and runs Cobhams, tax consultants and accountants based in Crosby. Pat has recently been highly recommended to us here at Your Business E-Zine, but it was only in the last few day’s before going to publication that we were able to meet up and confirm that she would be able to be our expert accountant. This didn’t exactly give Pat much time to prepare a piece specifically for the e-zine, however, as Pat is very much in demand, she had recently written an article for someone else that, after some minor alterations, she was able to let us have. So next month we will have some more information about Pat herself and Cobham’s tax consultants, as well as an article written specifically for us. So I would just like to say thank you to Pat for responding so quickly and I hope you, the reader, finds this piece informative and useful.
TTT-Topical Tax Tips T
hankfully we are starting to come out of the recession but even so we all need to watch our pennies so if we can save a bit on our taxes even better. Hopefully this article will give you some tips on how to do that.
Newly Self-Employed?
Many people who have sadly lost their jobs are coming into the selfemployed sector. Such people will always go and see their bank manager in order to open a business account but sometimes think that they don’t need an accountant until they have done a years selfemployment and need accounts and a tax return. Nothing could be further from the truth! It is vital that anybody coming into the selfemployed sector should seek professional help sooner rather than later. This can either be an accountant or something like Business Link which provides free advice. One trap for the unwary is the pen-
alty regime. A newly self-employed person must notify HM Revenue & Customs of this fact within 3 months of commencing otherwise there is an automatic £100 penalty. Advice should also be sought on such things as what records to keep, what expenses can be claimed etc etc. If you keep good comprehensive records then this will not only keep the tax man off your back it will also help keep your accountancy fees down.
Useful Links:-
The registration form CWF1 can be found on the Revenue web site www.HMRC.co.uk. Business Link can be accessed by www.businesslinknw.co.uk .
Stock Valuations
If you carry stock in your business this has to be valued for inclusion in your accounts. Stock is normally valued at cost. However, it can be valued at net realisable value if
1
No.
this is a lower figure. If you have stock which can be valued on this basis then this will reduce your tax bill. Be aware, however, that the Revenue can always challenge this valuation and therefore you need evidence to support a valuation lower than cost.
Company Cars
Tax allowances can be claimed for cars bought by a business. Currently the rate of the allowance is 20% of the cost of the car up to a maximum of £3,000 per annum. There is, however, an incentive for cars which have CO2 emissions of 120grams/km or less. For low CO2 cars the entire cost can be written off in the year purchased. If the business is a Limited Company then the driver of the car will pay tax on the use of the car and possibly fuel benefits if the fuel is also paid for by the company. The car benefit is a percentage of list price, again, depending on the CO2
ccountant emissions. For cars with emissions of 120grams/km or less the percentage is 10%. So if you are thinking about getting a company car, have a look at the low CO2 emission cars.
Useful Link:-
For details of low emission cars www.vcacarfueldata.org.uk . Fuel/Water Efficient Equipment As for cars if you buy energy/water saving equipment then 100% tax allowances can be claimed.
Annual Investment Allowance
The above was introduced in 2008. The allowance does not apply to cars but to any other type of capital equipment that you buy for your business. Prior to 2008 the tax allowances on capital equipment would be spread out over a number of years. From 2008 expenditure up to ÂŁ50,000 per annum gets a 100% write-off in the year of purchase. This is in addition to the energy etc allowances. Look out for more tax tips next month.
ASK
Ask The Expert
Humour Stephanie Davies
Director and Founder of Laughology, Stephanie Davies has over 10 years experience working in the public and private sector which has gained her an unsurpassed reputation for designing and delivering laughter and humour interventions for businesses, practitioners, clients, young people and adults. Stephanie is recognised as one of the UK’s leading voices in laughter and humour. She was recently invited by the University of Chester to develop and deliver the UK’s first MA course in Humour in the Workplace and will soon complete an MA on The Psychological Benefits of Laughter, Humour and Personal Growth. On leaving Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts in 2002 she began performing stand-up comedy, firing her fascination with the power of laughter and humour. After attending Dr Kataria’s Laughter Leader course Stephanie was accepted as a participant in world-renowned, Dr Patch Adams’s Health Care Intensive Training in the USA. She worked with Patch exploring the relationship between health, humour, community and the arts. On top of her busy training schedule, Stephanie is often asked to contribute to popular television programmes, such as Trisha, The Bank of Mum and Dad, BBC’s Heaven & Earth and ITV’s Stand-up Jenny. She is also a regular on BBC Radio
SHIFT HAPPENS C hange is inevitable, it happens and there is nothing we can do to stop it - time moves forward and takes us along with it either willingly or kicking and screaming. So if it’s inevitable and simply a natural occurrence why is it that so many of us find it difficult to cope with change and often show resistance?
If we are resisting change then it’s usually because it’s happening to us rather than something we have instigated. Naturally we like to feel in control of how we live our lives, so when we are told what is going to happen to us rather than us deciding this is when human behaviour can become resistant.
How we manage change can also be affected by earlier experiences for example, if someone has moved house regularly, attended a number of new schools, got used to a wide range of significant others etc, it is more likely you are able to cope with change. However if this was not the case your behaviour and reaction to change is going to be very different as you are more accustomed to steady and controlled environments.
In the news this month we have seen signs of negative responses to Obama’s ideas about how to change the way the health system works in the USA. This is a prime example of how we react as human beings
to change that we see as ‘happening to us’. Obama’s popularity overwhelmed the nation and the one thing that struck the world and won our hearts was his slogan “time for change has come”. So popular was this notion and this idea that car stickers were made, badges and every other possible marketing entity that could be thought of in the states. Even dogs had t-shirts with the slogan on! Obama stood for change and America and the nation embraced it and ran with it. There were big changes: The first ever black president, Obama was also from a working class background, he addressed the people in such a different way than any other president, walking and talking in
Consultant ASK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZSzRuf8DOg the rain, meeting groups of people who were left out of the “voting” before now. We as a nation and America wanted this change, it felt like the right time, and the people of America voted for change so the public felt they were in charge. The public are not so happy about his proposed changes to the health system as they do not feel as if they have had a say in the ideas. So this top down approach does not give people a sense of control or ‘ownership’ which can create resistance to change. Over the past 12 months organisations and individuals have had to cope with many changes in their lives that they have had little control of. So how can we cope with
this change and keep our perspective of the situation rather than feeling stressed? George Bernard Shaw wrote, “Life does not cease to be funny when someone dies, as it does not cease to be serious when people laugh”. Laughter makes the unbearable bearable, and breaks down barriers towards others and difficult situations. Once you’ve had a laugh it makes you feel more comfortable and relaxed in a situation. Research shows that not only does laughter have health benefits but psychological benefits too. The mind, body, soul and emotions are not separate from one another, but are in union. Many years ago society believed this, but around the 17th
century medics popularised the view that the mind was separate from the body. Unfortunately modern medicine developed from this separation concept. Now medicine is slowly returning to the holistic concept instead of a dualistic concept. Dr. Norman Shealy in his 1993 presentation shared the idea that a person’s attitude is extremely important in influencing brain chemicals which in turn affect the immune system. Therefore if we are stressed or anxious about change, or anything else for that matter we are affecting our emotion and bodily state. This is evident when looking at the UK’s absenteeism figures relating to stress.
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The name’s Banks……. Jeni Banks…….
May Fifteen………., May Fifteen………., why would anyone call a business May Fifteen? What is significant about this date? Time for a little detective work. (Well, a search on Google about 15th May at least).
15th May 1937 Madeleine Albright, America’s first female secretary of
state is born. Perhaps this company in some way deals with the political history of the United States throughout the 20th century? Na, I don’t buy that one. 15th May 1947 The first test of an Allied aircraft using jet propulsion. Ok,
maybe it’s something to do with aviation during the Second World War? Not likely.
15th May 1990 Vincent Van Gogh’s portrait of ‘Doctor Gachet’ is sold
for $82.5 million at Christies auction house in New York, setting a new world record for the sale of a single painting. Perhaps May Fifteen are art dealers, specialising in the works of Vincent Van Gogh? More plausible than the previous two, but I’m still not convinced. Let’s try one more. 15th May 2009 One year to the day that Jeni Banks finished her last exam
in Uni. Jeni Banks’s 24th birthday. May Fifteen the company began trading. Bingo!
So, what is May Fifteen? Turn the page and find a world of classy sophistication and very sexy networking……….
D
LIB Livercool Sexy Female Networker of the Year nominated Jeni Banks is a young lady on a mission. Since starting her business, funnily enough on 15th May this year, Jeni has earned a tremendous reputation amongst the business community in Liverpool. But where did she come from and more importantly, what does she do. Jeni was originally from a small village called Wetherall, just outside of Carlisle. As a young girl, Jeni could best be described as ‘a pretty little tom boy’, wearing
her pretty clothes her parents so proudly put on her and getting them covered in mud. At the age of 6, Jeni saw a Guitar and decided she wanted to play. Determined and knowing what she wanted from an early age, she diligently attended lessons and became a very proficient Classical Guitarist. Another passion for Jeni was her swimming. She swam for her local team and this culminated in her coming 3rd in the entire country at 100mt freestyle at just 14 years of age. At 18 Jeni left home and went to live with nuns in Fiji, were she worked with disabled children
and learned sign language over a 7 month period. After this she travelled for a while, visiting places like Zulu land on the African continent, and then going on to Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. Eventually, at the age of 20, she came back to England, to Liverpool John Moores University to do a degree in Business and Finance. In her 2nd year in uni, Jeni went to do some voluntary work for a company called Milky Tea, owned by Jon Holmes. It was Jon who first introduced Jeni to the wonderful world of network-
ing, and despite her initial reservations, she was hooked straight away. In her 3rd year, Jeni did a placement and her dissertation with a company called New Reality, (a film and photography company). They were obviously impressed with her, as when she graduated they took her on as a Business Manager. Then, in August 08, Jeni went to work for Black and Ginger, again as a business manager. It was here that she was really able get some serious networking done and she loved it. Then one day last October, on the train on her way home from work, she suddenly conceived the idea for her networking company. Not any ordinary networking company, there are plenty of people in the city already doing that, and doing it well. No, what Jeni wanted to do was different. Given her already vast experience in networking, Jeni understood that the biggest problems most businesses have regarding networking are either, they are too busy to attend the huge number of events out there themselves, or they are too nervous to attend. This is were May Fifteen can help.
Firstly, for the novice, or nervous networker, Jeni does what she calls her Buddy System. This is were she will meet up with her client for 1 hour before a networking event and coach him/ her on networking techniques and also what to aim for from this specific event. Then she will take this client into the event and walk them through the whole thing, even finding the best people to meet and making introductions. Now, I know you can go on training courses with groups of people to learn networking techniques, and they’re not cheap, so to have a professional networker do a one hour one to one session and then work with you for a further couple of hours at an event, I was almost afraid to ask how much. But, being the professional that I am, I thought the readers will want to know, so I clenched my teeth and prepared to wince and asked the question. “How much”? £100. “I’m sorry what; I thought you said £100”. Yes, that’s it, I’ll say it again, just £100. I almost fell off my chair, and for those of you who know how big I am, you’ll know that’s quite dangerous. Please don’t shock me like that again.
Moving on, for the business people who don’t mind networking, but just can’t spare the time, (lets face it, you can spend day and night at networking events), there is the core of what May Fifteen offers. For a monthly fee, (ok, let’s get this one out the way straight away), of just £297, which includes all costs, Jeni will network on your behalf. That’s right, she will pay to go to as many networking events as she can manage and promote your business. She takes no commission for any work that you get from her networking and you’re not tied into a contract at all, so you can do as many or as few months as you like. And that’s not all. When Jeni takes on a new client, she will sit down and do an in-depth corporate analysis, (asking some very probing questions), in order to better understand your business, but to be honest, it helps you better understand your own business. It’s worth more than £297 just for this, never mind a month’s networking. But BEWARE, Jeni will only work with one client from each industry.
You can vote for
Jeni Banks to win the
DLIB
Livercool
Female Sexy Networker 09 Award
Vote
So what makes Jeni so good at what she does? Well besides being very creative and a super connector, she has an unusual way of looking at businesses. You see to Jeni, each business has it’s own character. Like a caricature. I’m not talking about the people in the business, we are talking about the business itself. For some it’s a cheeky little girl wearing a baseball cap backwards, for others a professional looking woman, well read and very smart and business like, but wearing some very naughty underwear underneath her very smart business clothes. If you knew the businesses these related to, for some strange and inexplicable reason, you would totally get the description. It seems to make perfect sense. Then there is the May Fifteen feeling. This is a feeling Jeni gets every time she gets some new business for a client of hers. Never for signing a new client herself, only for others. It’s a feeling of butterflies in the stomach, but Jeni being Jeni can also see the butterflies. Jeni’s passion, not just for what she does, but for everything she talks about is captivating. You can’t help listening to what she is saying. She simply exudes enthusiasm about everything or everyone she talks about. In fact the only time she didn’t, was when I deliberately pushed her to tell me about a person or business she didn’t like. Sitting there watching whilst she fell silent trying to search her quite frankly vast and amazing memory for people and their businesses seemed somewhat unfair. She obviously doesn’t normally think this way. As a matter of fact, she was unable to think of any and we were very quickly back to the effervescent and passionate Jeni. So I’d like to tell you how I see May Fifteen as a character. I think it is a cross between a female James Bond and Ethan Hunt...
...The name’s
Banks……. Jeni Banks……. Your mission if you choose to accept it Jeni, is to get more business for your clients. This message will self destruct in 5,
4, 3, 2, 1……
The following people helped us put the launch event together and made the release of the eZine a great success. We would like to thank everyone for there support and we hope you enjoy the many editions of Your Business eZine to come.
u se e is g re y
ou sta nd to o If y cl
l yo al
o the e le p ha et nt os
The Grey Elephant Co
The Gr ey El ephant Company
H
ave you ever been driving into work through the morning rush hour traffic, pulled up at some traffic lights and glanced over to the car next to you and seen some nutter sitting in the car next to you singing their head off. Yes? Well, that nutter could have been me. You see, I recently had a long chat with Su Grainger of The Grey Elephant Company. Su is a vocal coach and then some. She started her company 3 years ago in order to offer a complete vocal package to anyone who may need it, you might say a comprehensive voice centre. Now when I think of a vocal coach, I think about singers going through vocal ranges;
La La
La La La La Laaaa, La La La La La La Laaaa
You get the picture. But no, as it turns out I was quite wrong. You see, whilst this definitely is part of vocal training, vocal coaching for singing is only a fraction of what a vocal coach does. So what else does a vocal training expert do if it’s not all for singers? Anyone who needs to represent themselves or their company, anyone who does any public speaking or speaking at meetings, the sorts of people like tele sales staff, teachers and quite frankly, any business person would benefit tremendously from vocal coaching. With Su, your voice and the message you wish to portray, is the end product which comes from work in a whole host of different areas. Things like posture, diction, delivery, presentation and the big one for everyone, projection. Su uses the Estill vocal model, which deals with the physiology of how the voice works, so she has a comprehensive knowledge of the muscle groups that support the voice, which in turn allows her to deal with vocal health issues and physiological barriers to good vocal health. As well as writing jingles and songs for businesses, (remember her version of Summertime at our launch party) and singing classes for corporate team building, Su also runs courses in Public speaking, Vocal health, Group practice sessions, One to one sessions, Telephone voice, Network meetings and even the all important Best Man speech. So, why was I singing on my way into the office? Well, you may or may not be aware, that singing alters your mood. People who sing, just for the fun of it, are generally more positive and happier than if they didn’t. As for me, I positively skipped into work and continue to do so. It just shows the power of all this singing. Most people struggle to run one business, but Su also runs a community interest company, (not for profit), called Singing Our Socks Off. This is for anyone who wants to sing on a regular basis, for fun or to just have a go, solo or in a group, with no pressure. You don’t need any musical knowledge to get involved, in fact, you don’t even need to be any good. Su runs clubs in various locations on various days of the week around the city and it’s only £5 per session. Last year she even got into the quarter finals of last choir standing with one of her groups. Just contact Su for more details; I might just see you there.
IF YOU PUT TEQUILA IN SOUP DOES IT BECOME A COCKTAIL?
A
fter having made an impact on the cocktail scene in Liverpool Chameleon bar (Back Colquit St.) has recently turned its hand to food. Proper paninis made to order and served with crisp continental salad hit the spot with local ‘workers what lunch’, and ‘Happy Hippy Soup’ is as good for your taste buds and your hunger as it is for your soul... but where’s the chef? And what qualifies a cocktail mixologist to blend soup?
know!). The old mixologists’ mantra of one light, one hard, one tart* serves to balance a recipe for the connoisseur’s palette but is more than applicable to the creation, and moreover perfection of soup. When a chef makes soup he may consider, based on his encyclopaedic knowledge of food ingredients and their flavour upon tasting, that a bay leaf or pinch of nutmeg is required. A cocktail bartender, however, approaches the scenario with a different arsenal of ingredients to reference and choose from. Where a chef chooses nutmeg, a bartender may choose Amaretto...
Well cocktails and food have more in common than you might think. We all drop a slug of red wine into the Bolognaise Sauce, and aside from the added advantage of popping a cork before the table’s set, what this time honoured tradition achieves is balance.
*(As in the case of the Cosmopolitan, Light is provided by cranberry juice & orange liquor & hard comes from vodka while tart is provided by a squeezing of fresh lime)
Bartenders have long since come to terms with the theory behind creating good flavours (the Cosmopolitan didn’t invent itself you
The plan at Chameleon is as thought provoking as it is obvious; blend in by being different. Tequila and agave blend beautifully with Car-
rot & Coriander soup, achieving balance and satisfaction in equal measures. The Vermouth reduction advertised with Vesper Potato & Leek acts not only as a nod to Bond (James Bond)’s passion for something shaken but also begs the question; will three bowls replace three Martinis at lunches?
K
eith and Stuart Xander are well known around the music circuit of Liverpool, and rightly so.
They offer a fresh take on acoustic and electric freedom blues. With a class stage presence and righteous message of following your own line in life, they have gained much respect among fellow musicians, punters and the everyman of Liverpool. “Your Business Ezine” were priviledged to have them perform as part of their launch party on the 4th of September at the Chameleon Bar in Liverpool. Everyone there that I spoke to, after
they’d picked their mouths up off the floor, had nothing but positive things to say about them. Amazing! was the general response. They exude a subtle confidence that only comes with knowing that what you are doing is truly worthwhile and truly yourself. Keith Xander on electric guitar and lead vocals can only be described as a completely personable super talent. He knows his way around his fretboard and his distinct smoky, soulful vocals are to be heard to be believed, giving his songs a passion and depth that is truly unique. Stuart Xander on acoustic guitar and backing vocals is equally clever
and his solid playing complements his brothers perfectly, offering a wispy pool of chords for Keith to glide on. Their unpretentious, brotherly symetry on stage is infectious for the music and audience alike. Xander and the Peace Pirates will go far. We were lucky to have caught them as they docked into the Chameleon that night. They were and are something special. Keep an eye and an ear out for them in Liverpool while you still can. Amazing.
L
aughter is a serious business. England is known for many things, our obsession with the weather, queuing, always supporting the underdog and our sense of humour, with many viewing Liverpool as being the spiritual home of comedy. So where else would an international company called Laughology set up shop? It is of course right in the heart of Liverpool. Stephanie Davies, founder and Director of Laughology, set the company up in 2006. After working as a stand-up comic for a number of years, in 2004 Stephanie won a scholarship to study under the world renowned Patch Adams in the US. This inspired her to come back home and do something to make a difference in peoples lives. After running workshops for companies like Barclays, O2, HSBC, RBS and Procter and Gamble, it wasn’t long before Stephanie came to the attention of the national press with the Guardian running a feature on Laughology. This proved to be somewhat of a catalyst and Stephanie was soon invited to appear on TV shows such as Trisha, as the expert on humour for healthy relationships. Stephanie’s diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Psychology has provided her with a more formalised understanding of how we think and act and behave. Stephanie set the company up so there would be a sustainable framework in order to deliver humour based training, support and change-programs. Laughology training and consultancy takes many forms. They work in hospitals with patients and carers, in
businesses with staff and customers, in education with students and teachers, in other learning environments including a variety of youth services and community settings. Laughology now have 14 standard courses available - http://laughology.co.uk/services-training.html Laughology even have bespoke training courses that can be designed to suit your needs. In fact, they are offering our readers a twohour introductory session for up to 20 people for just £295+VAT+Travel, (quote code; HAPPY 12). I highly recommended learning more about what Laughology can offer you and your team! Laughology is going from strength to strength. Over the last three years the company has grown not only in numbers of employees, but setting new standards in its services, which are all independently evaluated immediately after delivery, after 6 months and again after 12 months, in order to monitor and maximise on the long term affects of the training provided. Besides the training side of the business, Stephanie is also available for presentations and motivational speaking. In fact her largest audience to date, (besides the TV ones obviously), has been 1000 attendees at the Health and Wellbeing in Education conference held in the NEC last year and she obviously did a good job, as they have asked her back again this year. Check out www. healthwellbeingeducation.co.uk Recently the government released a white paper for business to make Health and Wellbeing accessible to their workforces. Taking care of your most valuable assets in busi-
ness, the people that work for you, is something we not only should do, but something we are going to have to do. Laughology is ahead of the game in terms of delivering to business happier, healthier and therefore more loyal staff. Happier staff tend not to leave; they are more productive and take less days off sick. Speak to the team at Laughology, get them into your business and you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank. P.S. I just had to tell you this. You know when you meet someone and think, “Wow, they are in their perfect job”. It’s not something you can usually define, but you just know that what they are doing could not be any better suited to their personality. Very rarely do you get evidence to support this feeling, but I would like to quote something that one of Stephanie’s school teachers wrote on her report: “Stephanie needs to learn that joking and clowning around is not a career option”. Ha, I wonder if she’d like to amend that, especially given that besides everything else, Stephanie is about to complete her MA in Laughter, Humour, Personal Growth and Psychology. www.laughology.co.uk 0844 800 1701 info@laughology.co.uk
O
k, for those of you that read last month’s edition of this magazine, and especially if you went to our launch party, you will already know just how fantastic the food really is at the Spice Lounge. If you didn’t, shame on you. All of us from the Your Business E-Zine team and all of our guests that attended the launch party would like to send The Spice Lounge a huge thank you. Not only was the food FANTASTIC, but your team were so helpful, knowledgeable and pleasant. If you’re reading this and you’ve never been to The Spice Lounge at the Albert Dock, then you don’t know what you’re missing. Get yourself down there and try it, you won’t be disappointed. They have some of the finest Indian chefs in the country, one of the only charcoal fired tandoori ovens outside of London, they never use any artificial colours or flavours and everything they do, they do with passion, and it shows.
I simply can not speak highly enough of this restaurant. If you’re thinking of going out for a meal, STOP THINKING and just go along to The Spice Lounge at the Albert Dock. Also, watch this space, as we are already in talks with the team at The Spice Lounge about showcasing some more of what they do at a soon to be revealed mega event, in conjunction with all of our networking partners.
KATE THRELFALL
K
ate Threlfall, A passionate soul singer, songwriter, pianist and arranger. Inspired by giants such as Stevie Wonder, Minnie Riperton and Aretha Franklin, Kate brings a flavour of jazz, soul, R&B into her own songs of love
Having recently finished recording, Tony Draper produced debut album at Lipa, Kate is looking to offer something unique to the industry. A fresh, confident and quirky debut, bound to impress with its understated class. “I feel like my music is constantly moving, so it’s great to have this album. Almost like a snapshot of my progress” As yet unsigned but with healthy major label interest, Kate is in a promising position. The only way is up. Kate’s vibrancy is infectious, and her confessional song writing, honest and profound, it’s refreshing. Something Billie Holiday, Dusty Springfield or indeed Amy Winehouse would raise their glasses to. Such a talent will be gracing Ronnie Scott’s of London or the Greenwich Village circuit of jazz by the time this is hot off the press! I asked Kate off the cuff what colour she was. Without hesitation at my daft question she answered ‘Peachy Orange!’ For those too cynical to take an interest in the subtle art of colour relevance, bear with me. Orange denotes hope, friendliness and courtesy. Whilst peach denotes innocent love twinned with wisdom. Perfect description I thought. With both of Kate’s parents being professional musicians, I don’t suppose she was ever going to be anything other than a great musician herself. Her entire life has been leading towards the position she now finds herself in. So what does the future hold for Kate Threlfall? Well no one can say for sure, but I have a feeling we’ll be seeing and hearing allot more from Kate over the coming years, surely one of the industries brightest young stars.
To listen to one of Kate’s tracks just click the play button below and press it again to stop.
Everyday - Kate Threlfall
I
am quite a poor, but moderately keen amateur photographer. In my new found role for this magazine I come across quite a few professional photographers. As I have an interest in the subject, I tend to quiz them a bit about what they do, how they do it and what equipment they have. I have found that professional photographers generally fall into 2 main categories. Firstly there is the photographer who gets, or wants all the best kit, (this is like me), as the best kit helps them produce the best results. Fair enough you might say. But then there is the second category. These are photographers like Robert Edge of Howards Photography. These people see there equipment just like a painter see’s their brush, or a sculptor their chisel. Whilst the painter needs a brush that won’t leave bristles in the painting and a sculptor needs a chisel that won’t shatter, so it is with photographers like Rob, he needs a camera that will be capable of giving him sufficiently high quality results, but the images themselves, they come from him, the camera is simply a tool of the trade, a means to an end. In fact Rob pointed out to me the meaning of the word photography is painting, or drawing with light. He certainly appears to have this in his mind every time he presses the shutter release. Howard’s photography was established in 1973, although Robert took the helm in March 2008, when his father in law retired. The company traditionally worked as wedding photographers and whilst this is something that Rob continues and loves to do, he has also increased the range of services to now include a range of corporate work. This includes things like product photography, such as food, machinery, or venue’s, or to photography for web sites, or basically anyone who requires an image. Rob’s philosophy is simple, deliver what the customer wants, not what you want to deliver. Although he usually exceeds expectations. The customer can have as much or as little involvement with the project as they like. With the wedding photography side of the business, it’s all about the people that are there, its Rob’s job to build rapport with them in order to get the best results. Above all else, I believe it’s his passion for what he does that gives his customers the confidence in him and the delivery of results every time. They say a picture can say a thousand words, so instead of me waffling on, just click on the link to his web site and see for yourself. For photography that will give your wedding or business the Edge, speak to Robert Edge, of Howards Photography.
Your Business eZine
Out & About Networking
Please send your pictures to events@yourbusinessezine.com
Networking
October
1st October Launch event USEARCH4 NETWORKING EVENTS Studio 2, Parr street, Liverpool. Thursday 01st Oct 6pm to 8pm Free event Contact Holly Wood rsvp@mynetworkingpa.com 0845 301 7406
6th October Business and Technology Show Aintree race course, Aintree, Liverpool. Tuesday 6th Oct 10-30am to 3-30pm Free event including free networking Contact Mark Greenwood mark@networkingforbusiness.com 0844 858 9099
7th October BSB Networking Club Adelphi Hotel, Liverpool Wednesday 7th Oct 7am Cost £12-00 non member £9-50 full member Contact Paul Ashbury admin@bsbnetworkingclub.co.uk 0151-630-3636
0845 643 5793
Networking in the City NICT’s Curry Club Mayur Restaurant, 130 Duke Street, Liverpool. Wednesday 7th Oct 12 noon for registration for 1pm lunch Cost £10 on the door, pre booking required. Cost includes free drink, a starter, a main course with rice and breads. Contact Steve Kettle 07884 347 548 Pat Mc Greevy 07960 383 317 www.networkinginthecity.co.uk
8th October My Networking PA I Heart Coffee Republic Coffee Republic, Exchange Square, Liverpool. Thursday 8th Oct 10am Free event Come and share brunch with MNPA and the team at Coffee republic. Contact Holly Wood rsvp@mynetworkingpa.com 0845 301 7406
13th October BSB Networking Club Hollins Hey Hotel, New Brighton, Wiral Tuesday 13th Oct 7am Cost £12-00 non member £9-50 full member Contact Paul Ashbury admin@bsbnetworkingclub.co.uk 0151-630-3636
0845 643 5793
14th October Simply Networking Liner Hotel, Lord Nelson Street, Liverpool. Wednesday 14th Oct 3pm to 5pm Cost £10 pay on the door, free parking Contact Mark Greenwood mark@networking4business.com 0844 858 9099 My Networking PA Hard Days Night Hotel, Liverpool. Wednesday 14th Oct 6pm Cost Unknown Have you been working like a dog? Come and relax at the Autumn Hard Days Night Hotel networking event. Contact Holly Wood rsvp@mynetworkingpa.com 0845 301 7406
21st October BSB Networking Club Adelphi Hotel, Liverpool Wednesday 21st Oct 7am Cost £12-00 non member £9-50 full member Contact Paul Ashbury admin@bsbnetworkingclub.co.uk 0151-630-3636
0845 643 5793
My Networking PA Liverpool Curry Club, Sultans Palace, Liverpool. Wednesday 21st Oct 6pm Cost £15 pre register, pay on the door. Includes Free drink, buffet starters and main course. Contact Holly Wood rsvp@mynetworkingpa.com 0845 301 7406
22nd October My Wirral Hub Mr Chows, The Parade, Park Gate, Neston, Wirral. Thursday 22nd Oct 12 noon to 2pm Maximum 40 places Cost £10 per person, includes lunch meal deal Contact ? (source: Facebook)
27th October BSB Networking Club Hollins Hey Hotel, New Brighton, Wiral Tuesday 27th Oct 7am Cost £12-00 non member £9-50 full member Contact Paul Ashbury admin@bsbnetworkingclub.co.uk 0151-630-3636
0845 643 5793
Plus 1 Networking Andersons Bar, Exchange Street East, Liverpool Tuesday 27th Oct 3pm Cost £15 pre register, pay on the door Networking with a twist. An event that keeps on going, even after you’ve gone. Contact Ian Denny rsvp@plus1networking.co.uk 07726 358 394
??th October MNPA Top secret networking event in Manchester Contact Holly Wood rsvp@mynetworkingpa.com 0845 301 7406
Due to the nature of networking events and the shear quantity, we are unable to list all of them in time for the release of the eZine as they may not of been confirmed. So, we have set up a public calendar on Google where the events will be kept up to date. Take a look...
Click Here
To notify us of an event you can email the details to
events@yourbusinessezine.com or Call 08000 432 734 Alternatively...
Invite calendar@yourbusinessezine.com directly from your calendar.
Our Next Event: Andersons Bar, Exchange Street East (a right off Dale Street just before Royal Bank of Scotland), Liverpool City Centre JOIN US HERE 27th October 09
Business for Breakfast is a business club whose key aim is to help its members significantly grow their businesses through relationship marketing and the passing of qualified referrals. We run fortnightly meetings at locations in Liverpool and Wirral. Business for Breakfast only allows one person per industry sector to join a forum. This effectively prevents any of your competitors from participating - so all the referral business for your particular industry is yours. Why not take a look at the opportunities and benefits that your Business for Breakfast membership offers?
Business For Breakfast
Benefits of Business Networking It is the most cost effective way of attracting new clients and generating new orders. It provides you with invaluable contacts that gives your company a dramatic boost, regardless of size or turnover. It frees up your time, reduces your overheads and opens doors to great success. Guest Membership We welcome guest members regularly to our meetings. It is the perfect opportunity to come along to chat to our members and listen to their real experiences. It only costs ÂŁ10 to come along and we usually indulge in a great breakfast to start the day!! Find out more about events and venues or please contact grahame@bforb.co.uk or call on 07970 896 677 to reserve your seat(s).
My Networking PA is an exclusive site that will find suitable business networking and referral events in your area, tailored to your specifications. So you can spend less time searching and more time networking.
www.mynetworkingpa.com
Juice is a networking club that brings a fresh and vibrant flavour to blending different people together, in order to help businesses to grow and prosper. Juice has a friendly, professional and unique approach whereby there are NO rules. Just one simple request which is that each member attends the meetings with a zest to demonstrate commitment.
www.juicenetworking.com
Juice is about creating fresh opportunities... It’s about sowing the seeds and reaping the rewards.
Practice Failure Until It Becomes Your Number One Skill.
I
was mentoring a top entrepreneur recently and he was telling me how he had recently been getting criticised, and was meeting with a lot of resentment and at times outright jealousy for having the ordasiscity for hav-
some leaders and politicians are spineless and totally dishonest, why some parents are bringing up children with no belief in themselves, low self-esteem, no values, and poor self- confidence, which of course turns in to them having
who complain about the recession and their staff but won’t get of their backsides to learn the skills to overcome these areas. People in relationships that have long died, but stay in them and moan because they have not got them courage
ing big houses home and aboard, nice cars, children going to private school, enough money in the bank that he never had to worry about money again. He said even some of his family and so called friends called him a lucky son of a bitch. When I asked how did he feel about their reactions to his success, he give me an answer that just about summed up the reason why 95 % of business fail in the first five years, why 85% of the population never achieve financial freedom or live up to their full potential, why
big challenges when they enter the very competitive world of fighting for survival in our work place.
to do something about it. In short John Haynes, people make a decision conscious or unconscious to do the thing that failures have been doing for hundreds of years. He said I made a decision many years ago to just do the things that successful people do, he reasoned if you practised, copied and learnt their success methods then surely you would eventually get the same results as them. He said I have worked hard for my success John, like other people have worked as hard for their failure, but it just a
It’s Your Choice, Its Your Life. His answer sharp and to the point, he said we all have choices in life John; we are where we are because of the decisions we make. He said most people make the decision to copy and do the things that failures do? He said failures stay in their comfort zones, and moan about their jobs they hate and want to do nothing about it, business people
R O R
R E
matter of choice, practice failure or success. He finished our session by saying the decisions is yours. The Future Belongs to the Learner My name is John Haynes, I am the Director of the International Coaching Academy, and it will be my task over the next period of time to seek out the winners and the loses in this great city of ours. I will endeavour to find out the difference between success and failure. I will interview them, grill them and report back to you on why they have achieved or been in denial and have been hiding behind the wall of failure. So watch this space. The Valley of Blame They reason I am so passionate about this subject, because I was the biggest, moaning negative failure in this city. No job, no house, bad relationships, overweight, felt hard done by because I couldn’t buy a drink or take my daughter on holiday. I was a real winging little wimp, until the penny dropped. Nobody really give a dam about me, everybody had their own problems in life to worry or help a real loser. I was responsible for my own life, it wasn’t the governments responsibility to feed me and my family because I was too lazy to work, it wasn’t the educational system that let me down because I could not be
bothered learning new skills, and it was not my friends and family who were at fault because I was not prepared to change my woe is me negative attitude. I learnt through the hard lesson of life, we are all totally responsible for everything we do.
The Ladder of Success. I started to study the great law of cause and effect, were it says for every effect you have in your life you can trace it back to a specific cause, I was told that any-body who is at the top of the ladder of success was once at the bottom of the ladder. I moved out of my comfort zone, stopped blaming everybody and everything around me, and started to take full responsibility for my life. I studied and learnt many skills over a long period of time and eventually from a Liverpool boy with limited education, no future and no income, I climbed to the top of the ladder and become Regional Director of Royal & Sun- Alliance, with responsibilities over one thousand five hundred people. Now I run the highly successful International Coaching Academy. I tell people who come to our academy to be developed as business people, winners, and leaders, and people who want a fresh start or job promotion who want to
be trained as a professional coach and mentor and receive a world renowned accreditation certificate, I say to them, if I can achieve all that from being in the depths of despair, so can they. It is as simple as that, as my entrepreneurial friend said,
“Just do the things that successful people do, and stop doing the things that failures do”. So let’s start they journey around the city and lets interview some of our leaders and I will report back to you if they have success habits or failure habits.
UNTILL WE SPEKE AGAIN, ENJOY MANY GOOD THINGS. “FLY WITH THE EAGLES AND STOP SCRATCHING WITH THE TURKEYS”.
JOHN.
Horlock Horticulture
Allerton based Landscape gardener offering complete garden services throughout Merseyside. FREE estimates given, with 15% off any ground clearance.
My Networking PA
Fantastic FREE events going on throughout September. Improve your business contacts by visiting www.mynetworkingpa.com for further details.
07952368437 horlockhorticulture@hotmail.co.uk
PCS Property Developments Ltd.
Total –Reclaim
Abberley Heating & Plumbing
Ology Business Coaching
Property maintenance and all aspects of building works- Commer- If you have ever had a loan or credit card and were sold unemcial and residential...competitive pricing. ployment cover by your lender you could be entitled to thousands of pounds in refunded premiums. Receive your free consultation. Contact 07973837730 or email philipcharlessmith@hotmail.co.uk www.total-reclaim.net 0800 915 2998
Gas Safety registered plumber with many years of experience. Fantastic low rates of pay. 10% discount on any full house central heating system. 07864977634
All Your Business e-Zine readers can get a free business coaching consultation when you call or email. www.ologybusiness.com 0151 428 0045
It’s About Websites Ltd
The Grey Elephant Company
Frontline Golf Apartment
B2B Commercial Solutions Ltd
Half Price Social Media For Business Training. IAW would like to Your Business e-Zine readers will receive 20% off offer all yourbusinessezine.com members a half discount on our Vocal Coaching by contacting Social Media For business training where we’ll help you build your user profiles. su@suzg.co.uk 07717 181 826 email info@itsaboutwebsites.com 0151 324 0102
Fantastic 3 double bedroom Golf Apartment on Porto de duquesa, Commercial debts collected - NO collection, NO fee, and NO up Costa Del Sol. Ideal retreat for any golf fanatics! 25% discount on front payment. Low commission rates charged on success Passany bookings made in 2009 word protected online tracking system for clients. www.frontlinegolfappartment.com
Plus 1 Networking
Real-world networking that continues online. Gain Facebook business friends, continue the chat, win more business. Free to register. Pay only when you attend. www.plus1networking.co.uk
Diamond Events & Weddings
get in touch to arrange a free consultation and let us add that sparkle to your special occasion. Plus, quote ‘eZine’ and receive a 10% discount off the management fee. www.diamondeventsandweddings.co.uk 08445 763 240
The Training Expert
The Training Expert would like to offer all readers a 15% discount on any of our courses throughout October. We specialise in SALES and MANAGEMENT training. Take a look at our web site. www.thetrainingexpert.co.uk 0845 300 5519
Step Clever
A government funded organisation that serves sefton based businesses & residents with support & resources. We have a team of business managers fto offer start up advice www.stepclever.co.uk 0800 030 4376
To discuss tel. 07811 551895 or 01744 613 604.
Myriad Mortgage Services Ltd.
Free Financial Review with our in Depth Budget Planner - Now is a good time to review your finances and see where you are really spending your money. info@myriadservices.co.uk www.myriadservices.co.uk
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We know that being a member of “Your Business Ezine” is already fantastic value, But we would like to know if there is anything else we can do to help YOU, for us to add yet more value to your membership. Here’s a few idea we’ve had, we would love to know what you think of them, and please suggest your own. If we can do it, we will. “All of the members offers to go into an online Directory” “Produce a seperate pack for hotels, so when they have visiting business people, they can see Networking Oppotunities, Members Offers and Contact Info.” “Optimise the eZine for Mobile devices”
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