Author: joyheartstoo

In our business network, we had embarked on a friendly, competitive mission and was looking for someone to buddy up with. One of my colleagues asked if we should buddy up, and that of course was great, but what really made me laugh was when he later shared his thinking around it. He had asked himself: “who scares me the most and will give me the most value?”. My name had come upon his inner radar – and the story was afterwards shared with me as a compliment. This made me really happy, maybe I’m weird, but when people see you for who you really are, that’s great. And even if I’m all smiles and good-hearted, high standards and always giving our best matter to me. So, a great, spot-on, scary, compliment indeed. Thanks, colleague! So, for the fun of it: what’s the compliment you would most like to get? Not just a nice, flattering one, but one that at the same time conveys that next level of who you really are? Another favourite of mine that some of you may have heard in my workshops over the years is: “Annlone is bad-ass and fun”. That makes me laugh – … More A scary compliment?! »

About CRM systems and how we as business leaders must master both the big picture and the minute detail. Could you imagine being on a family outing and not noticing one of your children missing? Not really. Yet, as numbers grow, this is what happens. Burson? Yes. Harper? Yes. Miller? Yes. It’s roll call time. There is a reason schools use roll calls. Not going by memory but using a system – an alphabetical list – to check that all are present. Do you remember school outings? Coming back onto the bus was definitely a time to check if we had everyone we needed. In contrast, going out for the day with our own family of say 3, 4 or 5, we don’t need a system. It would be most unlikely that we would not be aware if one had gone walkabouts. Yet, we have small systems or processes – your mobile number scribbled on the little one’s arm when we did festivals as our kids were small, is one example. When it comes to business, we need systems and processes to keep track. Starting your business with a handful of staff, as a family, and a defined number of … More Did we miss one?? »

Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Well, that’s kind of hard with a gashing gap on one side. This week’s blog is not for the faint-hearted, now you’re warned. Shimmering scales caught my attention. A bunch of them, just under the surface, like the mother of pearl enticing me to come closer. As I realised it was fish scales, another sight got into my far-left view, metres away. Onshore, left by the turn of the tide, a shiny, still fresh, dead fish. A silver mulloway, 80 cm at least. Beautiful. Except for the gashing gap that had taken out most of the middle part of its one side. Realising I was watching a very recent murder, a crime scene – except for the fact we don’t call it that when it’s nature’s way – it got me thinking of the part of the food chain we are seldom privy to. Recognising that the bunch of shimmering scales would be where the attack must have happened. And then the distance to the casualty giving a story of part-escape, swimming for your life – and the tide somehow playing a role in the end result. Why am I sharing all this? I’m … More Which gashing gap?? »