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8 keys to a bigger, better business. Key number 7 …
June 14, 2016Posted by Laura Humphreys
You cannot build a great business without a team. And you can’t build a high performance team without a great team culture. Like branding, company culture is another misunderstood and undervalued success factor in business.As soon ...
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How to motivate your team… take the check list challenge
February 3, 2014Posted by Laura Humphreys
In my latest book, The Liber8 Disciplines, I’m working with HR consultant Antonia Haythornthwaite on the key strategies to build a high performance team. Antonia advises that you find out what key factors motivate a particular individual and then use these to encourage the best ...
Continue readingWhy the best business people fail… and how you can be a successful failure too
July 30, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
You might think failure doesn’t enter the vocabulary of successful people. But willingness to fail is a key criterion for success. Here’s an unavoidable truth about business – you’re going to fail in your business at some stage. You will ...
Continue readingThe ten traits of wealthy entrepreneurs. What are they and do you have them? Score yourself here
June 5, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
Over the past two years I have interviewed over forty successful entrepreneurs. My criteria for an interview subject is that they must have built and sold at least one successful business. Many of them have been serial entrepreneurs – having created more ...
Continue readingBusiness mentor tip # 87 – Why company culture is critical to the success of your business
May 29, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
I’m working with a number of small businesses at the moment. All are committed to growth and as such are bringing on new staff members to ensure this growth can happen. All have accepted that as owners they must let go of certain ...
Continue readingWhat’s the one question every business owner should ask to decrease owner dependency and increase value?
May 13, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
When I interviewed 2012 Young Entrepreneur of the Year Sam Hazledene, I asked him about his strategy for growth. This is the guy who built the largest medical recruitment company in Australasia from scratch in a few short years. He told me that ...
Continue readingA business or a life-long job? Which is it for you?
April 17, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s another extract from my book… to be launched late July…A business or a life-long job?
‘Successful and unsuccessful people do not vary greatly in their abilities. They vary in their desires to reach their potential.’
– John Maxwell
One of the first questions I ask when I present ...
Continue readingWhy bother with a company vision? If you’ve ever wondered why you need one or how to go about making one… read on!
April 9, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s an excerpt from The Liber8 Factor manuscript (book launching in 4 months time) about the importance of having a company vision. Let me know what you think…
A vision is a common purpose, a reason for being.
For the most practical minded amongst us, a company vision may seem a woolly, ‘pie in sky’ kind of ...
Continue readingSuccess is a decision – but are you prepared to make it?
March 8, 2013Posted by Laura Humphreys
Last week I interviewed Ernst & Young’s 2012 Young Entrepreneur of the Year, Dr Sam Hazledine. His business Medrecruit was started from nothing six years ago and has featured for the past four consecutive years in the Deloitte Fast 50, as ...
Continue readingBusiness tip #85 – For the best sales person for your business, look in the mirror
December 13, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s a question many business owners grapple with as they contemplate their growth goals… “Should I hire a business development/sales person?”My answer is usually ‘no’. And here’s why…
Typically you know your business better than anyone else. You are more passionate about your product or service than ...
Continue readingBusiness mentoring tip #77 – The leader versus manager debate…
September 7, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
In my last tip I was pretty tough on us entrepreneurial types, stating boldly that if our employees were under performing it was our fault not theirs. I do believe this is true in very many cases, although of course not all. Some ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip #76 – Your team don’t suck. You do.
August 27, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Having frustrations with staff seems to be a theme for the small business owners I’ve been working with this month. Employees under performing, not taking responsibility for their outcomes, having little initiative and being too content to let the owner do the lion ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip #72 – How to create an effective system in six simple steps
July 3, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Systems are critical to building a business that will one day set you free. If someone holds information critical to your business and they don’t show up for work tomorrow, you have a problem…especially if that person is you. So you need to ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip #71 – Think like an alien
July 2, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Imagine if you had to exit your life for 12 months (to go save the world because you are in fact a secret super hero… we are imagining here) and an alien version of you will be arriving to take over your household. How ...
Continue reading10 things you need to know about sales this week
June 18, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Welcome to guest entrepreneur and salesman extraordinaire Mike Brunel for some more of his always useful tips on sales. Enjoy…1. Create a sales culture– In Laura’s upcoming book she talks about creating a great sales culture- it has to however ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor tip #69 – Understand the TWO key reasons for being in business
June 11, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
For me, there are only two reasons why you would be in business for yourself: to make money and to make a difference.1. Making money
“Being good in business is the most fascinating kind of art. Making money is ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip #68 – Develop a freedom mindset
June 7, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
To build wealth and freedom from your business, you need a certain mindset. You must have the willingness and ability to see yourself totally free from the need to work for a living. And you have to believe that your business is ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip #65 – The high performance formula
May 27, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
This tip comes to you from Antonia Haythornthwaite of Blue Dot Human Resources http://bluedot.co.nz/Once you’ve made the decision to employ people you need to ensure you can get the best possible performance out of them. Antonia outlines four key elements that need to ...
Continue readingIf you don’t ask the answer is always no!
May 15, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
This was one of the slides at my talk to the Bubbles & Inspiration audience last night. My point being that sometimes to get ahead in life you have to ask for things, even if it seems far too bold an ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip #60 – “Move fast and break things”
May 8, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Ok Ok I admit it… this is not my quote. It’s a “Facebookism”. When smooching around Google looking for inspirational business stories (as I do) I stumbled across this blog entitled “Sh*t Facebook employees say” by Josh Levin.The blog outlines some things learned about Facebook from ...
Continue readingMGP Scooters rock the world! What a fantabadooly MADD business! @mgp_scooters
May 7, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
You know I love to find inspiring business models to share with you. And this has to be one of them…. MADD, best known (if you have any children age 7 – 12 right now) as the makers of the MGP Scooters. You ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip #59 – Hire people you never want to fire
May 2, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Just finished Chapter 16 of The Liber8 Factor – how to hire people you never want to fire. Some awesome tips thanks to my good friend Lindsay Jackson who has already built and sold two very successful recruitment companies and is now onto ...
Continue readingHiding under your duvet vs making a difference. What to do when you’ve had a crap week…
May 1, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Have you ever had a day when you wake up wondering what on earth you are doing? Being positive, visionary and inspired all the time can be exhausting. Sometimes you just feel small, insignificant and just plain tired. I had ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip #57 – How to make a tough decision without losing sleep
April 27, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
There is no doubt. As a business owner you will have tough decisions to make. Sometimes it might feel this is almost on a daily basis. Should you invest in that overseas training right now? Should you bring on that next staff member? ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip#55 – Imagine your are Apple for a day
April 16, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
I was up at the crack of dawn to work on my book again this morning. The chapter I’m working on is called “Driving value through your brand” and I find myself studying the great brands of our time to demonstrate some of ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip # 51 – Goals and cocktails, a powerful combo
March 30, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
There’s nothing as satisfying in life as the achievement of a goal (Except perhaps a nice cold glass of rose on a summer’s day!). Seriously… making progress in life, regardless of what you are trying to achieve, is made all the more meaningful if ...
Continue readingWhen a $10 million mistake gets you promoted…
March 6, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
I love the famous story about IBM story from the 1960s. An executive at the company made a decision that ended up losing the company $10 million. He was summoned to the office of formidable CEO, Tom Watson. As he cowered, Watson asked, ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip #41 – Don’t be afraid to say no
March 6, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Being in business can make you a real ‘yes’ man/woman. Yes to any new business that comes your way. Yes to whatever your demanding clients demand of you. Yes to the staff member who needs a day off on your busiest day of ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip #40 – Talk it up baby
March 5, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Whatever is going on in your business, when it comes to your public face, you need to talk it up at all times. Never let the outside world know you are having a bad patch. All businesses have rough times, when sales are ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip # 38 – Screw business as usual
March 1, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Sir Richard’s lastest book is right on the money as usual. Love his and VirginUnite’s ‘business can be a force for good philosophy’. Check out http://virginunite.screwbusinessasusual.com/ to get on board with the new wave of business… led by the rebel with a ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip # 35 – Recognise effort, reward results…
February 28, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s a tip passed onto me by a client I was working with today, apparently originating with Chester Elton www.chesterelton.com – best selling author and renowned expert on leadership. I guess it speaks for itself, but here’s my interpretation of it:As a leader ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring Tip # 31 – Education is the key to success…
February 20, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
I’ve decided to start numbering my business mentoring tips to make sure I get to 100 before I stop. So here’s number tip number 31…If you know any very successful business people you may have observed something they all have in common… they all ...
Continue readingFriday Business Mentoring Tip – Create rituals
February 16, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
FINALLY back from my holidays… 6 weeks in total… where on earth did February go??? So back to posting business tips for all of you who appreciate a daily morsel of practical business advice. This one is a goodie and absolutely crucial if you ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentor Tip – Try this formula for effective goal setting
February 9, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Now is the time of year for goal setting. I’m a bit late this year… spent too much time on holiday (is there such a thing??). But every year I make sure I’ve got my goals clearly defined and most importantly, written down. There ...
Continue readingBusiness mentor tip for 2012… Be clear on your purpose
January 16, 2012Posted by Laura Humphreys
Happy New Year to you! I’m still officially on holiday and will be until the end of January (since I promised myself a few years ago that I would set up my businesses and life to allow me to take a month off every ...
Continue readingDaily Business Mentor Tip – Your business owes you a break
December 20, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Your business owes you big time. For all your hard work. For the years it hasn’t paid you enough. For the stress it brings you. For the times it’s kept you away from your loved ones. For the extra wrinkles and the few kilos ...
Continue readingDaily Business Mentor tip – Zig while the others zag
December 13, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
What did Richard Branson do that worked for him? The key thing is that he did the opposite to whatever the big guys were doing. If they were over charging and under delivering, he found ways to reduce prices and improve experience. If they all seemed ...
Continue readingDaily Business Mentor tip – Have a laugh!
December 4, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
I took an former colleague and long time friend with me to the Awards night last Friday. I met Julie Powell in the advertising world and like me she went on to build her own agency and just like me she sold it to the ...
Continue readingWinner Best Use of Technology Award!
December 4, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Bit of bragging here. My other business, Pet Angels Heavenly Pet Care, just won the Best Use of Technology Award at Her Regional Business Woman of the Year in Wellington. An exciting award for us. As you know I am 100% committed to the belief ...
Continue readingDaily Business Mentor Tip – Be like a bee!
December 1, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
You may have noticed from my daily rants that I am a big fan of leverage. The concept of doing more with less in your business. Which fundamentally means that ultimately you do not do the work. I love this picture. It’s a picture of a ...
Continue readingDaily Business Mentor Tip – The 80/20 rule of Leverage
November 29, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Everyone should be familiar with the old 80/20 rule as it seems to apply across most things in life. In business it generally means that 80% of your income comes from 20% of your clients. Or that 80% of your trouble comes from 20% of your ...
Continue readingDaily small business mentoring tip – The fish rots from the head down!
November 26, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Apparently it’s an old Sicilian saying, tied into Mafia Godfather culture – “The fish rots from the head down”. It’s application to business should be obvious. As the owner of your business you are responsible for the culture of your company. When you employ ...
Continue readingDaily small mentoring business tip – You will fail!
November 23, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s a business truth. In the lifetime of your business you will fail at something important. This could be hiring the wrong person. Choosing the wrong direction. Trusting a client who rips you off. Or just trusting your own judgement. And your failure will ...
Continue readingDaily small business mentoring tip – If you don’t have a plan how will you know where you are going?
November 22, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Once you have painted a clear end picture for you business, have a clear exit strategy in mind and have put in some key milestones to get there, its time to plan your action steps to the first milestone. This should be 12 – ...
Continue readingDaily small business mentoring tip – Your business needs a higher purpose
November 16, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
A business should have a higher purpose … to make a difference in the world as well as to make money. You only have to look at what Richard Branson does through Virgin Unite www.virginunite.com to see that social responsibility is critical in today’s business world.
How is your business making a difference?
From ...
Continue readingDaily small business mentoring tip – Act like a big dog
November 12, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Act like a big dog no matter what your size. Think like a Jack Russell… you can take on any dog, any time. You just need to be smarter and faster!
Continue readingBusiness should be a force for good. Thoughts from Sir Richard Branson
October 24, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Sir Richard Branson has long been a hero of mine and so it was a great pleasure to see him live in Melbourne at the 21st Century Financial Education Summit last night. What a lovely man and how humble and approachable. He spoke about ...
Continue readingWomentrepreneurs… the double edged sword we wield
October 3, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Having been interested in an article recently posted on Facebook about the lack of women seeking and gaining investment capital, I feel inspired to make a commentary on some characteristics that can both make and break women in business. I’ve coined the phrase ‘womentrepreneurs’ as merging words to make new ...
Continue readingHow healthy is your Worry Factor?
September 26, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
I remember a conversation I had with my friend Melissa Clark Reynolds many years ago. She probably won’t even remember it. We were standing in the changing room of the local swimming pool centre at the time. Melissa had just sold her first business ...
Continue readingAnd my favourite businesses are…
September 16, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
I see many different businesses through my line of work, mostly are owner operators building businesses they hope one day to exit, either by selling it or creating leverage to enable the business to continue without them being there. Moving past the owner operator stage ...
Continue readingFlying high today…
September 13, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Don’t you love it when you love what you do? I’m on day 5 of a coffee detox so I had to get my high today from other sources today. It came in the form of a 4 hour business mentoring session with a group of people with a brilliant start ...
Continue readingGame, set and match. Lessons in business from a game of tennis.
September 2, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
My lovely client Bridgette (from Village PR in Tauranga) told me the funniest story about a tennis game she played in Fiji recently. The parallels to and lessons about business were clearly apparent to us both so I just have to share it…Bridgette it turns out is ...
Continue readingWarning. This is a serious rant.
August 30, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Sometimes you just gotta rant. On the front page of our regional newspaper The Dominion Post today was an article that just astounded me (no not the one about Terry Serepisos, who is after all a man creating his own destiny and whatever you think of him, good or bad, he is owning it and ...
Continue reading7 things a business buyer will pay a premium for – #7 People
August 25, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
A business buyer will pay a premium for a business they feel sure will run without its owner. Unless you are planning to sell a concept or a leveraged business model (business models for exit are covered in the liber8yourbusiness programme), you are going to need people ...
Continue readingThou shalt not interrupt!
August 20, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Reading Tim Ferriss The 4-Hour Work Week at the moment. Am about to adopt one piece of advice as of Monday. As Tim points out email is the greatest single interruption in the modern world. How many times have you sat down with your to ...
Continue reading7 things a business buyer will pay a premium for #3. Reputation
July 6, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
A buyer with money in their pocket will come to you when you have attracted their attention. You will need to be big enough and credible enough and they will have seen your business making waves in all the right pools for your industry.You are ...
Continue readingWhere do business mentors get inspiration? Her Business Conference Wellington
June 30, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
I’m shattered after two days at the Her Business Conference in Wellington over the past 2 days. Partly due to the extra wine or two consumed at the Awards night last night (well done to Cilla Heggarty who took out the big title of Business ...
Continue readingBusiness Success.. How do you achieve it? Coffee with Jim Donovan.
May 30, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Had a very enjoyable coffee with Jim Donovan last week. Luckily for liber8yourbusiness members, Jim has agreed for me to interview him for the liber8yourbusiness online seminar room. Here’s a sneak preview of what makes a successful business according to Jim.Firstly though, a quick bio ...
Continue readingPutting your man on the moon – a business mentoring tip from Space
May 24, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
One of my favourite business mentoring tips is to plan your business as if you were NASA planning to put a man on the moon. This is what I learned to do at the 1991 Accelerated Business School for Entrepreneurs with Robert Kiyosaki in Hawaii. The teacher was ...
Continue readingBusiness Mentoring workshop – Leaders get above the line!
April 29, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
I love it when I go to teach and discover something I can use in my own life or business. This happens to me all the time when I’m mentoring, speaking, or holding a workshop as I did in Palmerston North last Wednesday. It was a half day workshop on ...
Continue readingHow disciplined are you?
March 29, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Had coffee today with a partner at PWC and we got to talking about what makes a successful business. I gave him the benefit of all of my own well aired opinions on business… vision, planned exit, build to sell, leverage etc etc. “It’s not rocket science,” I ...
Continue readingPlanning your exit
March 21, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
More from my night at the Institute of Directors, this time my notes from Matt Kenealy. Matt was a co-founder of Axon Computer Systems in 1986. He was the majority shareholder when it sold to Integral Technology Group in May 2010. Here are my out takes ...
Continue readingExternal Directors and Exits
March 18, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Further to my last blog, I presented my five minute spiel at the Institute of Directors First Boards meeting a few nights ago. I was lucky enough to be on a panel with two very impressive men, both having worked with external Directors to see their ...
Continue readingThe purpose of an entrepreneur
March 14, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Just been working on a talk I am giving this Wednesday on an entrepreneur’s perspective of the role of a Board of Directors. I only have 5 minutes to speak so has been a very good exercise in making it short but real. So here it is… you can have a sneak preview of my ...
Continue readingHave you done your business plan yet?
March 6, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Crikey! Where has time gone? It’s March already and the end of the business financial year for most of us. I’ll be nagging my liber8yourbusiness clients about their business plan for 2011 – 12 year. As Winston Churchill famously said, “fail to plan and you ...
Continue readingWhy would someone invest in your business? Or why wouldn’t they?
February 24, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
I’m currently looking at my investment portfolio and deciding how much of my wealth I want tied up in businesses… my own and others. Investing in business is a high risk strategy as so much depends on the people running the business and their understanding of what business really is. I’m always on my soap ...
Continue readingHow do I decrease my clients’ dependence on me?
February 23, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Your clients believe that you are the only one they want because you have created that perception. Read that sentence again. Your clients believe that you are the only one they want because you have created that perception. Why have you created that perception? Because YOU believe no-one can do what you do as well ...
Continue readingWhen is the right time to hire an admin person?
February 10, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s a question I get asked a lot when I’m working with small business/owner-operators. When is the right time to get help with the admin side of my business? My answer is always ‘NOW!’ Even if you can’t afford it. If you paid someone $20 ...
Continue readingTraits of the Rich & Free #10 – Desire to give back
January 8, 2011Posted by Laura Humphreys
Here’s the final of my 10 Traits of the Rich & Free (have a look under categories Traits of the Rich & Free if you want to see the other 9 again). This is my favourite trait and the one which I believe makes the ...
Continue readingYour business is like a shed!
November 23, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
Consider this… if you were going to build a shed in the garden, how would you approach it? You would have a clear picture of what the shed is supposed to look like right? And you would get a plan together of how to build it so that ...
Continue readingWhat is the purpose of an entrepreneur?
August 31, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
Lovely interview with Hans Schuitman of Shape Technology in DomPost today. The introduction of robotics to his technology company has increased productivity by 80% in 12 months. But rather than replacing human beings, robots have created a 15% increase in his 90 strong workforce.
This is a 14 year old company that has embraced technology to ...
Continue readingUndercover Boss Addiction
August 24, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
OK I admit it, I get addicted to certain TV series. And now with MySky, I can set them on repeat record and before I know it I have a whole afternoon’s worth of viewing. I admit, Desperate Housewives and Gray’s Anatomy are not related to my commitment to helping business owners achieve wealth through ...
Continue readingTraits of the Rich & Free #7 – Determination
August 13, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
There is no doubt that you have to be determined to succeed in business, or indeed in any field of endeavour. You have to believe in your ability to succeed and just keep on going. In previous traits we discussed the need to ...
Continue readingSlippers…What the plumber taught the mayor about business
August 10, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
With my Liber8tv hat on I recently interviewed Mark Blumsky, former Mayor of Wellington. Mark has written a book called Slippers, sub-titled “what the plumber taught the Mayor about business”. Slippers tells the story about how a chance meeting with a plumber gave Mark the ideas ...
Continue readingHow can I stop by business being dependent on me?
July 18, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
Just back from holiday in Taupo where I managed to squeeze in a quick lunchtime session with some women from the Her Business Network. I asked them to send me a question for discussion prior to the lunch. Here was one question we debated at length:
“I am a one person band – and built a ...
Continue reading2 tips from a man who knows
July 4, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
Just read interview with Wellington entrepreneur Phil Wheelans in today’s DominionPost. Phil set up The Hire Company which has 10 branches nationwide and turns over $18 million a year. The two business mistakes he has learnt from resonated with me and I have been teaching these principles at my seminars for years:
1. Employ key people ...
Continue readingTraits of the Rich & Free #2. Passion
June 5, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
As I talk to very successful business people, their traits continue to share a common thread. I listed the 10 traits they seem to share in a previous blog and promised to cover each one in turn. I’ve talked about ‘vision’ already. Now ...
Continue readingHusbands in business – a new syndrome?
June 2, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
Just presented to Her Business Network Meeting in Napier, Hawkes Bay. What an impressive group of business women. The very fact that these business owners give up their Wednesday evening to spend time learning and sharing ideas with other business owners tells me that they have the attitude it takes to create financial freedom from ...
Continue readingTraits of the Rich and Free
February 25, 2010Posted by Laura Humphreys
In my quest to find great role models for my liber8yourbusiness programme, I’ve found myself talking to all sorts of very successful business people lately. A number of things strike me. One is that successful people seem to be very generous with their time. People with more zeros in their bank balance than I’d care ...
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