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Better Business, Better Life Newsletter – Issue 24
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Here’s this week’s curated business tip, life hack & find of the week… And don’t forget the inspirational quote, which you can download as a wallpaper or lock screen for your phone.
As always, if you find great things that you’d like to share then feel free to email me for inclusion in one of my weekly newsletters.
BETTER BUSINESS
What is Strategic Planning?
It’s a term that tends to get over-used, so what does it really mean?
“From time to time, business leaders need to take a step away from the daily grind of leading a business to work on the business.
And they need to have an effective and efficient process. They have to “strategize” and then get back to work.
According to Harvard Business Review, 85% of leadership teams dedicate less than one hour per month to discussing their business strategy, and 50% spend no time at all. Additionally, the research found that 95% of employees don’t understand a company’s business strategy. Avoid missing your targets with an effective strategic plan that is flexible and realistic.”
I’ve been a coach for over 10 years & a business leader / owner for over 25 years & so I’ve done my fair share of ‘being strategic’ & helping companies with their Strategic planning.
The problem is that many coaches, consultants & even leadership teams tend to overcomplicate it.
It really shouldn’t be complex.
And that’s why I fell in love with EOS, almost 2 years ago.
It took all the things that I had learned from owning & running businesses, from my education in my MBA programme & all the work that I had done from working with clients at The Icehouse & in my own coaching practice & put it into a simple framework that any business owner can apply.
This article from the EOS blog talks about strategic planning & what causes many strategic plans to fail.
There’s also a great video from EOS Founder, Gino Wickman.
If you haven’t yet read the Traction book then let me know & I will get one out to you.
BETTER LIFE
Chicken soup for the soul
Reading really is chicken soup for the soul & I am very fortunate to be given many books to read.
This week it was ‘Selling is not Optional’ by Mike Brunel.
A great, easy to read book about how everyone is a sales person & if you can sell then you can change your world. I’ll do a proper review on my website when I have finished reading it.
In the meantime, here’s my list of 10 ‘self-help’ books that I have found to be truly great for your body, mind & soul. Each one has given me something that I have been able to take & use in my life. They’re in no particular order.
Feel free to let me know of others that you’d recommend:
- Outliers: The story of success – Malcolm Gladwell
- The Power of Now – Eckhardt Tolle
- Atomic Habits – James Clear
- Fish – Stephen C. Lundin
- Life’s golden ticket – Brendon Buchard
- The 7 habits of highly effective people – Stephen R Covey
- Start with Why – Simon Sinek
- Low worth making: How to have ridiculously great sex – Stephen Snyder
- The Happiness Advantage – Shawn Anchor
- The Dip – Seth Godin
And one that I haven’t read yet but have heard great things about – The subtle art of not giving a F*ck – Mark Manson.
FIND OF THE WEEK
Try a little tenderness…
We’re now into week 4 of lockdown (without takeaways available) & I feel like I would almost kill to have a meal not cooked or prepared by us.
But it’s not possible, so we’ve been trying to recreate our favourite dishes at home.
I love Thai food & have already recreated Pad Krapow, Pad Thai (with bean noodles) & Thai beef salad with some success.
This week, it was time to try out Thai Chicken & Cashew Nuts with chilli. Unfortunately, we only had chicken breast in the freezer & absolutely no desire to go to the supermarket.
Now there’s absolutely nothing wrong with chicken breast but in my opinion, it just doesn’t stir-fry as well as chicken thigh… or so I thought.
Until I discovered ‘velveting’ chicken.
It’s apparently the Chinese restaurant secret to tenderising chicken.
We tried it… It’s simple & it works! It tasted delicious & as the article says it really is a game changer!
INSPIRATIONAL QUOTE
Too long to fit onto a screensaver but just brilliant – we used to use this when I ran self-help retreats! Reminded of it after my run in with the hedgehog again this week 😃
“I walk down the street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I fall in.
I am lost… I am helpless.
It isn’t my fault.
It takes forever to find a way out.
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I pretend I don’t see it.
I fall in again.
I can’t believe I am in the same place.
But, it isn’t my fault.
It still takes me a long time to get out.
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I see it is there.
I still fall in. It’s a habit.
My eyes are open.
I know where I am.
It is my fault. I get out immediately.
I walk down the same street.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I walk around it.
I walk down another street.”
― Portia Nelson, There’s a Hole in My Sidewalk: The Romance of Self-Discovery
NEED HELP?
If you’d like to learn more about any of these tools or would like to find out how I can help you achieve a better life through creating a better business, then book a free Discovery Call with me.
We’ll talk about what you want to get from your business & your life & come up with a plan to do that!
Debra Chantry-Taylor
Certified EOS Implementer | Accredited Family Business Advisor | Entrepreneurial Leadership & Business Coach | Speaker & Workshop Facilitator