If it's been done...

I spoke to a group of builders about The Breakthrough's 7 foundation habits for success recently. One guy kept arguing the point, saying it was all easy to say but the reality was different. He complained that clients expected him to take calls and meetings in the evening and on weekends. Sometimes the business had to come before everything else. He couldn’t possibly limit his hours because it all depended on this and that etc etc. It just wasn’t possible for him to adopt these habits.

Be more useful, not more productive

I think we should waste more time.

We are bombarded with productivity hacks, articles on getting more done, podcasts about fitting more in, optimal work times, reducing distractions, flow etc. People worry that they have no more time to use more efficiently. We’ve gone overboard.

You did what??? Oh, the surprising places you’ll go!

Fast forward to a date night conversation about fun and adventure. One of the things we’re practicing is open-ended questions. These are questions where you’re not trying to lead the other or persuade or in fact do anything but learn what they think or feel about something. For example, “How do you feel about that?” is a great open-ended question, as is “Under what circumstances would you…?”

Christchurch mosque attacks: a simple resolution

On the Friday evening a week after the terror attack in Christchurch, I visited my local mosque which they had opened up to allow people to express support. It was not a huge event, but there was a lot of warmth in both the welcome from the host community and the support from locals. While it was difficult to adjust to the sight of three armed police (including one with an assault rifle), it was really good to take the sense of "differentness" away from my perception of Islam.

Dr Mike's BlogDr Mike AshbyApril 2, 2019collusion, intolerance of prejudiceComment

A good discomfort

Comfort zones are okay if you need a rest. Actually, that’s a bit snide. You should harvest what you’ve sown, get the benefits of the expertise and momentum you’ve created, leverage your expertise. In fact, you should spend 95% of your time and attention focusing on doing what you know and do well, as opposed to spending most of your time flitting about like a blue-arsed fly. But to create a better and different result – to grow – you need to spend some time being uncomfortable.

Burn your boat

The subtle variation on that is the story of the Vikings. When they invaded a new land (by the way, I loved Norsemen on Netflix, outrageously funny in a very Nordic way), they would burn their boats on the beach. This meant the only way they could get home was to pillage and colonize the territory so that they could build replacements. They added a little twist by taking their firstborn so that the only way the children would see their mothers again was if they were successful with said pillage.

Dr Mike's BlogDr Mike AshbyMarch 12, 2019business advisors, business growth, business strategy, comfort zone, personal growth, riskComment

What to do when you're beyond tired

I'm tired.

It's been a big week. Not busy, I don't do busy. If you measure busy-ness by the number of phone calls and emails, I'd be declared clinically dead.

I've had a lot of big stuff to do this week. Not stressful, but pressured, which is good.

Doubling down

In blackjack, doubling down means to double your bet because you like the card in your hand and you’re confident that the next card will make you a winner. In business, it means putting more investment in an area that shows high potential.

Our conversation gave us the gift of clarity about our focus in 2019, and we’ve already used that clarity to make decisions in all sorts of areas

What it takes

He made absolutely the right decision. You hear people say “Follow your passion and the profits will come, do what you love and the money will follow”. It’s garbage. I’ve advised a few people to leave their passion for outside working hours because not enough people share it sufficiently strongly to make it economically viable.

Dr Mike's BlogDr Mike AshbyJanuary 29, 2019business advisors, business coaching, business growth, business owner, business plan, coachingComment

Boost your energy

Getting clarity about what you want is where you find your energy and how you can get more energy. The other side to it is that you need energy to drive your business. This is not just a good thing to have, it’s critical to being able to make change happen.

What we don’t change

I recorded the final modules for the first year of our Active Manager Programme last week, and one of them was about making better decisions.

One of the mistakes we make is that we can remain locked in the past, using the same old data or the same old processes. Even more important, we have outdated assumptions.

Dr Mike's BlogDr Mike AshbyDecember 17, 2018business advisers, business advisors, business growth, business ownerComment

The rocking chair test

So, the very first question to consider is – whose life are you living? What constraints are you allowing others to place on you? You might have a partner who is more risk averse than you. Clarity requires a conversation about how you can accommodate their need for comfort with your need for challenge. But don’t just be silently compliant.

Dr Mike's BlogDr Mike AshbyDecember 10, 2018business advisors, business and personal, business coaching, busynessComment

What do you need to unlearn?

You need to let go of the idea that working harder is going to make your business more successful, along with working harder means working longer hours. Instead, you need to learn that working fewer hours on a small number of important things will take you further and faster. And to do that, you need to get clear about where your efforts will get greatest return.

Dr Mike's BlogDr Mike AshbyNovember 27, 2018business advisors, business advisory, business coaching, business growth, business ownerComment

Hotel Bloody California

I’m learning the solo from Hotel California. Everyone knows it. It’s genuinely iconic, and it’s bloody hard to play. There are two guitars, played by Joe Walsh and Don “Fingers” Feldon. Actually, there are 8 guitars on the track, but one is more than enough.

Confidence games

Business confidence stays in the news. The latest GDP report shows the economy growing at its normal rate, though in my experience GDP figures are 3 months behind the SME economy.

No one knows whether the loss in confidence will impact growth. Generally, expectations of slower growth are a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Learn these three traits to be a great manager

For years the question has been “How can I make people more accountable?” I always thought this was the wrong question because it was about the person asking the question and how they could get others to do what they (the questioner) wanted. Accountability is something others put on you, responsibility is something you take.

Dr Mike’s Blog