Podcast
Every Day's A Business School Day
Hosted by James Marriott and Nicky Thomas · EN
Neither James nor Nicky went to Business School. They've both learned as they have gone - mainly from the people they've met along the way, particularly on the networking circuit.
Now they want to share some of that expertise to help you drive your business forward.
We'll welcome a guest to each episode to bring their wisdom and knowledge on a key topic. You'll get some practical tips - and some optional homework should you want to continue the learning afterwards.
Don't worry, you won't get detention if the dog eats it!
James is the Founder and Podcast Strategist of his business, Sound Media, helping people to unlock the power of podcasting.
Nicky is the Founder of the Growth Community, a networking community where you enjoy great conversations, support and genuine introductions.
16episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Developing A Proactive Mindset with Rachel Haith
Mar 26, 202500:34:47Tap to summarizeIn this episode James and Nicky spoke to Rachel Haith about one of the most important elements that a business owner needs – a strong belief in themselves and clarity on what they are doing and where they are going.We covered how addressing your mindset early in your business journey can make a real difference to whether you succeed, because things will get tough and it’s all about how you deal with it.Who is Rachel Haith?Rachel is a coach and speaker who helps people get the most from their lives by finding their inner belief, removing barriers and designing the life they were born to lead.What we discussed with RachelHow cultivating a strong layer of self belief is the bedrock to personal and professional success.How to develop resilience to deal with the roller coaster of life and business.Imposter syndrome and reframing our languageThe difference between coaching and counsellingHow getting to grips with who you really are, what you really want and learning to love who that is, enables better decision makingThe power of gratitude and being reflectiveResourcesConnect with Rachel on LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-haith/Find out more on her website (which also includes an insightful blog): inspiredlifegroup.co.uk Podcast: Rachel also has her own podcast that she does with fellow Coach, Dr Jenny Gordon called The Renny Show. Listen wherever you listen to podcasts or here: https://open.spotify.com/show/4ndJaTFgNLKoQ1ixzI1kt4Follow and ReviewKeep up to date with all our episodes by tapping the 'Follow' button so you get new ones as soon as they're released. We have some great lessons planned!Help us to help more small businesses! We’d love your reviews to help us be found more easily by businesses who need some help and support.Want to network with us?Why not visit The Growth Community at one of our online or in personal networking meetings. You’ll be guaranteed a very warm welcome and some great onward conversations.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/locations/More about the hostsNicky Thomas is Founder of The Growth Community. A place where growth minded business people hang out to connect and help each other be more successful in business. Through enjoyable, productive fortnightly networking meetings and great onward conversations, our members and guests share knowledge and introductions and make valuable business friendships.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickythomas-growthcommunity/https://www.facebook.com/GrowthCommunityNetworking/https://www.instagram.com/growthcommunitynetworkingJames Marriott is the owner of podcast consultancy, Sound Media. With an extensive background in broadcast media, he helps people to unlock the power of podcasting to give businesses and brands an unique and strategic opportunity to connect with their audience.Find out more on our website or connect on Linkedin.https://wearesoundmedia.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-marriott-podcast/
Transcribe →Embracing Sales in your business with Hayden Fox
Mar 12, 202500:34:53Tap to summarizeIn this episode we spoke to Hayden Fox, about why we’re all afraid of Sales and why we don’t like doing it.We chatted about how we can embrace a more positive attitude towards selling and how business owners have to be sales people if they want to grow.And we talked about how understanding sales better, and applying some strategy, will help us get more from selling – and might even enjoy it too!Who is Hayden Fox?Hayden is Director of Sales Geek in Yorkshire. With his own extensive sales background and the combined experience of over 500 years within Sales Geek nationally, he can definitely put a rocket in your sales strategy!What we discussed with HaydenThat sales isn’t about the double glazing stereotypeThat it’s about having conversations and identifying how you can solve people’s problemsHow the relationship between sales and marketing worksWhat customer journeys and pipelines are all about and how to use themAnd that changing your mindset about sales can have a really positive impact on the success of your business.ResourcesConnect with Hayden on LinkedIN https://www.linkedin.com/in/haydenfox-salesgeek/Or like he said in the podcast…give him a ring: 07532775937Website: salesgeek.co.ukFollow and ReviewKeep up to date with all our episodes by tapping the 'Follow' button so you get new ones as soon as they're released. We have some great lessons planned!Help us to help more small businesses! We’d love your reviews to help us be found more easily by businesses who need some help and support.Want to network with us?Why not visit The Growth Community at one of our online or in personal networking meetings. You’ll be guaranteed a very warm welcome and some great onward conversations.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/locations/More about the hostsNicky Thomas is Founder of The Growth Community. A place where growth minded business people hang out to connect and help each other be more successful in business. Through enjoyable, productive fortnightly networking meetings and great onward conversations, our members and guests share knowledge and introductions and make valuable business friendships.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickythomas-growthcommunity/https://www.facebook.com/GrowthCommunityNetworking/https://www.instagram.com/growthcommunitynetworkingJames Marriott is the owner of podcast consultancy, Sound Media. With an extensive background in broadcast media, he helps people to unlock the power of podcasting to give businesses and brands an unique and strategic opportunity to connect with their audience.Find out more on our website or follow us on Linkedin.https://wearesoundmedia.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-marriott-podcast/
Transcribe →Taking on your first member of staff with Lisa Betsworth & Kat Derbyshire
Oct 19, 202300:39:39Tap to summarizeSummaryIn this episode we have a conversation with Lisa Betsworth from Slice Solutions and Kat Derbyshire from Black Kat HR about the daunting task of taking on your first employee.We talked about the importance of being clear on what hire you ‘really’ need, weighing it up against outsourcing and being sure a hire is adding value in your business.We also chatted about getting the job description right, being savvy about what loyal employees are after and why employment contracts off the internet aren’t as convenient as you think.Who is Lisa Betsworth?Lisa is the Owner and Founder of Slice Solutions who offer a business support package for growing businesses covering VA, Recruitment and HR services. With an extensive background in recruitment, she knows a thing or two about getting started with growing a team.Who is Kat Derbyshire?Kat is Owner of Black Kat HR and a skilled HR Mentor who helps businesses with the full spectrum of HR support allowing them to take the services that they need in line with the growth of their business.What we discussed with Kat & LisaWhy it’s important to be crystal clear on why you are recruiting and exactly what value it will offer.Why an administrator might not be the perfect first hire.That recruitment isn’t easy in the current market and getting the job title right is essential.Why employment contracts off the internet are unlikely to be specific enough to your business.That business owners should consider outsourcing, freelances and even automation as options too.The minimum level of HR documentation a business needs when they become and employer.That it’s important to address your skills as a leader and a line manager before you take on responsibility for a teamResources (Lisa)Connect with her on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisabetsworth/Visit her website or book a discovery call with her. https://slicesolutions.co.uk/Resources (Kat)Connect with her on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/kat-derbyshire/Visit her website or book a discovery call with her. https://blackkat-hr.com/Follow and ReviewKeep up to date with all our episodes by tapping the 'Follow' button so you get new ones as soon as they're released. We have some great lessons planned!Help us to help more small businesses! We’d love your reviews to help us be found more easily by businesses who need some help and support.Want to network with us?Why not visit The Growth Community at one of our online or in personal networking meetings. You’ll be guaranteed a very warm welcome and some great onward conversations.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/locations/More about the hostsNicky Thomas is Founder of The Growth Community. A place where growth minded business people hang out to connect and help each other be more successful in business. Through enjoyable, productive fortnightly networking meetings and great onward conversations, our members and guests share knowledge and introductions and make valuable business friendships.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickythomas-growthcommunity/https://www.facebook.com/GrowthCommunityNetworking/https://www.instagram.com/growthcommunitynetworkingJames Marriott is the owner of podcast consultancy, Sound Media. With an extensive background in broadcast media, he helps people to unlock the power of podcasting to give businesses and brands an unique and strategic opportunity to connect with their audience.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://wearesoundmedia.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-marriott-podcast/https://twitter.com/jamesmarriotthttps://www.instagram.com/wearesoundmedia/https://www.facebook.com/wearesoundmedia
Transcribe →Processes and Automation with Yvonne Hemmings
Oct 5, 202300:23:48Tap to summarizeIn this episode Automation Expert, Yvonne Hemmings from Solutions Shack explains to us how easy and cost effective it is to automate repetitive tasks in our businesses.In a lot of cases it’s free, there’s no code needed and we can breeze through tasks at a click of a button.Yvonne teaches us how to get started and highlights some quick wins that could save us loads of time and money.Who is Yvonne Hemmings?Yvonne knows how stressful it can be juggling spreadsheets and systems. She helps businesses to identify and streamline their processes and then supports them in automating the repetitive, time consuming tasks.Her mission is to transform businesses and open up greater potential for their growth and profitability.What we discussed with YvonneWhy we wished we’d known about automation at the START of our business journey.How easy and cost effective it is to introduce automation.How it can support your growth by taking you out of the mundane repetitive admin areas of your businessHow important it is to get your processes nailed down and documented before you automate.How to use automation tools like ZapierHow Nicky recently automated her membership process using mostly free tools.Some simple automation tasks to get started on today.Resources (Yvonne)Connect with her on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/yvonne-hemmings/Visit her website or book a discovery call with her. https://solutionshack.co.uk/Read Yvonne’s blog: https://solutionshack.co.uk/index.php/blog/Follow and ReviewKeep up to date with all our episodes by tapping the 'Follow' button so you get new ones as soon as they're released. We have some great lessons planned!Help us to help more small businesses! We’d love your reviews to help us be found more easily by businesses who need some help and support.Want to network with us?Why not visit The Growth Community at one of our online or in personal networking meetings. You’ll be guaranteed a very warm welcome and some great onward conversations.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/locations/More about the hostsNicky Thomas is Founder of The Growth Community. A place where growth minded business people hang out to connect and help each other be more successful in business. Through enjoyable, productive fortnightly networking meetings and great onward conversations, our members and guests share knowledge and introductions and make valuable business friendships.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickythomas-growthcommunity/https://www.facebook.com/GrowthCommunityNetworking/https://www.instagram.com/growthcommunitynetworkingJames Marriott is the owner of podcast consultancy, Sound Media. With an extensive background in broadcast media, he helps people to unlock the power of podcasting to give businesses and brands an unique and strategic opportunity to connect with their audience.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://wearesoundmedia.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-marriott-podcast/https://twitter.com/jamesmarriotthttps://www.instagram.com/wearesoundmedia/https://www.facebook.com/wearesoundmedia
Transcribe →Starting a Financial Planning Journey with Zoe Taylor
Sep 21, 202300:40:23Tap to summarizeIn all the excitement of planning and launching a business it’s easy to overlook some of the simple financial decisions that go hand in hand with being a new business owner.It’s also common to think that if you aren’t currently earning very much money you don’t need a Financial Planner.But as we found out in our chat with Zoe Taylor, it’s important to have realistic plans in place for the future AND for resilience now.Speaking with an advisor should be a lot higher up the list than you think if you and your business are going to thrive long term.Who is Zoe Taylor?Zoe is an award winning chartered financial planner and speaker who has an incredible ability to make the subjects of pensions and investments fun and interesting.Her no jargon approach really helps people to understand and unlock the complexities of their finances and make sound and relevant decisions about their financial future.What we discussed with ZoeHow your business is probably NOT your pension (unless you’ve planned a proper exit strategy)That you should make a financial plan even if you aren’t earning very much money yetBusinesses are people and they need some small things in place early if they are to be resilient both as people and as a business.You don’t need to spend a lot of money to get piece of mind.Pensions often seem complicated when nobody has explained them properly to you.Zoe’s 10 questions that businesses should ask themselves about their financial future.ResourcesConnect with Zoe on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoetaylor38/Visit her website or book a chat with her: https://lawrenceneilwealthmanagement.co.uk/partner/zoetaylorFollow and ReviewKeep up to date with all our episodes by tapping the 'Follow' button so you get new ones as soon as they're released. We have some great lessons planned!Help us to help more small businesses! We’d love your reviews to help us be found more easily by businesses who need some help and support.Want to network with us?Why not visit The Growth Community at one of our online or in personal networking meetings. You’ll be guaranteed a very warm welcome and some great onward conversations.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/locations/More about the hostsNicky Thomas is Founder of The Growth Community. A place where growth minded business people hang out to connect and help each other be more successful in business. Through enjoyable, productive fortnightly networking meetings and great onward conversations, our members and guests share knowledge and introductions and make valuable business friendships.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickythomas-growthcommunity/https://www.facebook.com/GrowthCommunityNetworking/https://www.instagram.com/growthcommunitynetworkingJames Marriott is the owner of podcast consultancy, Sound Media. With an extensive background in broadcast media, he helps people to unlock the power of podcasting to give businesses and brands an unique and strategic opportunity to connect with their audience.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://wearesoundmedia.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-marriott-podcast/https://twitter.com/jamesmarriotthttps://www.instagram.com/wearesoundmedia/https://www.facebook.com/wearesoundmedia
Transcribe →Networking Follow Ups with Nicky Thomas
Sep 7, 202300:35:31Tap to summarizeJames and Nicky discuss the importance of following up after networking and how creating quality business friendships can make the whole thing more effective and enjoyable.They debate the strategy around growing connections into high quality referral partners and that finding the right networking circle can support you in business way beyond new sales leads.What we discussedThat networking is a ‘long marketing game’ but very sustainable when there is a purpose to it.How networking meetings are a foundation for all of the elements you need to grow a business.How and why we should follow up after meetings.Tips on developing our business relationships from the ‘getting to know each other’ stage to full on ‘sustainable referral partnerships’.Follow and ReviewKeep up to date with all our episodes by tapping the 'Follow' button so you get new ones as soon as they're released. We have some great lessons planned!Help us to help more small businesses! We’d love your reviews to help us be found more easily by businesses who need some help and support.Want to network with us?Why not visit The Growth Community at one of our online or in personal networking meetings. You’ll be guaranteed a very warm welcome and some great onward conversations.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/locations/More about the hostsNicky Thomas is Founder of The Growth Community. A place where growth minded business people hang out to connect and help each other be more successful in business. Through enjoyable, productive fortnightly networking meetings and great onward conversations, our members and guests share knowledge and introductions and make valuable business friendships.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://www.thegrowthcommunity.co.uk/https://www.linkedin.com/in/nickythomas-growthcommunity/https://www.facebook.com/GrowthCommunityNetworking/https://www.instagram.com/growthcommunitynetworkingJames Marriott is the owner of podcast consultancy, Sound Media. With an extensive background in broadcast media, he helps people to unlock the power of podcasting to give businesses and brands an unique and strategic opportunity to connect with their audience.Find out more on our website or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin.https://wearesoundmedia.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-marriott-podcast/https://twitter.com/jamesmarriotthttps://www.instagram.com/wearesoundmedia/https://www.facebook.com/wearesoundmedia
Transcribe →