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This was a question that I was asked this week. It was from someone who is looking to set up their own printing business, and they said they had heard this term entrepreneur banded about, but they did not really understand what it was.

It is a good question because when I asked a few other people some said they were business owners whilst several classed themselves as entrepreneurs. So, what is the difference if any or is the title entrepreneur just a myth?

In this week's blog, I look at the history of the term entrepreneur and discuss whether being a business owner or an entrepreneur is mutually exclusive ordo they overlap.

We have probably all had emails or seen numerous posts on social media platforms explaining that this is self-care week, maybe too many with the same messages. Yes before you say it, I know I put one out on Monday.

In my defence, I tried to have a bit of fun with it and gave some alternative tips to the usual self-care ideas, if you have not seen it check it out.

Anyway, in this week's blog, I thought I would ask myself the question why if I take self-care so seriously as I do, I do not schedule the same self-care time for the business? So, these are some tips I came up with for you and your teams, although even if you do not have a team there are some tips on how you can implement these into your business. 

Over the last few weeks on what feels like a daily occurrence I keep getting marketeers in my emails and messenger, telling me that they can really boost my businesses sales by selling my services in a special promotion on Black Friday. 

So, this got me thinking, is Black Friday predominantly for retail, product-based businesses or is there any evidence that this also works for service-based businesses like my coaching practice. I decided to find out. 

In all aspects of our personal and professional lives, we have all probably come up against the comparison monster!! In the fast-paced world of business, competition is always inevitable. However, some business leaders fall into the dangerous trap of comparing themselves to their peers and suffering as a result. This habit can have far-reaching consequences on both their professional and personal lives. You know what I mean, that feeling that you are not as good as others, you wonder why someone else has a bigger house, a better car, a better job or a more successful business.  

The thing is, these are quite normal thoughts and so in this blog, we will look at what is the comparison trap, why it makes us feel the way that we do, we will assess the consequences that this can cause and give several ways you can break from the comparison monster. 

In the world of entrepreneurship, and small business owners it is often difficult to navigate between the challenges and opportunities that come your way. While the journey is undoubtedly rewarding, it is not without its headaches. The road to success is always paved with good intentions, but it's also laden with common mistakes that many small business owners inadvertently make. 

I include myself in this category as I never envisaged some of the challenges I have faced over the last couple of years, however, it has taught me so much and has allowed me to pass some of my learnings on to others to prevent them from falling into the same traps that I did.

Here are some of the main ones that I and some of my clients have faced. This is not a complete list, but it will be of some help to small business owners, I am sure. 

As a small business owner, you are likely to face uncertainty on a regular basis. This is perfectly normal. After all, you are running a business in a constantly changing world. However, too much uncertainty can lead to stress, overwhelm, and burnout. However, even saying this, the life of a small business owner can be an exhilarating journey with so many opportunities along the way. As a mindset coach, I know that the mindset of small business owners is critical in determining if their business is successful or not. The challenges and obstacles they face can often lead to various emotions, ranging from stress and uncertainty to excitement and inspiration. 

In this blog, we will look at some of the issues small business owners have faced over the last few years and some ideas of strategies that were implemented which enabled them to keep moving forward even when all seemed lost.

Today we commemorate World Mental Health Day, it is essential to recognise the important role that companies play in nurturing the mental well-being of their employees. Business today is fast-paced and a demanding work environment, and the mental health of staff members should be a top priority for businesses. A mentally healthy workforce will not only contribute to increased productivity and creativity but also foster a positive workplace culture.  
In this blog, we explore the importance of employee mental well-being and provide practical advice in the form of hints and tips that will enable companies to prioritise and support the well-being of their staff. 

The role of a business leader is more diverse and complex than ever before. To be able to deal with this and to keep on top of everything is dependent on your skills, strategy and your mindset. Therefore, this is where a mindset coach is an invaluable asset to have as part of every business leader's role. In this week's blog, we will discuss why business leaders need a mindset coach, exploring the countless benefits they will provide. From transforming a company’s culture to reducing their attrition levels and absenteeism and educating and empowering the business leaders to become the leaders their staff really want to work for. 

As a business leader, you are constantly faced with tough decisions. From hiring staff to allocating resources, to launching new products, your decisions have a direct impact on the success of your company. 
That is why it is so important to be a confident decision-maker.

But what exactly does that mean? Well in this week's blog, we will discuss why it means being able to make the correct decisions quickly and effectively, even when you are under pressure. It can also mean that you need to be able to trust your own judgement and not second-guess yourself.  You need to be able to stand by your decisions, even if you know they are going to be unpopular.

Over the last 5 years, due to an existing medical condition, I came upon mindfulness to escape the pain, even if this was only for short periods. As the years have gone by and I have improved my knowledge about mindfulness and meditation the impact on my life of my illness has improved dramatically. 
 
It made me realise that if it benefited me in making better decisions in my personal life it could also be of benefit in my business. Therefore, I would like to use this week's blog to explain my reasoning around this subject. The role of mindfulness in decision-making is very often overlooked or some people would not even have considered it as an option. However, it can be a powerful tool for business leaders who want to manage their stress and achieve success.  

Leader and leadership are words I hear a lot in discussions with my clients. What may surprise you is people's differing opinions on what makes a great leader compared to a good one. 
In this blog, I will look at in my opinion, 10 of the most essential traits that differentiate a leader's great leaders from good ones. 

Entrepreneurship, success isn't solely about having a groundbreaking idea or a unique product or service. It's also about building meaningful relationships that can help propel your business forward. Being an entrepreneur can be lonely at times, especially if you are the only one in your company. Connecting, communicating, and building relationships is vital for any entrepreneur. This week's blog will explore 10 ways that will benefit entrepreneurs and improve their relationship-building skills. 

Do you use digital or paper business cards, does your way work for you? or could you be missing something? I believe we need a combination of them and here is why.

This can be such a difficult question to answer for so many people. Overthinking can lead to stress and even overwhelm, when in fact, you only need to have the right mindset in place once you understand exactly what any potential interviewer is seeking when asking this.

Follow this strategy and you may find it is a lot easier to answer than you first think.

What is meant by the self-sabotage cycle? This is where we undermine our success, by getting in our own way; this can be either consciously or unconsciously. This can happen in any part of our lives but it is especially prevalent in business or a work environment.

Are you in a career you loved when you embarked on this journey? However, you now feel something has changed. Personally, everything was going well, but now you have lost interest. You do not feel that you know where your life is going and are losing your motivation and drive.

Here are 15 questions to ask yourself to allow you to discover your real-life passion.

In this fast-paced world, team meetings are vital in driving success and fostering collaboration among your employees. However, how many team meetings have you been to, which were unproductive, a waste of time, missed opportunities to achieve a desired result and had a total lack of engagement?  
I have witnessed firsthand the transformative power of well-structured and productive team meetings. In this blog, I will share some practical insights and strategies that will enable you to consistently increase productivity in your team meetings. 

Have you ever gotten really excited about doing something, only to find that you are being shot down by the people you thought were friends or at least they would support you? It happens all the time, you are not alone in this. Let's look at ways you can deal with this.

There are times when a lot of people wish they were entrepreneurs, for example, when they are not getting on with their boss. Can't get the time off that they want or even when they see someone who is an entrepreneur, and they want to be like them. 

These are two forms of therapy that I get enquiries around, so I thought I would explain both and provide you with some pros and con's around each and my opinion as to which I would say is preferable and why.

Many of us lead hectic, busy, over-scheduled lives. The idea that you can increase your energy by making a few simple changes to some behaviours or adding healthful choices and activities is quite attractive.  

Have you ever noticed that you take shallower breaths and breathe quicker when stressed or overwhelmed? Yet, when you feel calm and relaxed, have you noticed how your breathing is often smoother and deeper?

We all at some point whether at work or in our personal life, come up against people who will criticise us, whatever we do. For example, if playing sports, cooking, losing weight, or build muscle, someone will always try to bring you down.  

By building our self-belief and self-confidence we should not worry about trying to prove something to anyone except ourselves. If each morning you wake up and you go out to do something better than you have done it before then this will always help to improve self-belief as long as you keep your negative self-talk in check.

We all have our own opinions on who we believe to be great leaders; however, there are certain things they all have in common. Here are some of those.

At some point, if you compare yourself to others, feel your self-belief is at zero and that you are not good enough. This can be as a result of imposter syndrome.

Too many thoughts can cause stress and procrastination so declutter your mind, and you will begin to think positively.

Life is never a walk in the park; we all face obstacles and roadblocks, but it is how we deal with these that matters. Here are some ways you can utilise to deal more positively with tough situations.

Not everything in life needs to be a giant step for mankind; sometimes small and steady is all we need to progress.

How many times have you heard someone say that to be successful, you must work harder, especially if you want to achieve your goals? Well, there are better ways than that; it is better to work smarter than harder.

At times you see others move on whilst you feel at a standstill, so why is it that they appear more motivated than you

We all feel that we have no time to make changes or that it is really scary to do so; however, by only making small changes you can make large impacts on your everyday lives.

It can be difficult to manage our own emotions in different situations, however, by implementing both short-term and long-term strategies this can be improved.

For so long we have been taught that showing vulnerability is a sign of weakness, that is outdated thinking and does not have to be the way you are in life.

Planning and scheduling not only save you valuable time, but they are also great ways to simply look after your mental and physical health.

5 Strategies to Enable You to Manage Your Anger.

The art of delegation is a great way to alleviate stress and allow you more time to do the things that make you more productive.

A selection of affirmations to initiate to begin changing your constant negative self-talk to enable you to feel happier, more confident and more motivated every day.

We spend so much time listening to reply; however, it is so much more rewarding to take the time and actually hear others' viewpoints.

How to stop those negative thoughts.

I have been asked many questions recently about the hypnotherapy part of my practice, here are the most common ones.

A look at why we find change such a difficult concept to understand and to implement and some suggestions on how it is possible for you to change.

Let’s open a conversation about mental health - every day in the same way physical health issues are discussed!