Rebecca Jones

NEW BLOG SITE

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 06 Jan 2011 14:38:00 +0000

As its the New Year and I have a book out soon I thought I would get a new blog going. I will no longer be adding blogs to this site. Please now visit my blog at:

http://www.businessinredshoes.co.uk/

Thanks Rebecca

Merry Christmas to you all

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 10:19:00 +0000

To all my friends, colleagues and clients I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a great New Year. To those of you I have been unable to catch up with recently lets make plans for 2011. For those who have been part of this busy but exciting year for me thank you as always for your support.

I know your all busy today dashing about making sure Christmas with your family will be perfect and I do hope that it is. All this snow has I know made life difficult recently but enjoy some time to relax with your family and friends. Don't forget to take this down time to review the last year in business and plan for 2011.

And finally my book 'Business in Red Shoes' will be available for pre-order shortly on Amazon along with a new coaching programme for women business owners in early 2011. Keep in touch and lets make 2011 your best business year yet.

Merry Christmas / Nadolig Llawen

Rebecca Jones - The Red Shoe Biz Woman

Apprentice winner – working mum of two – Stella English

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 11:24:00 +0000

Stella and Chris make it to the final

It’s not difficult to agree with so many of my friends and colleagues that Stella was a worthy winner. She remained cool and calm under pressure, organised feuding teams and generally threw herself into the process. For much of the process Stella has been determined and very focused yet all along she was juggling her role as a mother as well as a candidate. After winning Stella said: ‘As a mother you just think about your kids. They are the most important thing. I hope I have shown that you can be a woman, a mother and be in business and do well”.

It would seem Stella has stamped all over the belief that women don’t take risks and that mothers usually stick to the job they have rather than move on to a more unsettled role while the children are young. However that seems exactly what she has done, take a risk, leave her employer and move into a new sector to try out a boss and company who may or may not suit her and her family needs. Yet Stella herself suggests that 'You know the thing about employing a mother – is that we stay in, we look after our kids. We’re reliable – you can’t risk losing your job because you have other people to consider.’

Stella and new boss Lord Sugar

Stella has demonstrated that as women and mothers we can step up to a new challenge without being distracted by the day to day needs of our family. And what does Stella put it all down to ‘I have been a working mother for a long time now and it does take a lot to keep everything going. I am very lucky because my fiancé has been a great support to me. It is about being organised.’

Stella’s organisational skills will no doubt be stretched in 2011 but I have no doubt that she will manage to combine her role with Lord Sugar as well as her role as a mum. Her children will admire there mum and all she has achieved and wow what an excellent role model she is. Showing that determination, drive and a lot of hard work does pay off.

Good luck Stella, enjoy your success.

Job cuts in public sector could see more women considering self-employment

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 10:44:00 +0000

Deb Leary OBE is the president of the British Association for Women Entrepreneurs. She believes that the cuts in national spending could see more women turn to business start up. Speaking recently about the public sector spending cuts and likely redundancies she said “Its going to be hard for some but one of the key things about this is that it is also an opportunity; it may be an opportunity towards self employment”.

With unemployment among women rising in the last quarter of 2010 to 31,000, the opportunities for those seeking new posts are likely to be limited. In addition women who, in the words of Deb Leary, “are a resourceful bunch”, may see this as the final push towards making their business start up dreams a reality. With some limited cash in hand from their meagre redundancy pay out, it is likely that women will use it to start up a small or home based business. Making income generation their own responsibility, and cutting their ties to employers for ever.

With higher than ever visitor numbers to my web site, and other resources for women in business and mumpreneurs, it seems more and more women are turning to themselves to provide job security going forward into 2011.

Watch this space, and Twitter for my new business start up coaching programme to get you and your business off to a fab start in 2011.

Know your audience well and offer them what they want – it usually leads to success - The Apprentice Week 6 – Advertising

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 25 Nov 2010 10:28:00 +0000

The big give away of this week’s task must have been the location for Lord Sugars revel. Pinewood studios - to you and I the location for films such as James Bond and Harry Potter - to Sandeesh, the furniture showroom people! Really Sandeesh, I know I always say entrepreneurs don’t need qualifications, but an ounce of common sense and general knowledge helps!

As often happens, the candidates spent plenty of time on their own egos and personal desires when considering the product. When will they learn to always offer what the customer wants. This lack of consideration saw Stuart’s team left with the challenge of selling motor racing experiences to toddlers!

The girls on Stuart’s team rose to the challenge, and even managed to get him to believe it was his idea to sell to children. Yep, a definite female male manipulation skill demonstrated there. Well done girls, your customer focused thinking, and powers of persuasion with Stuart, led the team to victory. Even with his appalling communication and leadership styles. I think the girls should have had an additional treat for keeping their patience with him!

Interestingly, the winning team upped their price from £10 to £15 during the day, while the losing team slashed theirs from £12 to just £8. All the prices were plucked from thin air, and had no thought behind them of the audience and what was realistic. But it was Sandeesh’s team who made the least profit and therefore saw them return to the board room. Her weak leadership and poor decision making saw her become this weeks board room casualty.

From this week we can learn the importance of knowing your market and understanding your pricing in relation to your customers.

Daft saying of the week comes from Stuart – “I like adrenaline… why be boring that’s for someone else to do … I want every day to be jam packed with fun” – this from a man in a corporate suit who treats his team like kids. Yep, fun fun fun!

Gut feelings are important, but base them on fact -The Apprentice Week 5- Fashion

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 10:10:00 +0000

The world of fashion is a more complex business than it appears. From the moment Lord Sugar announced the task you had a feeling this was going to be a tricky task. Without the luxury of time to actually research the market place its obviously difficult to select the two designers. However instinct should tell them that its likely to be easier to sell the cheaper ranges than the top end stuff, especially when you have no customer base to start from.

I’m known for getting business owners to consider their gut instinct more often, but, those gut feelings are usually based on some knowledge of the business you are in and it was obvious from some of the decisions made that few of the candidates had knowledge of retail and fashion. Other than Alex, who chose to pop his head over the parapet and announce his retail guru status, and what’s more his in depth knowledge of the location for the task ‘The Trafford Centre’. Do these guys not watch previous episodes when these promises of insider knowledge and higher level expertise regularly comes back to bite them in the board room?

Lord Sugars aide Nick (my favourite in all this) likened Stella standing in the shop window with a short sparkly dress on as similar to the ladies seen in windows in Amsterdam. Don’t you just know that will be used against her in the future, and didn’t she think, when she was stood awkwardly waving, just how it would look on TV?

Chris seemed to excel at selling clothes to women. He is a bit of a smoothy and could be worth keeping an eye on for the future. Paloma, on the other hand, sealed her own fate by her outburst in the board room; very ugly, unladylike and unprofessional. Sir Alan you were right to let her go.

Daft saying of the week came from Alex, the retail expert, who stood outside the shop with a limp sweater on a hanger asking random passers by “What do you think of this jumper, do you like it” odd they replied “not really”. Oh Alex you didn’t listen to your famous retail professor!

BOOK REVIEW How they Blew it – Jamie Oliver and Tony Goodwin

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 09 Nov 2010 17:25:00 +0000

This book looks at 16 entrepreneurs and CEO’s (one per chapter) who have been involved in some of the most catastrophic business failures. Most tales explain how they have built up vast empires, often from nothing, only to lose it all again, frequently in moments of weakness or possible madness.

Whilst I found this book interesting from the angle that someone had researched the way in which each of the entrepreneurs featured had made and lost their fortunes I found it a bit lacking in actual insider knowledge or real understanding of why these men did what they did. I was left wondering what, other than shock value, this book had to offer me as a learning tool. I had hoped it would explain more about what makes entrepreneurs take unreasonable risks and how others can save themselves from similar fates.

It did however cement in my mind that even the most intelligent people can become swept up in the moment. Believing they are invincible and that it is their business skills alone which has seen them get this far; leading them to believe that any business they touch will be a success. The book demonstrates, as I have seen before, that success in one field does not guarantee success in another.

Would I recommend this book? Well yes actually. Its an easy and interesting read, which you can dip in and out of, but its let down by its lack of reflective learning, although perhaps great to make you feel better about your own success.

Think before you speak as others are often wiser than you - The apprentice – week 4 – Selling to the trade

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Sat, 30 Oct 2010 07:56:00 +0000

As often is the case with the apprentice a lack of clarity and poor communication cost both teams dear. Losing sales because you haven’t been clear with the supplier or the trade customer are in excusable. Not asking for the right information before putting yourself up for a pitch is down right rude to all involved. Remember its important to value your time, your customers time and above all value the product you are selling, because if you don’t, they sure as heck will not.

In business it is a fatal mistake not to be clear in your own mind, before you pitch and hold discussions with customers regarding the price, order and discount levels of the product. It is often necessary to make a quick decision, and having the facts clear in your own head means that is possible.

Yet again a gaggle of girls let us down with in group fighting. Mainly caused no doubt by the individual order books, but some clear communication and clarity at the beginning may have smoothed over their determination to succeed at all costs. Put those claws away girls. Thank goodness Liz showed us all that girls can be excellent in business, well done to you. You listened and learnt from the business woman who pitched the babygro to you and used the same tone, words and clear demonstration which worked so well. Hats off to the producers of the product and Liz for a boardroom record in sales.
So in essence this week may have seen a girl make the best pitches but others make this a week of Halloween witches, and we can all learn how communication is always key in business.

Daft saying of the week

Melissa in defending her pitch, which led to no sales, “ What has my ability to pitch got to do with the way the pitch went” - Oh Melissa, think you need some more feedback, although – the fact it was you that got fired is feedback in a way.

Dough, Dosh and despair - The apprentice – week 3 – The bakery

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 07:50:00 +0000

Dr Shibby showed the world just how easy it is for business owners to sell even when they are a new start up business. He also showed it’s the delivery of the product and customer service which enables business owners to make a profit and continue trading. Under sell over deliver should be the name of the game here so you always exceed your client’s expectations.
Mind you at least he could work out the costings. Melissa doesn’t seem to be able to add up, either with or without a calculator. If her team had lost I’m sure she would have been going home. Please don’t give her your spreadsheets Lord Sugar.

A lesson to you all here: business is about ideas, income and profit, and customers are the key to all three.

Daft saying of the week came from Melissa, who decided the task would be about hampers. “Yes” she said all excited “create a hamper that speaks”. Never work with children, animals and talking hampers !!!

GIRLS GIRLS GIRLS - The Apprentice – week 2 Beach accessories

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 07:44:00 +0000

Stella thank goodness showed control and great leadership qualities with the boys team. Even Lord Sugar, all be it with some prompting from Karen Brady agreed to the benefit of ‘women power’. If it hadn’t been for her the whole episode would have been a disaster advert for women in the workplace
After years of women, mothers, grandmothers and great grandmothers campaigning tirelessly for the rights of women in the workplace the girls tonight demonstrated why maybe we should be put in a cage fight rather than a board room.

I’ve worked with women, women only companies and management teams for years and never have I seen such cat fighting and blatant disregard for each others views. The whole thing was a shambles; no business idea, no leadership, no responsibility and no sales.

Learn some manners girls, consider your dignity and for goodness sake learn to sell.

Daft saying of the week came from Jamie “when I open my mouth it’s like a Champagne bottle that will explode unless I get it all out.” Yes well Jamie, sometimes in business we have to learn when to keep our mouths shut and it’s usually when the Champagne has been flowing.

Women like good quality sausages – Apprentice week one

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Mon, 11 Oct 2010 17:06:00 +0000

So this years apprentice has started off well the women won having gone for a quality product, clear management (by a female business owner) and in general more decorum than the men.

When working with women business owners I find they prefer to go for the higher end of the client spectrum in whatever sector they have chosen rather than the more brash pile them high sell them cheap format favoured by the boys this week.

In total the programme was as ever full of moments of laughter and moments of utter ridiculousness. This week my cringe award goes to Shibbi, a surgeon none the less who stated "My first word wasn't 'Mummy', it was 'money'". Oh right I’m sure it was.

So we all start next week with one less boy, sorry but Lord Sugar got that one right he had to go, and hope that the girls triumph yet again.

My advice to the girls, learn to work more as a team, use your two finance girls to always keep an eye on the money in and out, its all about profit and never about loss in this game.

Popes red shoes

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 14:05:00 +0000

I'm not really a religious person and don't usually follow state visits or religious activities. However yesterday when the pope was on British TV I was stuck in a waiting room with only the news channel for company. So I followed him landing and going to meet the queen and then hang on is that red shoes I see?

Yes in deed it was a pair or red shoes. Now these red shoes struck me as daring almost a personal attempt to show his desire not to conform with the norm. My interest in his red shoes stayed with me all day.

The more I thought about it. The more I wondered does he have red shoes to show he is an individual with personality whilst still conforming by keeping the usual clothing. Is he showing us a more devilish side to him.

Consider my disappointment then after some research that no these red shoes are not his personal rebellion against conforming but rather a custom which goes back to the middle ages when wearing of red shoes was seen as a sign of noble status.

This leads me onto my own red shoes (don't worry I have more than one pair) which I wear as a sign of individuality. I am willing to conform with my suits and business like approach but I still like to be a bit of a rebel with my colourful shoes. Well that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

So for me my red shoes are a sign of individality a little bit of fun and a cheerful part of a usually dull business apperance. It is not a sign of nobility nor a lack of colour co-ordination on my part. My red shoes often bring a smile to the faces of those I meet and are often a talking point.

I'd love to know what you all do to show your individuality at work. Could red shoes become the next big thing?

Keeping in touch with possible customers

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 10:55:00 +0000

For many business people keeping in touch with possible clients can be an area in which they struggle. Never knowing if they are sending them too much information or not enough, should they keep in touch by personal visits, calling them occasionally or just send generic newsletters.

The problem is these days that all of us receive such large amount of information on a daily basis. E-mails, web sites, newsletters, brochures, adverts on TV, posters, flyers you name it the information about what business can offer us is in our face all the time. In the end they all roll in to one and just become background noise.

So in business we are constantly looking at how to stand out from others. I learnt long ago that marketing brochures and flyers alone would not help me personally to attract business, in fact I no longer use any printed information other than business cards. For me and my businesses it doesn't work, the information is too static I cant stand out from the crowd and I always seemed to end up with boxes of left over materials that have gone out of date. That's not to say it doesn't work for others, but for many of us we can’t get the quantity of brochures out there to give us the kind of sales we need.

What can you do then? First of all know your customers, no I mean really get to know them, who are your potential customers. Find out how they currently buy products similar to your own and look at how you could do similar or better.

Start considering why much more,
- Why people buy from you?
- Why they select you or your products and not someone else ?
- Why does or doesn't you current marketing format work for your potential customers?

Then think about how
- How do your potential customer buy similar products now?
- How do your potential customers select products now?
- How can your marketing communicate with your potential customers in a more attractive way?

All too often I see businesses spending time and money on marketing and communication activities which can not only be ineffective but could potentially alienate clients. Start considering why communication methods can work in keeping in touch with potential clients before you spend time and money on them. Get to really know and understand your customer base and how they wish to be communicated with and concentrate on doing that really really well. Then ask for feedback and listen to it and amend your methods based on that feedback.

Finally understand what it is you are expecting from your marketing activities. Is it to gain new customers, increase the sales to current customers or to raise general brand awareness? I’ll talk about this some more soon so call back or bookmark this page.

2065 will be a year to celebrate

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 24 Aug 2010 11:42:00 +0000

According to the Chartered Management Institute (CMI) 2065 will be the year when women managers at last are paid on an equal basis to men. They go on to tell us that men at senior levels are currently paid 24% more than women in the same roles.

Having spoken about this at conferences, events and interviews in the past I know I am often asked why I think this is the case. It is difficult to point to clear reasons. The cynics amongst us would say because the employers can get away with it. We are told time and time again it is because as women we do not ask for more money or question what we are offered. If I’m honest I think more women would ask for a pay rise if they thought it was an acceptable thing to do, we just don’t get taught that its ok to ask for what we feel we deserve

CMI go on to say that 4.5 % of the female workforce has experienced redundancy in the last 12 months, compared to just 3% of men and that 7.7 per cent of female directors voluntarily left their posts in the last year, compared to just 3.6 per cent of men.

Women maybe are getting fed up of the way they are treated, how work impacts on their lives or just they are more willing to step out into the cold and see what else comes along. Could it be that they see a redundancy pay out as a good time to go it alone and become their own boss.

Could the Welsh shop their way out of the recession

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 10:34:00 +0000

I visited Cardiff this weekend, and as a born shopper, I took the opportunity to visit the biggest department store in Wales. The new John Lewis store, it's biggest store outside of London we are told, opened for business in the Welsh capital last week.

This new shopping meca is part of a £675m retail development in the centre of the city next to the new library building and only a stones throw from other attractions that the ever developing city has to offer.

And boy was it busy in town, shoppers clutched their smart John Lewis bags as they shunned the more tired and dependable department stores they have visited time and time before. The question is can Cardiff sustain this 280,000 sq four-storey John Lewis store. Already other stores like House of Fraser are discounting lines and running special offers.

Will the nearly 800 staff employed in this clean white shopping palace still be smiling when the shoppers start realising the opening of the queen of all department stores in Wales does not mean that the recession is over. In deed shoppers disposable income is not likely to be any healthier however beautifully laid out the goods are in the aisles.

But the ring of the tills were clear this weekend and whilst bags didn't look overly packed it may be that some Welsh shoppers are trying their very best to raise Wales out of recession through retail therapy alone.

Recession sees sharp increase in demand for women’s enterprise support

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 09:07:00 +0000

Prowess the UK association of organisations and individuals who support the growth of women's business ownership has reported a sharp rise in demand for business support by women. However it also reports that women are delaying starting businesses until the economy stabilises.

After surveying 130 Prowess members, who provide business support to 180,000 women they reported that those providers also report a significant reduction in the availability of bank finance and that it is having a devastating effect on businesses.

"Prowess members are calling for the female dimensions of the recession to be reflected proportionately in programmes of support. Based on the many roles women have, support networks and long-term holistic support will be key in this economic downturn not just for their businesses but the consequences and effect it will have on families and individuals." says Prowess

This comes after this enterprise model was championed by Germaine Greer as she addressed the Prowess 2009 conference, urging women to avoid taking a masculine approach to business and condemning the reckless behaviours that have led the world into economic crisis.

For more information visit Prowess web site

I always knew I could twitter now it brings me business

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 09:44:00 +0000

From a very young age I remember being told to stop twittering. I think I used to annoy my family and friends with the constant twittering and jabbering. But now twittering is becoming not only socially acceptable but a useful business tool.

What am I talking about, well the online micro blogging site twitter of course. If you have never seen or heard of it (I wonder were you have been) then its well worth a visit just to discover the world of tweeting and tweets.

I’ve really lost you know haven’t I and you are asking, what is twitter? Well twitter is a simple micro blogging service. This means you can blog as I am doing here in this article, but the blogs are only very short updates or messages, in fact they are a maximum of 140 characters. These messages are sent out as tweets to your followers.

People select to follow you and then receive your tweets, you in turn can follow them or other people to receive their tweets.

You can twitter about anything you like from what you had for breakfast to how to invest in property in the current climate. Some people tweet for fun other for business or self promotion. Many business users like myself do it to raise their profile. I can tweet my followers and let them know about forthcoming events, talks and training and share my expertise in short useful tips. I can also use it to inform about products but this can be off putting to followers.

The main aim of twitter is to forge links, share knowledge and raise awareness of you, your business or your brand. Selling should be a side product from the promotion of your business. For example I may send tweets about starting in business and people may enjoy reading them and so visit my blog or web site and this in turn may lead them to buy from me. That of course is always great.

Research by mashable.com a leading authority in social media states their are currently over 12 million users on twitter and with istrategylabs.com reporting that 46% of twitter users have a degree and 17 % having a post grad degree it shows a mixed bunch of people using it on a regular basis. In fact women account for 53% of the users and 78% of users are aged between 18 and 49. If these include your target demographics then twitter may well work for you.

Remember, twitter is about linking with others, helping them by sharing knowledge and as with most things in business making connections. Businesses of all sizes are using twitter to connect with their target markets and celebrities use it to keep their fans linked to them. Whatever you use it for twitter can be both fun and informative. Go on give it a go follow me on twitter Rebecca Jones
Want to know more about twitter visit twitter marketing

Women rule the world

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:30:00 +0000

I hear tweeting do you

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 12:36:00 +0000

Well I have spent some time last week and this on twitter. Now all I can hear is tweeting although it could be something to do with the bird feeder outside my office window.

The idea of twitter is a message system using your phone or internet connection to send short messages (140 characters to be exact) to those who have chosen to follow you. What messages you send are entirely up to you. Mine are mainly business related and give you links to great web sites I have found and all that great stuff I just know and I think you may like to.

The difficulty is if you start to follow others you then get their tweets and if you don't control it you can spend all day reading about Aled from Wales campaigning for his local theatre and Stacey from the states who loves food and sharing food ideas with you. All very interesting you may think but the value to me is what. Well from my twittering I have learnt bout projects which can benefit my clients, found a guy who can help me with a commercial mortgage I need and generally been entertained by the antics of others.

Want to join me go to http://twitter.com/Rebecca_Jones and select follow and then you to can enjoy hearing about me and my life.

Want to understand how twitter could help you in your business visit http://www.theresultsacademy.com/75-ways-to-use-twitter/

A step too far – is business start up for you?

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 14:36:00 +0000

Are you a would be business owner? Always planning, considering business ideas, developing adverts and designing the logo? Yet you haven’t actually given your notice in at work, taken the lease on a shop, or signed that contract for your first business enterprise yet.

It’s hardly surprising in the current economic situation that you are considering your options very carefully, re-planning, re-calculating and generally wondering if going it alone would suit you.

I have learnt that, for some people, their business idea really is only a dream. They have no intentions of ever starting it up, but the dream itself is enough to give them the escapism they crave.

You now need to decide, will you always be the dreamer, or do you want to be the boss? I believe that now is as good a time as any for most business start-ups. At least this way you would be in control of your destiny rather than waiting for the boss to hand you your redundancy package.

Firstly, what you need to do is start looking at the reasons why you want to be your own boss; and you can then concentrate on these reasons when doubts creep into your mind. Look at the benefits of being self-employed; you know there are downsides but concentrating on them won’t help you make this leap from employment to self-employment.

Secondly, review your skills. Concentrate on what you are good at, not potential failures. Most business owners don’t know everything; that’s why they read books, share with each other, employ staff or ‘buy in’ support when they need it.

Thirdly, know your market. Having a brilliant business idea and no market place is a common business error. Find your market, then identify its needs and offer them what they want.

Finally, if you want to run your own successful business you will need to take that decisive step at some point and, if you have done your research and planning, you will need to make the move at some point. Accept that only you will really know when the time is right, don’t ask family and friends as they are likely to answer how they feel about the idea and it’s not them starting a business its you.

Good luck on your enterprise journey.

British Women wealthier than men

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 08:00:00 +0000

It is estimated that British women will be wealthier than men by 2025, owning 60% of the nation's personal wealth

Go girls

Banks don't consider the people behind a bank account

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 08:00:00 +0000

It seems almost a weekly occurrence now for me to hear about how another business owner I know of looses the battle to keep their business afloat because of the banks.

In general many of these businesses are not bad they actually could be and often have been successful. Experienced staff, orders and a good customer base isn't enough to keep the bank of your back for many business owners.

If a bank decides almost overnight to call in your overdraft its fairly inevitable that you will loose your business and all it means to you, your family and your staff. Its usual for many business owners to have a business overdraft for times in the year or month when expenditure rises above income. Over the year this often sorts itself out. But without an overdraft it can mean paying staff or suppliers is not possible.

If banks are unwilling to consider supporting your business even with a full order book it seems many businesses will have to go the same way. I wonder just how the government's current schemes for business owners will help in these situations.

Maybe banks need to be a bit more supportive to these business owners and help them by giving them the support and advice they need to make their businesses more stable during this unsettled time. Every time a business ceases to trade their staff loose a job, any suppliers owed money will have an impact on their business and the owner will have the difficulty of coming to terms with the upset and personal loss.

Mind you last week I tried to open a new business account with my business bank of over 10 years and they cant even be bothered to call me back so with customer care like that its no surprise they don't care about the real people behind a business bank account.

When will banks get it right?

Hay girls we have never had it so good says pants man

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 15:49:00 +0000

Sir Stuart Rose Chairman of Marks and Spencer's tells us how girls have never had it so good. The best thing Marks ever gave me were good quality pants but Sir Rose tells us women in his workplace have no glass ceiling to worry about although they still do moan about it.

Talking of his staff he says one has 2 or 3 children (well its hard to remember actual facts) and has made her way up the ladder. So obviously no glass ceiling then. Telling the Observer newspaper women had it all and what else did we want then, Sir Rose seems to think having one female fighter pilot who has now joined the red arrows shows just how far equality has come.

Gosh maybe he should spend some time in the shoes (sorry pants) of some of the women I work with.

to read more visit http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8075642.stm

Degrees of seperation still for girls

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 10:22:00 +0000

The Independent newspaper reported how female university students beat male students in everything. With more women than men studying at university, less of them likely to drop out and more of them leaving with a better degree. Yet despite this the women leaving higher education are likely to earn a lower salary than men who are leaving with the same level of qualification.

Why is this? Well we are being told it could be down to the fact that women choose subject areas which are likely to lead to lower salaried positions. For example teaching or creative industries.

What should be done about this? I wonder who is to blame, do girls tend to choose sectors which pay less or are employers paying less because they know they can. Additionally what can be done to encourage girls into other sectors.

With a daughter planning on entering university this September I know how difficult the decisions can be about the course and career route to take. Our daughter has chosen a non traditional route for a girl yet she has had little encouragement or support for this.

I wonder if we are doing enough to open up the eyes of our young people in general to the opportunities out there and to encourage them in the choices they make.

Employee by day entrepreneur by night.

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Jones) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:01:00 +0000

There have been reports recently of the increase in 5-9 business ownership. With the increase in on-line businesses which don’t require staff or full time commitment more and more employees are running their business in the evening after completing a day in the office.

Often running their enterprise from a laptop at the kitchen table many of these businesses are not to be laughed at. Often started to earn extra money for treats or from a hobby which has grown, these entrepreneurs can frequently earn a good second income. On-line business support web site Enterprise Nation recently reported that 5 million people work from home outside of their day job.

These part time business owners report their businesses are growing. Many of the 5-9 business owners I know have plans to give up their day jobs once their business has grown sufficiently, others have no intentions of becoming a full time business owner but enjoy the buzz of running a business and the benefits of extra money.

So why are more and more people working in the evening after a long day at the office. Well it is possible that many are doing so as the economic situation in the country has become more worrying. Knowing you can add to your salary by running a small enterprise in the evening and weekend could take off some of the pressure of the mounting bills. Or you could use it as a back up plan if you feel less convinced about long term job security.

How then could you run a part time business? Well first of all many part time businesses grow out of hobbies or interests. Karen started baking wedding cakes for friends who then told others and soon she had a list of customers. Initially able to satisfy requests by working at the weekends and some evenings the business grew and is now a full time enterprise. Rob takes on private tuition classes in the evening for extra money to pay off his student loan, but he has no intention of leaving his full time teaching job. Anyone can find something to do Avon, Betterware, Virgin Vie and other party plan or door to door sales companies offer part time business opportunities . Or you could start an on-line shop, possibly using e-bay to start with or other on-line business ideas. The ideas are endless and you will know what suits you, your skills and the time you have available.

To run a business and go to work you will need to be organised and committed to both, to ensure your employer and your business are both treated fairly. Don’t be unrealistic about what you can take on or how long things will actually take. Plan your business and treat it professionally, it may be a part time business but it has the ability to become something more and setting it up correctly to begin with will save problems in the future.

Don’t forget your employer, your business mustn’t distract you from the day job, if you still need the salary from your employer your commitment to them must remain high. It may also be necessary to check with some employers if your contract allows secondary employment / self employment. It’s also important to remember your tax implications, speak to the tax office and let them know your plans and look into the effect any additional income will have on your tax especially if it takes you into another tax bracket.

Running a business part time whilst still in employment is a great way to try self employment and see if you like it and if your business idea works. Remember don’t over commit and be realistic and above all have fun