Business Wisdom:

• Gotta own the stores/real estate/I.P./etc
• Delegate everything so you can focus on growing the business, give responsibility, goals and a budget and then let people get on with it
• You can get a market advantage by being the biggest that will make up for many other things
• When you’re doing deals stay until the job is done
• Perception is reality, act as though you are and it will create the fact
• Business is showmanship entertain people and they will thank you for it
• To get rid of politics anytime you here that someone is unhappy with someone else, then get them both together and sort it out
• Behave like you want others to behave
• Be sure to write in the franchise contract that we can sell the business and if we do sell then we reserve the right to change the franchise agreement
• Tell people the bad news as well as the good,
• Get other people of influence to invest in the biz to create credibility
• Customer service is everything
• Get the opinions of others but ultimately you make the decision
• Control the money
• Share a hope, share a dream but never share a doubt.
• Make BIG promises then figure out how to fulfil them, put yourself under pressure to perform.
• Test small then role out big.
• With a new product you have to give away the product as a sample to get people to try it, people have a natural aversion to trying new things so give it to them for free to build trust and a market base.
• When hiring people don’t hire for the job as it is, hire for the job you plan it to become (so if you’re at £5 million and your goal is to build a £10 million company hire the person you’ll need when you have a £10 million company.)

They’ve cost me a lot of money to learn and I read them everyday so as to remember them!

Neil