Curious Leadership with Dominic Monkhouse

Chris Baréz-Brown is the Founder of Upping Your Elvis, trainer, speaker, and author of such books as “Wake Up” and “Shine”. In his work, Chris helps people find and channel their energy by helping them understand what it is and how to increase it, and how to deploy it in a useful way. Chris works with diverse types of businesses to break down dysfunctions, and inefficiencies, to help bring more humanity into the workplace. Chris emphasises the importance of creating friendships at work, which builds trust and makes work more enjoyable. He also recently launched the social enterprise Talk it Out, which encourages people to achieve better well being. Tune in to get a better understanding of how to harness your own energy to create a more positive work and life experience. On today’s podcast: Understand the creative genius inside yourself How to manage your energy How to stop sleepwalking through our working lives How to manage the feedback in your head and use it to stimulate positivity Talk It Out - a social enterprise having an impact on mental health Links: Chris Barez-Brown Upping Your Elvis Energy Experiments TEDxUtrecht Talk It Out

Guy Rigby has been working with entrepreneurs for decades. He’s an accountant who takes a unique approach to the service by working directly with the founder at owner-managed business as the Chair of Entrepreneurial Services at Smith and Williamson. Guy is also the author of Vision to Exit, a book that tackles the very similar challenges most entrepreneurs face. Over the course of the conversation we talk about the common pitfalls many entrepreneurs face, what it means when you become risk averse in your business, and how to dream bigger. Tune in to hear Guy’s top tips for entrepreneurs who want to scale up, such as: Recruiting for character and training for skills Helping entrepreneurs succeed and achieve their goals over time Developing the confidence to pursue your vision Your first hire and who you need to have on board for growth Knowing when it is time to change something in order to move forward Links: Smith and Williamson Vision to Exit Dream Bigger Report

Spencer Gallagher and Pete Hoole work with the next generation of independent Agencies to help them scale as co-founders of Cactus. In the past eight years they’ve worked with more than 1,000 Agencies globally, all the while collecting notes about what was and was not working. They recently converted those notes into a book, Agencynomics, an Amazon five-star rated best selling book and Audiobook, aimed to help all types of Agencies scale from Start-up to the first £3-5M in revenue by setting the record straight on what KPIs should really look like. In our conversation we talk about some of the myths around what makes an Agency successful, where you should really focus your energy, and the four cornerstones that anchor business success. While the focus is on Agency growth, many of the areas they’ve identified are ubiquitous to the business world. In this episode we talk about: Why work-life balance and a corporate culture of trust is essential to success How personal relationships and networks to grow your business What your eNPS score should look like, and how to grow it Where you should be channeling your energy and qualifying your leads What it means to take a client-centric approach in the way you structure your staff Links: http://www.cact.us/ Agencynomics

Henry Stewart believes people should find joy at work. And it’s not just a nice idea, it’s good business. And as the Chief Happiness Officer at Happy Ltd and author of Happy Manifesto, Henry has made happiness his business. Happy workplaces are more profitable, and have increased share growth. Employees are naturally more engaged with their work, and staff retention improves. During our conversation we explore a few of the core principles of the Happy Manifesto and talk about what it really what it looks like when you trust your people. We also discuss how pre-approving, playing to strengths, and celebrating mistakes are continuing to revolutionise how Happy Ltd operates. On today’s podcast: Trusting your people and empowering them to make decisions Coaching rather than managing your staff, and selecting the right people for these roles Shifting from blame culture to embrace opportunities for improvement Training for skill, and getting great at your strengths Giving choices, not delegating tasks Links: Happy Ltd. The Happy Manifesto

Today I am talking to Barnaby Lashbrooke, founder and CEO of Time etc, an award winning virtual assistant service that helps entrepreneurs and leaders achieve more, without working harder. Through Time etc., Barnaby simultaneously provides a resources to help entrepreneurs grow their businesses, while providing an opportunity for stay at home moms to find meaningful work on their own terms. While Time etc. is primarily a workforce of virtual employees (around 700 employees across the UK and USA, with a home office of around 30 employees) Barnaby emphasises the human experience as an essential element of company culture. We talk about how this plays out both in the experience of his employees and in the engagement that his clients receive. On today’s podcast: Cultural shifts around the virtual workforce Evolving role of the executive assistant Challenges and solutions with new clients and new employees Building high performance teams Eliminating corporate hierarchies and creating a flat office Links: https://web.timeetc.com Barnaby’s TEDx video Barnaby’s Forbes Channel

Alexandra (Alex) Eavis is the co-founder of three distinct businesses that are tied by a common theme: harnessing technology to make life better, in a meaningful way. In 2017 Alex co-founded two companies. In January she took on the role of Director as Co-Founder of How Do I?, a social enterprise for a special needs school that uses NFC technology in vocational learning. By the end of the year she helped launch a blockchain platform to drive better information sharing in healthcare as Co-Founder and CEO of Dovetail Lab. She previously Co-Founded Alcove, another tech-based company that uses machine learning to assist older and disabled adults in their lives, and careers. For entrepreneurial success Alex credits hiring people who are smart and passionate, and talks about the importance of doing what you love. On the podcast we talked about: Investing in technologies to revolutionize for the future What it takes to make a social impact, and a profit The democratization of content creation Creating aspirational products Creating a space for a digital detox in our lives Links: Dovetail lab How do I?

Adam Fairhead is an English entrepreneur and philanthropist. He founded the Fairhead Group which serves cause-driven companies with the mission of helping difference makers make a difference. Today I’m talking to Adam about why it’s so important for companies to have a purpose. He works for and has the biggest impact on businesses that are seeking to change the world. We talk about how he does that, what his process is, the coaches that he has on staff and what they do with clients to help them get their message right. He’s also written a book called “Marketing Isn’t About You”. You can register for a free copy (when it comes out in March) here. On today’s podcast: Making communication clearer and more efficient Differences between the US and the UK Adam’s book, “Marketing Isn’t About You” The magic of having a service-oriented one-page scrollable website Adam’s book recommendations Links: Adam’s Website Adam’s Podcast Web page for free copy of Adam’s book, “Marketing Isn’t About You”

Today’s guest is Simon Biltcliffe, CEO of Webmart, a print management business in Bicester. Simon’s on a mission to make print more affordable for everybody. He’s built an amazing business with some impressive specs! They’ve capped the number of people, they share profit share with employees, Simon’s capped his salary and the business is owned by a trust so he couldn’t sell it even if he wanted to. Simon declares himself a “marxist-capitalist”, because without capitalism there’s no wealth, and without wealth there’s no redistribution. Join us for a fascinating conversation with plenty of takeaways for everybody! On today’s podcast: The marxist-capitalist business model Transforming his employees into entrepreneurs How they hire new people Why they do biannual team peer-reviews Simon’s book recommendations Links: Simon’s TED Talk Webmart

For the last 10 years, Elise Keith has been on a mission to fix the thing that most people spend the most time doing at work: meetings. Who hasn’t been in a terrible meeting? Elise witnessed people who should have been in conflict come together and have a great meeting. She has worked out what types of meetings there are, how to approach these meetings and how to get the best out of everybody. Today’s episode is all about getting things done by using well-structured, well-designed meetings. Don’t miss out! On today’s podcast: Meetings don’t have to be gruesome What makes a good meeting? Everybody needs to speak during a meeting Companies need to respect people’s time How to make an important decision Book recommendations Links: Where the Action Is Lucid Meetings

Peter Czapp loves what he does. He’s the co-founder of The Wow Company, an accountancy firm that helps you grow your business, not just fill in your tax return. He’s got a fascinating story and a lot of interesting thoughts on business, which I talk to him about for my podcast this week. Peter explains why he felt driven to launch his own company, despite not having a background in accounting. And why he’s so passionate about delivering that ‘Wow’ to clients. Lots of great advice included here. On today’s podcast: Why receiving negative feedback is the only way to get better Why he agrees that “culture eats strategy for breakfast” How he uses a special mind trick to turn negatives into positives Why focus is so important And, how you should always enjoy the journey! Links: The Wow Company The Agency Collective