Welcome to my first Business Boost Newsletter...

So here we go! My first Boost news letter! The summer is officially over (well not according to the weather) many of us have taken some much needed time off with loved ones and recharged, many of us have juggled childcare with work and now schools are back. It always feels like September is a re-set in so many ways for me, a fresh start! I know this to be true from the fantastic turn out at my #NatWestBoost event yesterday, with many of you commenting on how good it is to be out and about once again with a renewed sense of excitement and optimism for the months ahead.

I want to say a huge "thank you" to everyone of you that was able to attend yesterday's Boost with the excellent, Rob Bosworth , wowing us with such an inspirational leadership talk, many of you would have seen the posts on LinkedIn. It's so encouraging to hear how uplifted you all felt when you left the room yesterday!

Perhaps the quote of the day from Rob's excellent talk (and certainly one that will always remain me) is this...

Stepping out of our comfort zones and going for it - certainly hit home for so many people - a timely encouragement!

If you're interested in joining the next #NatWestBoost event in November *Save the date November 14th* tickets will be out soon!

You can register to receive all my future event notifications via this link,

James Court, Eventbrite

We would love to welcome you!

Business Growth Support

If you're reading this and you would like some 1-1 / mentor support from me then please email me,

[email protected] or send me a direct message and let's talk!

We also have a range of support available via our NatWest Entrepreneur Hub

Local Upcoming Networking Events

• Exeter Chamber of Commerce have a range of local events planned for members and non-members, book here - Exeter Chamber Events
• Local IT business, Nexus Open Systems are running a leadership event for local business leaders on 5th October, (I'm delighted to be speaking too!) Tickets are available here -Nexus Presents "Brilliance" 25th Anniversary Event, Exeter

• Funny Business - A night of comedy and networking in support of charity, The Amber Foundation - Tickets available here - Funny Business 3

• LinkedIn Local Exeter - Tickets here - LinkedIn Local Exeter Tickets

• The Samphire Club - The Samphire Club - Events Page
• Six Degrees (Female Only) - Six Degrees Events

Local News

Can you spare 4 minutes to help shape the future of our economy in Exeter?

This is an anonymous survey, and the collective results will be shared with the Bank of England to help form a picture of the country’s economy.

Your voice can help make a real difference - Bank Of England Survey SMEs the survey will be available on the Exeter Chamber LinkedIn page to complete until Monday 18th September - 12noon.

Encouraging Read (for Coffee/Tea Break)

Don’t let the Chimp stop you…It’s never too late to turn your dreams into reality?

As a NatWest Local Enterprise Manager, I am fortunate to meet and work with some amazing minds and brilliant people all with a common goal – to turn their dreams into a reality. From one-to-one mentoring to facilitating events and opening doors for new businesses (or established), my goal is to ensure people hit theirs – and there is no better feeling than to see people and businesses succeed, because you’ve given them a helping hand along the way.?

So, when is the right time to turn that dream into a reality? My answer is always the same…TODAY! As humans we’ve all got that ‘Chimp’ on our shoulder, (for those of you who have read The Chimp Paradox by Steve Peters, you’ll know what I’m talking about, for those who haven’t, this book could quite possibly change your life) telling us we can’t do something because….or now is not the right time, because… . But you absolutely can do whatever you want to do, when you want to do it, because why shouldn’t you fulfil your dream? ??

At this time of year, we often re-focus again and I personally believe it’s the perfect time to give your dreams, plans and future goals the space to grow and develop into something exciting and hopefully profitable.

Whether it’s a personal or a business goal, the ability to allow ourselves to dream and build our vision for a brighter future can feel like “pie in the sky?” Fanciful? Something for wacky and creative people who have no responsibilities?… WRONG!?

One of the most inspirational business thinkers and entrepreneurs of the last 75 years, never allowed himself to stop dreaming, so much so that he created a process that is still used today. His name is Walt Disney.?

Walt Disney devised a creative process that is (in my opinion, pure genius…)?

I’m introducing this to you to help you find a way or a process and focus, to make sense of what you’re carrying. Perhaps you’ve committed your ideas and goals to paper, told a close friend or business partner, however, you’re not sure of how you bring it to life. So, let’s learn from one of the best that ever was…

?For a new project Walt Disney created three separate rooms or spaces,

?1) The Dreamer

2) The Realist and

3) The Critic

?Each room and the people within it were initially deliberately kept apart.

?The Dreamer?– the room where no idea was off limits.

No plans or thoughts considered too outlandish, they had free reign to let their imaginations run wild – without any hindrance.

They would allow themselves to almost become child-like again and just think of the most fantastic ideas possible! (I would have loved to be a fly on the wall in that room!)

The Realist?– the room where the ideas were analysed for the ‘how’.

‘How’ could they apply this? What plans, timescales and resources would they need to make them happen?

How could practical sense be made of an idea and then potentially be taken forward

The Critic?– the room for any weak spots in the ideas to be identified.

Why wouldn’t this work? What’s potentially missing? What were the weaknesses?

Conclusion?– The result of these three processes was distilled down to the projects that Walt Disney would then work on. By keeping the processes apart, Walt Disney was able to keep the dream process alive and not instantly shot down by the critic stage, yet all stages were integral and still are to this day.

This process fills me with inspiration, a proven way of allowing our business ideas and personal goals to have potential to be more than just a thought and a maybe.

I wonder if you’re reading this, and you have a dream inside of you that is not yet dead. A vision for your future? Maybe it’s become dormant or your feel like you haven’t been able to pursue it because of circumstances? Maybe you told the wrong people/person and they made you feel like you wouldn’t succeed?

Give yourself permission to allow your dreams to run free again and then figure out your “how?” How am I going to make this happen? How am I going to move closer to that thing that I laid down? I’m now ready to pick it back up again and run at it with everything I’ve got.

?There’s that great saying, “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” well I’m saying it loud and clear (and you should too!) that your vision can become a reality if it’s given the right planning, focus and resources.

?Never let anyone tell you that you can’t do it if there is potentially a way to make it happen!

It’s ALWAYS good to dream, just imagine what many of our childhoods would have been like if Walt Disney had stopped?

Thank you so much for reading and see you next month!

Warmest regards,

James

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