Do any of you read? What do you read?

Transcription

1 Jeanne Booth Have always surrounded myself with books. Really got into business books when doing MBA with Open University and used to run Nottingham Business Book Club from View from the Top, my gallery and meeting venue in Waterstone s bookshop from Have always asked people about books they d recommend and for this presentation I asked contributors to T-shirts and Suits Paul Hough of Creative Greenhouse Rob Pittam of Filomena Rodriguez, creative industries consultant and David Ross I haven t been able to include anything like all their recommendations so I ve brought some along you can look at Also out of print Nottingham Creative Network commissioned book by Jim Shorthose several recommended it but it s out of print & although I m giving you best bits, I didn t want to whet your appetite & then you not be able to read more. Furthermore it s best bits according to me you ll find others that are the best to you if you do, let me know. Do any of you read? What do you read? 1

2 The most challenging thing for many creative businesses is working alone the isolation of working on your own from your home. Books are a really helpful way to get reassurance, to know you are not alone. It s great to recognise yourself in a book. Preparing for this session reading again some things I was familiar with and others that were new to me, I lost count of the number of times I wished I d read this or remembered I d read this before as it helped me understand what was happening to me. 2

3 Central problem for creative businesses how to make money without selling out. Your business is about doing more of what you love to do - but is somebody going to pay you enough money to enable you to make a living doing that. I know loads of people, makers, designers and gallery owners that started out with a vision of doing more of what they loved to do. David Parrish s work addresses this directly and is a great reference book you will return to. T-shirts and suits argues you can do it and it s refreshing because not many books do that. Will speak to the creative within you. Downside some of the language is unfamiliar and dense - sounds like altered from conventional MBA speak nothing wrong with that. 3

4 Read it now. I don t agree with it all you don t have to but you will probably recognise yourself but you probably won t like its message you ll find yourself objecting but the book deals with it. Technician probably you start business because you want to do more of what you enjoy, you want more freedom & probably want more money but if you get good you will become overwhelmed because you can t do it all (handbag example) -so if you re getting good and can afford to, you ll get somebody in to help. At first this means you can do more of what you want to do but you will eventually lose touch with the business you won t know what s going on with customers, books etc. Believe me many people have gone through this cycle many times. Key difference between entrepreneur and technician is the technician looks inwardly to define his skills and only outwardly afterwards to ask how can I sell them, the entrepreneur starts with a picture, not of the business to be created, but of the customer for whom the business is to be created. Ryan classic example Puts up Mcdonald franchise model (turn-key) as a way of integrating entrepreneur, manager, technician. horror! Managers put systems in place for business to deliver everything it says it will to the customer from first entry to exit. Predictable, reliable, robotic? But this is a classic case of a book helping you to see things in a different way it suggests that Business Development Processes thinking through every stage of how your business is experienced by the customer is like the process of developing the mastery of craftsman p The book goes on to discuss your primary purpose in life and your business and suggests these should be the same thing what would you like to be able to say about your life after it s too late to do anything about it can read on but I think the best bit is that bit that suggests being like McDonalds might be something to aspire to! 4

5 I ve grouped these two together because they are short, really easy to read less than an hour but also because they are good to give people around you. When you run a business it s not just you that s in it it s your family and friends, and your customers, suppliers, employees, freelancers. They are stories you might want to share with other people and spread understanding. And they re not just about business and jobs but applicable to your personal life. Who Moved My Cheese is a little fable about a pair of mice and little people looking for cheese but it s really about change and how to feel better about it, less fearful, indeed how to start enjoying it. It might seem silly when you start reading it but that s actually partly the point we all need to lighten up a bit and when things start to get scary, don t blame and bluster but say, blow it, somebody s moved the cheese, lets go find some new cheese! Johnny Bunko essential reading for kids in schools but brilliant at any stage in your career. About a genie who grants Johnny six wishes with six chopsticks & teaches him the most important lessons for a satisfying career. First myth it explodes is about the plan everybody always says you have to have a plan but as with cheese things keep changing and people change too. I ve interviewed loads of people about their careers nobody has plans or they changed pretty early on because life happened yet we keep telling kids to have a plan and keep their options open & don t teach them to deal with change. Do something because it s interesting because it lights you up. Don t try too hard to improve what you re bad at capitalise on what you are good at. But it s not about you it s about your client, your customer, use your strengths improving the lives of others in some way. But you don t have to be brilliantly talented. Persistence trumps talent what do athletes and musicians do that others don t? It takes ten years to become an overnight success. Mastery. That s why it s really important to do stuff you like to do because you will persist. Most successful people make spectacular mistakes. If you re afraid of messing up you ll never try anything. It s more risky not to make mistakes cheese. Leave an imprint use your limited time here to do something that matters makes a difference to the lives of others. (wedding photography) What would you like others to say about your life after its too late to do anything about it. What would your eulogy be? 5

6 This book was recommended by Rob, Ryan, David.. And I hated it when I saw it and first started reading it. It s American not in a good way. It s blokey and it seems like it s really focussed on making money which I don t really have a problem with! It also talks about sales teams and feels larger that you probably are but it has some really important lessons & changed my thinking. Ideas are two a penny. Loads of people have ideas & the same ideas you have. It s only when you start taking action. (much) Fewer people take action. Glassmaker idea using new technology printing on glass. Worried about starting working on it because it was a cheap process and she thought others would nick the idea. Wanted to have everything perfect and in place website, packaging, before she launched. Spend money but who knows whether it will work Begin when you are excited, don t let that excitement just wither away bogged down trying to get everything perfect. Don t be reckless. Book provides 7 questions to ask yourself. 6

7 We all have to get ideas across advertising, websites, press releases, getting publicity, networking, pitching. This book looks at what makes ideas stick with people how you can ensure they are memorable and people remember you. Could run a whole session on the six principles in this book. Book has before and after examples of writing. 1. proverbs. Get one point across 2. Unexpected surprise people journalism p Phrases like world-class customer service, high quality design are abstract express ideas in actions. We ll ring you within 10 minutes p credibility use vivid details, statistics but not in a boring descriptive way juxtapose with something surprising people can relate to. example in book is which is more likely to kill you shark or deer (300times car) Beef. 5. People feel for individuals not countries. Can t process big numbers. 6. People remember stories fables cheese is a fable You can t unknow something. Tapping. 7

8 Clear vision is not about meaningless mission statements but about what you are actually trying to achieve & it s as much about what you are not going to do as what you are going to do. ie. I m not going to look >2x day Focus Expenses car mileage accountant 5 minutes. Small chunks. Creativity thrives better with limitations. If there are no boundaries virtually nothing happens. The real creativity start when you knock the noughts off the budget. Timed bursts. Set i-phone timer for hour really stops me procrastinating. Closed lists a list with a line underneath it that you can t add to checklist. Getting rid of backlogs. Random don t keep checking Everybody has loads of interests but what do you actually want to commit yourself to and make those commitment concrete. not interested in writing online start and keep a blog regularly. go back to what you are trying to achieve. 8

9 Technology, Entertainment & Design short 20 minute films you can get many of the books summed up by the authors-gladwell, Shirky, Seth Godin Libraries you can use university libraries such as ntu 3x free. 50/year membership tax deductible 9

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