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If You Had a Great Mentor What Could You Achieve?
June 19, 2012 | The Bull
“A single conversation across the table with a wise man is worth a month’s study of books.” (Chinese proverb)
The Oxford dictionary defines mentor as “an experienced and trusted adviser.” Most successful people have reached…
The Best Cultural Rule for any Business.
June 13, 2012 | The Bull 4
This is an all too familiar scenario. A group of employees are booked to attend a conference or meeting
interstate or overseas.
They arrive at the airport and saunter over to the economy-class check-in line which, as always, is long…
The Susan Boyle Story – unearthing a genuine hidden talent
March 19, 2012 | The Bull
In the mid-1980s Susan Boyle was a 25 year old struggling singer performing in local pubs and churches around her village in Scotland. She had not had an easy life. Diagnosed with learning difficulties, she was bullied as a child and at school…
The Universal Job Description of Leaders
November 21, 2011 | The Bull
When it comes to language I am a basic guy that likes to speak in plain English. I try to avoid flowery language or “corporate speak” because it can be distracting and time-wasting. I have limited time, like everyone else, and like to get the…
Life lessons from a remarkable 88 year old gentleman
September 26, 2011 | The Bull 2
A while ago I met a remarkable 88 year old man with an extraordinary life story. It happened by chance. I was doing some volunteer work and started chatting to this elderly guy next to me. He looked vaguely familiar but I couldn’t quite place…Read More
Why not take Fridays off?
September 19, 2011 | The Bull 1
“Life is like riding a bicycle” To keep your balance you must keep moving.” (Albert Einstein)
What would happen to your business if you took every Friday off? How much would your overall life improve if you could work a 4 day week?…
Much of a company’s value lies between the ears of its employees
September 8, 2011 | The Bull 2
“Much of a company’s value lies between the ears of its employees.” (Jack Welch)
There is an old fable in which three stonecutters were asked about their jobs. The first said he was paid to cut stones. The second replied that he used…
Think you’re an entrepreneur? Well check this list.
July 25, 2011 | The Bull 4
Entrepreneurs are a different breed. Their life is a series of seemingly chaotic activities based around growing their businesses. They are focused and determined. Most of them are quite unreasonable in their aspirations. They have to be…Read More
Finding the Magic Number to Unlock Value in your Business
June 29, 2011 | The Bull 3
A few years ago I ran a 100+ store retail chain. I started it out of a spare room in my house. It grew quickly and within five years became the market leader in its sector. Looking back at how many mistakes I made in the early days it is amazing to think…Read More
Lessons from Apple – Narrow Your Focus.
May 30, 2011 | The Bull 2
“This is the most focused company I know, am aware of, or have any knowledge of. We say no to good ideas every day. Every single product the company makes would fit on the single conference table in front of me. And we had revenues last year…
Hurry up and get to the point
May 16, 2011 | The Bull 4
“I hate being presented to. Long, windy overhead presentations bore me to tears and I switch off when they’re on.
I don’t need to hear all the underlying research that lead to the conclusion presented on the final slide. What I need…
The best people in business treat company money as if it is their own money…
April 18, 2011 | The Bull 4
A constant question that I get asked is whether I think there are common behavioural traits among people in business that separates the best (or, at least, the better ones) from the rest. It’s not an easy question but I think there is one that…
The three P’s for successfully investing in businesses
April 11, 2011 | The Bull 1
Twenty four years ago I was a young banker watching young Warwick Fairfax privatise the venerable media company (Fairfax Media…) which bore his name. He did it armed with a recently acquired Harvard MBA and $1.7bn of bank funding. Not a badRead More
Is there one trait that all successful entrepreneurs share?
April 6, 2011 | The Bull
Someone once asked me whether I thought there was one trait that all successful entrepreneurs share. After thinking about it for a while I concluded that, in my view, that trait was paranoia…. But I don’t mean it in a literal, or medical,Read More
If you don’t like change, you’ll like extinction even less.
March 28, 2011 | The Bull 1
- an airline graveyard.
I had an interesting chat recently with a colleague of mine who runs a successful business. He was telling me how well the business is trading and how “easy…” things had become. At one point he told me that he feels allRead More
How often do you stop and consider what is really important to you?
March 22, 2011 | The Bull
Many people I know would answer this question with “not often enough”. Me included.
A common misconception is that there is not enough time to do everything you want to do. However, the reality is that time is abundant. The real problem…
What If you could start your business again?
February 28, 2011 | The Bull 1
If you could start your business again…? What would you do differently?
Would you structure it differently? Chose a different team? Different partners? Adopt a fresh management approach? Chase down different goals? Play in another…
Who is more important – customers, employees or shareholders?
February 7, 2011 | The Bull 6
Who is more important – customers, employees or shareholders?
From 1991 to 1996 I worked for a large Australian oil company. At the time the oil industry was undergoing massive change both structurally and competitively. Low-cost …
The Curious State of Retail
January 31, 2011 | The Bull 9
FROM THE BULL | Until 3 years ago the retail sector was booming. Then the GFC hit. Then online retail got more traction making life more difficult for bricks and mortar retailers. Then retailers started to falter and some failed.
But what’s…
Business Lessons from my Dad (and Roger Corbett)!
January 24, 2011 | The Bull 1
FROM THE BULL | When I was a kid my Dad, an ex-army officer, used to patrol the house turning off any unnecessary lights as he went. He still does. Dad is a “waste-not, want-not” type of guy. A childhood spent in the tough years of the 1930s,…Read More
The Habits of Those Boot-Strapping Start-Up Entrepreneurs that Make it Big
January 17, 2011 | The Bull 5
FROM THE BULL | I have a soft spot for entrepreneurs in general and start-up entrepreneurs in particular. The reason is that it is tough to start a business without much money and even tougher to make it work. To make it prosper requires guts, resilience,…
The Fallacy of “Industry Best Practice”
January 11, 2011 | The Bull 1
From the Bull | For many years I have heard people in business talk about industry best practice and expound on it as if it is some sort of Holy Grail. That, if you adopt it in your business, it will lead you to a business nirvana. This is a fallacy. …
The Bull’s Final Words of Wisdom for 2010
December 23, 2010 | The Bull
A Starry Night from Torchbox on Vimeo.
FROM THE BULL | As per my tradition for my final post of the year I don’t write a “wisdom” myself but instead hand it over to one of the greats to wrap things up as we wind it down for another year. Last year…
The Important Role of the “Scoop-Guy” and Making Sure Bad News Travels Fast
December 21, 2010 | The Bull 3
FROM THE BULL | For the past twenty years in the businesses I managed I was a “scoop-guy”. I didn’t ask for the role. And it’s not too popular or well-understood either. But every business needs one. Essentially, the scoop- guy EXPECTS…
Undercover Boss Newsflash | Employee Pees into a Can to Keep her Job
December 8, 2010 | The Bull 5
I’m a big fan of the TV show Undercover Boss, at least for its entertainment value.
The format of the show is quite simple. A high ranking executive or owner goes undercover as an entry-level employee in their own company. The executives alter…
The Single Best Piece of Business Advice I have ever Received
November 8, 2010 | The Bull 7
When I was in my 20s I worked for a merchant bank. The bank had an amazing office located on the 65th floor of an office tower overlooking Sydney Harbour. It was a great place for a young guy to work. I started as a Credit Analyst assessing business…
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