Today’s blog is written on the eve of completion of my first trimester in business. The first 4 months have been an amazing range of experiences and emotions, from the terror/hysteria of setting off for my first training assignment under my own steam, the excitement and deep satisfaction of working in Germany & the UK with some really high-potential individuals helping to develop their careers to developing a global training solution for an ascending manufacturer that I’m really, really proud of.
So what have I learned so far? Firstly, keep your nerve and believe in yourself and the reasons why you made to move in the first place. It is truly horrifying when the safety net of a magic payment into your bank account at the end of every month disappears immediately and even more so when you realise that (as standard business practise) some of your clients will pay you 2 months after the work is completed. However, when the ball finally starts to roll it is an incredible feeling knowing that it’s your business and your revenue. My advice to anyone who wants to embark on the same journey is to ensure that you have enough cash flow to endure the first few months.
I’ve also learned that when you work for a business as an employee in a Training & Development role and organisational plans and timings change, it’s not a big deal. When you run your own business as a supplier and those plans change you have to be flexible, resilient and most importantly not worry about the holes that appear unexpectedly in your diary. If you network, prospect and keep lines of communication open then the work will be there to replace it.
I’m about to take 2-week holiday that will give me some time to reflect on what I’ve achieved and learned and also clearly establish my goals for the future. Whilst I’m away, aside from the mandatory lightweight sunbed reading, I’m also going to be reacquainting myself with Stephen Covey’s ‘Seven Habits of Highly Effective People’ and a new book, recommended by a client; James Borg’s ‘Mind Power’. I have very little time to invest in my own personal development so I need to take the opportunities where I can.
So what does the rest of 2015 hold in store? Some exciting irons are currently warming in the fire (whilst being mindful of organisational plans changing!) that hopefully will involve some really interesting, challenging and culturally diverse work along with my existing portfolio of clients. I regularly tweet (@MattMolland) and update my business Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/mattmollandtraining) with developments so please follow me or ‘Like’ if you wish.
A couple of final points on what I’ve learned so far: As a facilitator whose primary function is to challenge, inspire, motivate others and demonstrate role-model behaviour, you have to walk the walk. Since starting the business I enlisted the help of the amazing David Kilmurry (http://davidkilmurry.com) and ended my relationship with tobacco and recently joined Bootcamp and committed to doing 3 hours hard-core physical exercise per week during evenings and weekends with a group run by an ex Royal Marine Commando with a target of losing two stone in weight by Q4. Anyone who knows me will know that is a big challenge for me but one that I fully intend on succeeding at.
Lastly, all of this has been done with the help and rock solid support of my partner, Nicola Green, who has been instrumental in the success of the business so far. So a big ‘thank you’ from me; the first cocktails are on me on holiday!