Successful Blog

Beach Notes: Being Prepared For Opportunity

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by Guest Writers Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

"Luck is when preparation meets opportunity"

Seneca,Roman philosopher, (5 BC – 65 AD)

On our morning beach walks we often see surfers getting ready to ride the waves. Typically they go through a number of limbering up exercises and yoga style stretches and poses.

One exercise is swinging their arm and bodies from side to side as in the photo. So they will be ready to seize the moment when that great wave comes along and ride it as far as they can.

In business we don’t always know where opportunities are coming from. We need to be mentally flexible and alert so we can recognize opportunity when it comes and to be able to act on it decisively and effectively.

What exercises do you do to be prepared to meet an opportunity when it arises?

Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh 

Beach Notes: Friending Offline

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by Guest Writers Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh

It came to us while walking on the beach last week.

You know how, what with Facebook and Twitter and Plurk and all the other social networking communities we all have these hundreds or thousands of friends online? Well, what if we were to friend some of those people we see offline?

That’s right, friends we can talk to, hang out with, but without having a keyboard or microphone or videocam to help us communicate!

Novel idea.

What triggered this particular brainwave, which we are currently seeking to trademark as “Friends in the Flesh”, was when, as we say, we were walking on the beach.

Now just by way of background, when we walk on the beach early in the morning there are several people we see most days. Some form of greeting or acknowledgement is exchanged, ranging from a hearty “Good Morning! Beautiful day!”, through to a friendly but fairly emotionless nod. You always know who the visitors holidaying from the city are: if you say “Good morning!” they look at you nervously and might manage a smile but you know their city reflexes have them suddenly in fight or flight mode.

Anyhow, the other day, a chap we’ve actually chatted with a few times and another who has been in the “nod or make a small, unostentatious sort of waving motion with the hand” category of morning beachgoers, stopped us to actually introduce themselves by name and discover our names.

Now when we see them it’s all “Suzie!”, “Des!”, “Pat!” and “Greg!” – and since they have introduced us to another of their friends, “Grahame!”.

We discovered we like this and now we are on a bit of a campaign to get to know the names of the other regulars.

Who knows where this could lead? The League of Offline Friends perhaps? With a list, in – what do they call it – a printed book?

Given the instantaneousness of friending on Facebook and following/being followed on Twitter, the four years or so it has taken for us to know the names of people we greet every day and have them know our names, and even stop for the occasional chat, seems – no, is – an extraordinary amount of time.

Is it possible, while we build amazing and multitudinous friendships online, that we are neglecting – literally walking past – opportunities for friendships in our offline lives?

What if 2009 were to be a year when we did some serious offline friending? Going beyond the wave or the non-committal half-smile exchange with people we see every day or regularly but really know nothing about to exchanging names and even having a chat or two.

A chat offline? You mean it’s ok to do that? Cool.

Do you have a story to tell about going from a “courtesy” wave or nod to actually friending someone offline? Care to share, here?

Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh wishing everyone an wonderful friendful 2009.

 

 

Beach Notes: Would Now Be a Good time To Start on Your Dream?

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True Story from Our Local Neighborhood
by Guest Writers Suzie Cheel & Des Walsh

At Kirra beach, near where we live, there is a new landmark, the multi-storey Kirra Surf apartment building, the latest manifestation of local retailing icon of the same name.

Its history is closely linked with that of another local retailing icon, internationally famous surfwear label Billabong.

Thirty-five years ago, in 1973, Kirra Surf did not exist and Billabong was just getting started.
The now very wealthy founder of Kirra Surf, Peter Turner, tells with some amusment the story of meeting for the first time the now also very wealthy Gordon Merchant, founder of Billabong.

Turner was working in a local surf shop, now long closed, and as he says, a young guy had walked into the shop trying to convince them to stock a new pair of board shorts Ð or ÒboardiesÓ as we call them here. The young guy was Gordon Merchant, , then eking out some income from what was basically a two person operation, himself and his wife. Merchant was selling surfboards and swimwear out of his station wagon.

As Turner tells it, Merchant “came in with three new pairs of boardies that he wanted us to stock.”

“He had written on the label: ‘Billabong, since 1973’ and I said “Mate, it is 1973” and he just looked at me and said “Well, you’ve got to start somewhere.”

Four years later, Turner took the young guy’s advice and opened Kirra Surf.

In March 2008 Billabong acquired Kirra Surf!

One story, one young man with a big dream inspiring another, two multi-millionaires.

Do you have a dream you’ve been putting off
till it’s a good time to start?

Would January 1, 2009, be a good time to get moving?

And if you share your dream and your decision here,
then someone can tell your story years from now.

Suzie Cheel and Des Walsh wishing everyone an abundant 2009

Story Source:http://rewarddevelopments.com.au/_assets/57-23-02-2007-15-12-23.pdf

Beach Notes: flipflop

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When Does Flexibility Become Flipfloppiness?
The Business Owner’s Challenge
by Guest Writer Des Walsh

The picture I took recently of an abandoned pair of flip-flops prompted my thoughts today on what I regard as one of the most serious challenges business owners face today.

The challenge of balancing flexibility and openness to change with the need for consistency in what we do and how we present it. 

Because if there is one thing all of us know about doing business in the 21st century it’s that we have to be flexible and adaptable. The business environment, the economy, the global political environment all change rapidly and with developments, twists and turns that leave even the most respected commentators and pundits scrambling to catch up and re-interpret, re-explain what they thought they had nailed just a few months ago.

If you are not flexible and adaptable you can look forward to the kind of future once arranged for themselves by buggy whip makers who saw the new-fangled vehicles we now know as cars going by and said “Won’t last. Give me a good pair of horses any day.”.

Equally, a business owner can overdo flexibility, with constant changes to the business model, the product or service on offer and the marketing message. Although the market can often respond to novelty (and especially in some industries, toys for instance), the market can also punish businesses that don’t know or are unable to communicate coherently what they really want to be, what need they are trying to meet or what they stand for.

But it can be confusing and even unnerving when the external environment is changing very rapidly, massively and unpredictably.

Right now, for instance, what is the small business owner to do when captains of industry, government leaders and seasoned observers give every sign of not knowing which way is up, or even whether indeed there is an up anywhere in the offing?

Well, we probably need to have a Plan B (which assumes we already have a Plan A). We definitely need a risk management strategy.

And we definitely need to be flexible.

As long as we don’t become so flexible that we do not develop or sustain any consistent vision and coherent, persuasive message about who we are and what we offer, to meet specified market needs.

We have to find a balance, in the long term and also on a more immediate basis, between being so consistent that we are too rigid and miss opportunities or threats and being so flexible that we come to be and be seen as master practitioners of flipfloppiness.

If you agree that finding that balance is a challenge, I hope you will share with us what guiding principles or rules you use to be the Philippe Petit of 21st century business.

Des Walsh

Picture “flip-flop flipped” Copyright Des Walsh 2008

Beach Notes: Do You Acknowledge Your Greatness?

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by Guest Writer Suzie Cheel

Last Friday in a strategy session I was asked what it was that people saw in me that would have them want to work and engage with me. I was stumped.

While we were walking on the beach I discussed this with Des.I said I know that people find me helpful and inspiring. I have written and illustrated a book emergings – a meditation on the emotions of change, which Liz launched for me at Blog World Expo, and which is inspiring people. I have received many words of praise.

Why is it hard for me to acknowledge this? Des asked whether there was some social conditioning at work? I think that could be right.

Many of us have been conditioned from an early age not to think too highly of ourselves. I am no exception. I am just surprised that after all these years I stil have to work on this. A work in progress.

Looking at myself,

sometimes realize

I don’t see in me

the gifts and talents

the way others do !

Do you see in yourself what others see?


This is Liz’s special page from the book, you can see Liz claiming this in the launch video

Suzie will be doing a special Xmas launch of emergings as an e-book on Tuesday.
Suzie

Beach Notes: Waiting for a Wave

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by Guest Writer Des Walsh

At the southern end of Rainbow Bay beach, where we walk most mornings, is the world famous Snapper Rocks surfing break. Usually, and on any day of the week, there are plenty of surfers to be seen there. Sometimes most or all of them stay away, whether because the surf is too choppy or, as in the photo here, it is just flat.

But even when it is flat there are likely to be a few hopefuls, waiting for waves that, for all the casual observer can discern, are just not around at that time.

Looking at the picture this morning or three surfers waiting for a wave with none in evidence, I’m thinking that part of me actually likes the idea of people being hopeful, whether of a wave to make my surfing day, or some new business coming out of the blue and making my annual income look much healthier. I’m basically a perennial optimist.

Then my brain kicks in and suggests that if I don’t do more than wait and hope, I’ll be like Charles Dickens’ Mr Micawber, a man who owed much and earned less, and who lived in hope that something would “turn up”.

And in the business context, given the parlous state of the global economy, it’s probably even more foolhardy than usual to be just living in hope of growth, or even survival. It might be boom times for receivers and administrators. For the rest of us it’s a time to get really focused and take systematic action. Indeed, 2009 looks like being a year to test us all.

Something might well turn up, but just hoping for that is probably a recipe for tears before bedtime.

What’s your tip for a way to ensure good business in 2009?

Des Walsh