When things happen in the world that seem so far beyond our individual control, it can feel unsettling.

But don’t give up on your goals and dreams just because “the time isn’t good”… you can still make 2010 the year you uncover a whole new you for the better!

Even in tough times, you get to decide how to respond to certain conditions, opportunities, and outcomes—both good and bad.

Life will always be a series of choices and YOU get to decide on what will move you closer to your goals, or farther away from them. External forces will always be part of the equation, even during the good times when the world is thriving.

When people ask me about the single most important ingredient to success, I always share the same response:

realising what’s making you achieve success, and then realising what is stifling your success.

Sometimes recognising the things that are NOT working in your life can be painful, yet VERY powerful to shaping the life you want.

Don’t try to rationalise them, make excuses for them, or hide them. This is when it’s even more critical to take personal inventory and evict those excuses, rationalisations, and hidden habits that don’t serve you. These things will keep you from the life you want to be living. Let me give you some examples. Ask yourself if you relate to any of these questions:

Do you want to be active, fit, and strong?

Then you have to stop making excuses about your weight, diet choices, and lack of exercise.

Do you want to be in a loving relationship based on friendship and respect?

Then you have to stop rationalizing why you and your partner are not communicating well.

Do you want to embrace Monday mornings and feel excited about going to work every day?

Then you have to stop hiding your true passions and go after whatever it is you really want to be doing day in and day out.

Do you want to lose the debt forever?

Then you have to stop ignoring your spending habits and get real about a creating budget that will pull you out of debt and allow you to reach financial freedom.

Do you want to feel more connected to the people in your life, such as your children, friends, and colleagues?

Then you have to stop complaining about your poor relationships and figure out why you don’t feel as connected as you’d like to be.

These things can be painful to look at because the truth is that you have to do something about them in order to make it work in your life.

You’ll have to say no to the second helping of dinner and the dessert to follow and go through the action steps to get into shape… You’ll have to confront your partner about the areas that need work… You’ll have to get past fears about changing your job or professional path… You’ll have to cut back on your spending and be a bit more frugal… You’ll have to take a good hard look at your personal relationships and perhaps consider your own shortfalls and weaknesses in communicating your needs and concerns.

Plain and simple, you will have to do something uncomfortable.

Successful people don’t waste time in denial (or complain or make excuses for that matter). They face situations like a warrior. They look for the warning signs, they find out why things aren’t working, and they go about fixing them- even when fixing requires problem solving, hard work, risk, and a level of uncertainty.

It’s okay to identify a problem even though you haven’t a clue about how to go about solving it right away.

The first step is just recognising the issue, and then having faith that you’ll figure it out with careful attention to it. That’s how successful people live—in constant focus on goals, on results, on problem solving, and on the actions that get them to where they want to be.

Following are three things to do constantly in pursuit of your goals and dreams, however big or small:

• Awareness: Keep your awareness on the feedback you are getting from life and decide to address the situations immediately. Don’t bottle up feedback, cast it aside, and avoid it like you would a pile of dirty laundry or a stack of unopened bills. Life tells you things every day. Do this. Don’t do that. Think about this. Try me. Forget that. We live in a world that seemingly encourages us to live on autopilot. Successful people fly manually every day and so should you. When those feedback signals come in, listen to them and use them in planning your next step.

• Commitment: Commit to finding out why things aren’t working and learn what will fix them. Once you start the process it will be much easier to continue. Nothing fruitful stems from inaction.  

• Trust: Trust that making changes to the situation will ultimately bring about the best results. Sure you might go through a bit of discomfort during the change, and some unlikely or unwanted outcomes, but in the end you will triumph!

So are you ready to admit the things that just are not working out?

Make a list of the things in your life that are working against your success and ask how the situation can be improved. Commit to tackling just one of those issues and be brave!

If you need help organising those “things” in your life, try using the following list of categories. I recommend reflecting on each of the 7 areas and ask yourself, what’s not working here in each one and then brainstorm 3 potential solutions.

1.) Financial Goals

2) Career/Business Goals

3.) Free Time/Family Time 

 4.) Health/Appearance Goals  

5.) Relationship Goals  

6.) Personal Growth

7.) Making a Difference

Remember, by facing what is not working, you can only improve your life!

About the Author:

Jack Canfield is the founder and co-creator of the billion-dollar brand Chicken Soup for the Soul. The New York Times #1 best-selling book series has more than 200 titles in print and over 100 million copies sold in 41 languages. As an internationally recognized leader in personal development and peak performance strategies, Jack has spent the last 35 years teaching millions of people how to up-level everything they do. His bestselling book, The Success Principles: How to Get From Where You Are to Where You Want to Be contains dozens of the most powerful secrets to success used by top achievers from all walks of life.

A recent feature in The Guardian ran with the headline: ‘Graduates warned of record 70 applicants for every job’ The next line went: ‘Class of 2010 told to consider flipping burgers or shelf stacking to build skills’  Was I the only one thinking flipping burgers and shelf stacking is a flippin’ great way to earn part time income whilst building a business. For all graduates considering self-employment, here are five tips along with stories of those who’ve been there and done it.

1. Start now!

If you’re an undergraduate and looking at the job market with dread, start taking small steps now to earning an income. Is your degree in languages? Become a private tutor via sites like First Tutors www.firsttutors.co.uk or sell your skills to business through the likes of Lingo 24 www.lingo24.com and Language123.com. Are you good at making things? Make a few more and upload to sites such as Folksy.com and MyEhive.com so you can sell to a wider audience. Kane Towning started on the path to self-employment whilst at Leeds University and as soon as he graduated, became full time director of AIM Clubbing [www.aimclubbing.co.uk]; an events company set up with two fellow students and friends.

2. Seek out help

There is plenty of help on offer whilst you’re studying – and still when you leave. Whilst studying, check to see if your College or Uni hosts an enterprise society; NACUE [www.nacue.com] is a good source for this. Make the most of events, competitions and Awards hosted by National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship [http://www.flyingstartonline.com] and Shell LiveWIRE [http://www.shell-livewire.org] and why not take on work experience with entrepreneurial upstarts so you can learn on the job via sites including Enternships [www.enternships.com] and Gumtree [www.gumtree.com]  

3. Club together

Does starting a business seem a bit too daunting when you haven’t even left learning? Then pool your talent, join with friends and start that way. This is what the three amigos Oliver Sidwell, Ali Lindsay and Chris Wickson did when they came up with the idea for RateMyPlacement whilst studying at Loughborough University. After graduating, they all secured jobs and worked collectively on the business at nights and weekends. That was three years ago and the company is now a startling success.

4. Go Global

To be sure of a wide market for your products and services, go global from the start. Technology enables you to do this with sites such as Odesk and elance.com allowing you to be found by customers around the world if you’re selling time and knowledge and having your own website (with good search engine optimisation) increases your chances of picking up overseas trade. In business, the world truly is your oyster and think of all the places you’ll get to travel to meet clients, and taste local culture!   

5. Thanks be to folks

I hear from many students who are running a business and getting much-needed help from parents whether it be rent-free accommodation or having a bookkeeper/mentor/telephone receptionist on tap who won’t expect a salary in return! Arthur Guy started a star solutions when he was 17, after working at an electronics store. He’s now completing a PhD at Sussex University so his Mum takes care of the day to day running of the business. Thanks, Mum!

Even if you don’t turn your business into a full time venture, the experience of being your own boss and showing you have the attitude and skills to make a living will look good on your CV and set you apart from those other 69 applicants.

About the Author: Emma Jones is founder of Enterprise Nation www.enterprisenation.com, a business expert, and author of ‘Spare Room Start Up’ and ‘Working 5 to 9’

Guardian feature

http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/jul/06/graduates-face-tougher-jobs-fight

I love being women, seriously I do, and the richness that it brings is pure magic.

Being a successful woman is as much about who we are as to what we are doing, it so much more than the awards, job promotions, status, fame, trophies etc.

They are significant and good yes, but more so is the right combination to feed the mind, body, and soul.

Success is not a destination- it’s a journey

The quality ingredients for a successful life are creativity and self-expression, learning and growing and making a difference in the world.

I also adore the women in my life.  Can you imagine life without them?  Hell no!

Girlfriends listen to us, give advice, cheer our successes, comfort us in our failures and give that much needed a kick in the butt when necessary!

Our girl friends are a powerful, safety net that we rely on as we fly the trapeze of life.

They are flexible and strong, and help us bounce back when we fall.  Life without girlfriends would be just plain crazy. 

We are blessed to have so many other extraordinary women mum’s, daughters, sisters, and friends who  help inspire us every day, from  grass roots level, to world wide at the touch  of a button the internet.  Women, who inspire others, are a tonic for life. As we know brilliant ideas, hard work and perseverance are critical to creating a successful business and career no matter who you are.

However for a woman with a vision the climb up to the top can be tough.   I believe a slice cake always helps…

Commit to you, be the best you can be, and fulfil your passions

Action, taking the steps needed to achieve your dreams

Knowledge is power! Never forget that.

Enthusiasm and energy for life is prices less.

Here are four remarkable women that enjoy eating cake and who have all made their business ideas into reality.

Jessica Huie

 founder of the ethnic greeting cards company Colorblind Cards, started her career as an 18-year-old single mother with four GCSEs and a drive to be a success and secure a better future for her daughter.

 In May 2007 the UK’s largest card chain, Clinton Cards, rolled out the range and Colorblind Cards is now stocked in 100 of their stores, as well as 45 independent shops.

 In 2007, she was honored in the Evening Standard/02 awards recognising inspirational entrepreneurs.

Sam Roddick

is the founder of “erotic emporium” Coco De Mer and daughter of Body Shop-legend Dame Anita Roddick.

Today Coco de Mer has outlets in London and Los Angeles, and New York erotic emporium’ is dedicated to the celebration of sexual pleasure, empowerment, dignity and discovery.  Sam Roddick is regarded as having spearheaded the transformation of the sexual retail environment and has a background in radical activism.

Sian Sutherland

 is managing director of Mama Mio – “skincare for supermamas”. She started the business with two friends, after seeing a gap in the market for luxurious and safe creams that pamper women’s skin, specifically during and after pregnancy.

All the products in the Mama Mio range have been created to answer specific needs based on the experiences of Sian and her two founder friends.

Sian has been named British Female Innovator of the Year 2006 and Mama Mio the winner of the Best Pregnancy Product at the Pregnancy & Birth awards in 2006.

Lorraine Heggessey

 is a true pioneer in the television industry. She was chief executive of Talkback Thames, for five years until recently she left June 2010.  

She was head of one of Britain’s most successful independent production companies that produce programmes such as The X-Factor, The Apprentice and Green Wing.

A champion of new talent in her industry, Lorraine became the first female controller of BBC1 and was named “First Woman of Media” in the 2006 CBI/Real Business First Women Awards.

When ever I hear about a women achieving great ness in the world it really gives me a warm glow, and an instant connection I say fantastic not just for her, but for  us all.

A true reminder that ordinary girls… do become extra-ordinary women.

Stay blessed & positive.x

About the Author: Karyn Bascombe

I call myself a late starter; to the career and business world that is, but that’s no disadvantage, not understanding I had entered the university call life when I became a mum at 21!

So therefore had been busy attaining degrees, and qualifications of all kinds without realising it, until now. Lucky me I say.

I am a proud single mother of 3 children 21, 17, and 7; they are my daily inspiration.

I am a freelance feature writer, and I also create and deliver inspirational programmes for girls.

I love what I do, my one important rule of thumb is, always remember people first!

Feel free to contact me at

Email:wagsport@yahoo.co.uk

T: 07948 793 632

We’re now 4 days past the election and all we’re seeing is squabbling, negotiating, defending, arguing (see Adam Boulton – Alistair Campbell fight on Sky last night) and in the middle of all this the British electorate are helpless.

Today Britain wakes up to find that we still have no agreement as Nick Clegg and his party put their own wishes and desires against those of the country. This action will cost the Liberal Democrats massively if we have a quick election. With each passing moment, it feels like the Liberal Democrats are holding the country to ransom by not making a decision unless they get what they want. And as people face the reality of living with a hung parliament they will decide that they need to choose either Labour or Conservative at the next election as a three way split is not providing the economic stability that the country needs.

An alternative solution?

Think how refreshing it would be to see all three parties come together and form a three way coalition. Most people believe that David Cameron should take his place at Number 10 as leader of the party with the most votes. ButHow about this for a radical thought; wouldn’t it be great if MP’s started to vote on the merits of a proposal rather than sticking solidly to party lines. Could you imagine a country of free thinking politicians?

A three party coalition could end up being the best for the country as it would force the Conservatives to modify some of their more radical social reforms, get on with sorting out the economy, which has to be our greatest priority, and figure out which of their policies are REALLY important. But the idea of needing guarantees and certainty of a winning position on everything that government puts through parliament is ridiculous. A three way coalition could mean that the other parties were included in policy making, included in decision making and included in creating a better Britain.

The political parties are not as far apart as they might think but I suspect it’s their ego’s that makes it seem that way.

Grandstanding and ego

We see a similiar situation where ego and self- interest are taking precedence over common sense in the current situation with British Airways as Willie Walsh and the union Unite go head to head culminating in the prospect of 20 days of strikes. This confrontation is so emotional that neither party feels like it can back down. And who will pay the price? Everyone! All those people who trusted BA enough to fly them to their holiday or business trip will be feeling frustrated an angry at this latest situation.  The  British Airways brand will crash in popularity and their already unstable finances will take another huge know.  Unite will bear the brunt of the public’s anger at their selfishness for choosing strike dates that impact the school holidays.

The trust between the consumer and British Airways potentially will be irreparably damaged if this strike goes ahead.  The commonly held belief in the press is that British Airways will capitulate at some point during the strike, wso hy not just get it over with and do it now before so many people lives are disrupted.

Imagine a world

Imagine a world where ego took a back seat to common sense. Imagine a world where the greater good took precedence to personal interest. Maybe it’s time for the leaders in our country, both commercial and political to put ego to one side, grow up and start acting like adults.

When you’re a female small business owner life can be hectic and crazy and busy and stressful. Working mother’s guilt can leave you feeling inadequate in your role as family caregiver.  Business stresses can keep you awake at night.  Time demands can leave you feeling frantic and confused.  Multiple commitments as mother, caregiver, wife/partner, friend and business owner can leave you feeling pushed and pulled all over the place.  All of these things can leave you feeling overwhelmed and unhappy, questioning why you even started this journey in the first place.

Take some time out

I’ve felt all of these things in the past and taking a short break recently with my children was like stepping off the hamster wheel which has left me questioning many choices that I’ve been making recently.  I was so caught up in driving my businesses and achieving my business goals that I was allowing them to drive my life rather than the other way round.  For the first time in a long time I really relaxed and just had fun.  Rather than finding the school holidays stressful because it took me away from my businesses (yep, that’s generally how I have felt in the past every-time a school holiday comes along), I was able to embrace the time off and relax.

Know your goals

This experience left me wondering what it was all for.  A friend of mine suggested that I sit down and write down my goals.  I of course started with my business goals as that is really all I’ve thought about for the last 2 ½ years.  Hmmm, that didn’t feel quite right.  Then I noticed that something was missing, where did I fit in all this?  So I then decided to write down my personal objectives, from scratch.  As if I didn’t already have two businesses that I was running.  These objectives defined the type of life I wanted, the type of income that I wanted and the amount of time that I wanted to spend in the different areas of my life; business, family, friends, me.  What surprised me was how much my personal objectives had changed over the last 3 years (the last time I did this was after my daughter was born in 2007).

This exercise was invaluable as it helped me to see where the gaps and disparities were between the two.  Now I know what I want out of life, I was able to adjust my business goals to fit my life rather than the other way around.  This has meant that my current objectives have taken me from world domination to lifestyle entrepreneur.

This is the process that I went through to find more balance in my life and make some major adjustments in the way that live my life.

Write down your personal objectives

Do this across a number of categories depending on your personal priorities.  Don’t judge yourself as you are writing these.  Let the ideas flow.  I find that drawing a mindmap or even better using mindmap software like Tony Buzan’s iMindMap, (you can get a free trial here http://www.thinkbuzan.com/a_id/4bc6b7641c434 )  It helps get ideas down quickly and freely.

• Family
• Friends
• Charity / Social
• Spiritual
• Health
• Business
• Financial
• You

Write down your business objectives – short term and long term

These are very high level goals - you’re not into planning yet…

• Financial
• Social
• Impact
• Team / Size of business
• Timescales

Ask yourself

Do they match?

Is there a gap between the two?

Given your personal objectives are your business objectives achievable?

Make your choices

If I’m being honest, I had abdicated responsibility for the choices that I was making.  I was allowing my businesses to run my life and quite frankly, it was making me miserable.  I was reminded recently that we can choose the path that we want to take, and even though making those choices can seem very difficult at the time, in the long run they can be worth it.

Once you know what you want it’s very easy to measure the opportunities that come your way against those choices.  It’s important that you find the right balance and priorities for you as until you do, both business and life will feel like a struggle.

Embrace your choices

It’s one thing to make your choices, it’s totally another to embrace them.  By embracing the choices that you make you are taking responsibility for them.   If those choices are making you unhappy then revisit the questions above and re-prioritise them until you find the balance that works for you.  Your life and your future are in your control

World domination will have to wait

I’m an avid consumer of self help and personal development books and had convinced myself that I needed to “Think Big”, create audacious goals and drive my businesses to great success.  However, I hadn’t factored in what was personal success for me.    That’s not to say that world domination isn’t still on the agenda, but at the moment it’s taking a back seat to spending time with my children.

Take the time out to identify the life and the business that YOU want – trust me, it’s worth it!

___________

About the Author: Julie Hall is the founder of Women Unlimited, a web marketing expert and founder of Springmedia, a digital design agency based in south west London.

At the We Mean Business event at Westminister Hall in February, Maria Eagle MP confidently stood in front of 250 women and stated that women weren’t good networkers.  Yesterday in the Times Antonia Senior wrote an article entitled “Why Women are such bad networkers”.  What is going on here?  Why is this message being bandied about like it is fact.  So I’m here to set the record straight.  The opposite is in fact true… they’re not just good networkers, they’re great networkers.  This is evidenced not only by the number of women only business networks but also by the Mums networks that exist all over the country.

Last Monday, at the Women Unlimited Stepping into Success conference, the buzz was deafening as women were connecting and building new relationships with each other.  In my 10 years of networking, I have never seen this kind of connection and energy at a mixed networking event.  I am a member of multiple women’s networks as well as mixed networking groups.  Networks such as Athena, Sister Snog, She’s Ingenious and Women Unlimited are thriving. If you asked the women that attended the meetings in these networks,  whether or not women were good networkers, you would hear a roar of disapproval at even asking the question.

Women are not natural networkers?

In the Times article the second paragraph starts with the statement “Women are not natural networkers.”  Ok ladies, look inside yourselves and tell me whether you think this statement sounds even remotely accurate. Women network every day of their lives whether they are mothers, carers, business owners or career women.  We are constantly sharing news, stories, advice and referrals.  Networking is how most of us choose our suppliers, decide which items to buy, and learn about new opportunities.  Women are behind 80% of all purchases here in the UK and any business which thinks that women don’t network (and thereby share referrals and recommendations) doesn’t understand the way that our society works and runs the risk of missing out on the market that they should be spending most of their energy on.

No ass kissing here

The journalist seems to indicate that if we’re not schmoozing then we’re not networking.  So because women are not so good at kissing their bosses behind, then they are not good networkers.  Yes, I would have to agree with that, as not much ass kissing goes on around here, however relationship building definitely does.  In my web design agency, Springmedia, 90% of all our new business comes via referral.  When I decided that I was going to go on a new business drive, I didn’t start advertising on Google, I didn’t put an advert  in a magazine, I joined a business network which resulted in a direct additional £8000 turnover in 6 months and indirectly (ie referrals from new clients that I gained there) another £17,000 in turnover.

People buy from people they know, like and trust

People buy from people that they know, like and trust.  And networking gives us the opportunity to develop relationships that can turn into business both as a buyer and a seller.  I now have an accountant, book-keeper, a personal VA, a new intern, a printing company and a new team member all via networking… and these are just a few of the new relationships that have developed through this activity.

What’s your objective?

Networking also isn’t all about getting close to the big cheese in the room. It really depends on your objective.  The thing that annoys me about this article is it’s lack of perspective, lack of facts and the assumption that networking is all about getting to the top of the tree in an organisation.  There are many reasons that women network, such as support, learning, and sales.

… are you a cyber loser?

And then we have the ‘cyber losers’; women who are not utilising social media for business.  Clearly this journalist is not following female business owners on Twitter.  Technorati has shown that women are twice as likely to do business via social media than men.  Women have embraced social networking and Liz Cable who purports herself as a social media expert suggests that women are not promoting themselves in the right way.  Again, I have to disagree.  I know of multiple women who are generating new business every day via Twitter and Linked In; women such as Ces Loftus of Creatively Minded, Rona Wheeldon from Organised PA and Sarah Turner of Turner Ink.  Social media is a great way to build social proof, share a bit of who you are and share and promote the work that you are doing.

I’m not going to get to riled up about this article, as the journalist had started with the premise that women were not good networkers and then went on to deliver a one-sided argument to back it up.  As with anything, there are women who are great networkers and women who are poor networkers, but if you would put yourself in the latter category, I highly recommend that you find a way to embrace networking.  A couple of great books on the topic are The Jelly Effect: How to Make Your Communication Stick and Brilliant Networking: What the Best Networkers Know, Say and Do .  If you have any networking stories, we would love to hear them.

If you want to read more about this, Nancy Williams, has written her response on her blog TigerTwoTiger

The whole of the first world seemed to be waiting for the launch of the iPad, the new tablet from Apple.  Now, I like Apple products but am not a fanatic about them.  I do have an iPod Touch which I like well enough and I’ll openly admit to coveting a beautiful Macbook Air and may even splash out on one the next time I upgrade my laptop. But I wasn’t really on board with all the hype that has been building this week towards the finale last night with Steve Jobs proudly launching the iPad.  My husband on the other hand is an early adopter, so has been watching videos, reading news and couldn’t wait to see the launch, which I was then forced to sit through about 10 minutes of.

However after watching the video I must admit to feeling sucked in.  I love the internet and I love the idea of sitting with a book sized tablet on my sofa and navigating through some of my favourite blogs on a handheld device; I like the idea of being able to zoom in at the touch of a finger and carry it with me to another room without the faff of worrying about it shutting down. But it seems I’m in a minority.  Across the web, bloggers and technorati are all saying how disappointed they are.  It’s just a big iPhone they cry, but without the ability to call people.

So, I thought I’d visit Twitter and see what the twitterati had to say… and  laughed outloud when I discovered that  iTampon was trending (trending means topics that people are tweeting about) above iPad.   I actually think that this will blow over for Apple, but I’m sure it’s not what they would have wanted their people calling their hyped up, super product.

I think there are a number of reasons why this has happened (and there are a few lessons in here for us as small business owners) and some of it could have been avoided with better preparation.

1.   The hype towards to the iPad was phenomenal.  Everyone everywhere was talking about it.  The expectations were huge.  So when they released a product that looked just like a bigger version of something that people had become used to over the last year, the reaction was disappointment.

The learning: We are visual creatures.  If it looks the same, we will think it’s the same.  If you are launching a new product / idea – make it look sufficiently different, so people will notice

2.  Focus on the remarkable.  Seth Godin has written a book called Purple Cow.  A fantastic book which talks about leading the market through being remarkable.  Normally this is what Apple gets really right with their products, but this time they focused on the mundane

The learning: Don’t try to show everything when you are discussing your business.  Focus on the WOW and the thing that is going to get people’s emotions

3. Engage with Fans.  Apple have an enormous fan base.  They could have used A list blogger by providing an early version of the iPad and discovered their reactions to it.  Chances are they would have discovered the iTampon issue and also found out that they’re message was less than engaging

The learning: Talk to you customers and ask them for honest feedback

4. Do your research.  If the Apple marketeers had done their research, they would have discovered this video from MadTV

The learning:  Don’t ignore the clues that are out there in the marketplace.  What are people saying about your product  or services?

5. Ask others what they think about when you tell them your business name. A friend of mine wanted to launch an events company and call it Silver Events. For her, the term ’silver’ meant luxurious, to me it meant for the over 60’s.

The learning: No matter how much we might like a name, if a large majority of people have different associations for that phrase, no matter what we do it will stick ie. iPad (maxi pad) and iTampon

This week I have come across the Pink Stinks campaign wherever I turn in the news – well done Abi and Emma! It’s great to see a small organisation really get the word out about their cause.  I met the twins Abi and Emma Moore very briefly at the Everywoman conference last year when Pink Stinks had just been launched.  I was impressed with both the passion and belief that they had for pink stinks and am pleased to see that they are getting a lot of support in their campaign.

Pink Stinks is a social enterprise that believes that girls are not achieving their full potential because they are being taught at a young age to conform to all being pretty, princesses or ballerina’s or fairy’s.   They believe that the media’s obsession with stick-thin models, footballers’ wives, and overtly sexualised pop stars is denying girls their right to aspire to and learn from real role models. Pink Stinks wants to redress the balance by providing girls with positive female role models – chosen because of their achievements, skills, accomplishments and successes (this is pretty much taken word for word from their facebook page).

So what do we think of the Pink Stinks mission?

Generally I think it’s a good one.  I’m always very supportive of anything that encourages girls to be independent, think for themselves and become more confident and I genuinely love their t-shirts (which you can buy here)

The problem that Pink Stinks have is that everyone is focusing on the anti-pink campaign and not the limited choices that this engenders.  So while I think the priniciple is right, the message is getting lost as everyone is debating whether toys should be pink and NOT their core message that we need to give girls the right role models and positive choices.

In todays world, toy stores are more gender segregated than ever and I often despair of finding empowering toys for my 2 and 1/2 year old daughter; I personally would like more choice than than princess cookers, hoovers and baby dolls.  I would like more dress up clothes for girls that are not princesses and fairies or god forbid nurses.  Where are the girls Doctor outfits, Vet outfits, or police women?

Retailers frequently say that they are only providing what customers want, but I think this is a cop out.  Retailers do have an obligation to provide choice and forcing all children to fit into a pink or blue mould is doing a disservice to both our boys and our girls.  Let’s bring back a range of colours and options.

I do however think the gender stereotypes swing both ways, as evidenced by these magnetic words for boys and for girls (I first came across these on the Pinkstinks website).  I’ll be honest, I think the girl ones are stomach churning, but the boys are equally lazy and formulaic.  Personally, I find it easier to give my daughter boy toys than encourage my son to play with girl’s toys.   The other day we stopped my son from putting a heart on an christmas card to his best friend (who is a boy).  From his perspective he was just copying what one of his girl friends had done for him, and rather than allowing him to give his friend the card with the heart my husband and I suggested that he write out a new one and the words “boys don’t put hearts on cards to their friends” came out of my mouth.  Where did that come from?  Here, I am asking my son to conform to a societal male norm while at the same time encouraging my daughter to buck female ones.  Thankfully, I’m aware the problem and actively working to adjust my own limiting views to give both my children the opportunty to be all that they can be and allow them to make their own choices in this world – hearts and all.

Does pink stink?  No, most girls love it, but please give us more choice!

That’s what I think, but tell us what you think!  We really want to hear your views.

Last night Dannii Minogue very publicly ‘outed’ Danyl Johnson on the X Factor and it made for VERY uncomfortable viewing…

Across the UK the social media tweeters, bloggers and forums were in shock… how could she do this?  Just at the time that Dannii seemed to have won the hearts of the UK public as the female judge of choice.   HOWEVER… she didn’t out him, he had already done it himself on News of the World in August and she was just referring to his public announcement that he was bi-sexual.  The mistake that she made was assuming that everyone who watches the X Factor also reads trashy newspapers or keeps up with celebrity gossip and would ‘get the joke’.

The Result?  National Outrage

So now Dannii has a huge PR problem on her hands.  How does she address the issue quickly / effectively and diffuse the bomb that has just exploded underneath her?

The announcement

Dannii’s PR team were on the case and they posted an announcement on her blog last night emphasising that Dannii meant no  harm and that Danyl was fine with what she said … but this definitely needs to be followed up with a mention tonight on the TV.   She also made a small mention on her Twitter stream and acknowledged a few of her supporters, but I think she could be doing more of this.  Why not put in a link to Danyl’s original article on News of the World?  Why not be human about it and acknowledge that she is annoyed with herself about how badly she managed her comment to Danyl ?  I think people will forgive her much more easily if she is real about making a mistake rather than hiding behind her ‘formal’ PR.  This is what social media is all about and how to use it to most effect.

…and what about the X Factor Twitter Team?  What were they thinking?

The one twitterer that should be supporting Dannii isn’t!  What is going on with the X Factor twitter account?  Last night they re-tweeted someone’s negative comment (now deleted, but you can see other’s retweeting the comment here).  They also have a Twitpic up with Danyl’s performance (the only one of the night), with negative comments about Dannii.  Where is the support from her team?  Where is the link to Dannii’s announcement on their Twitter stream?  One might think that they wanted Dannii to take the flack for this and bear the brunt of the media outrage to drive viewers to the show (surely not?!)

Only time will tell if there is any lasting damage from the show last night for Dannii but it will be interesting to see how she manages this and if she is able to recover from her very public mistake.  What do you think?  Do you have any advice for Dannii on how she can manage this and nip it in the bud?

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UPDATE:  I’m glad to see that Dannii is doing exactly what she should be doing, through her Twitter stream she is being responsive and acknowledging what happened… well done Dannii – I’m glad you’re working the social media tools the way they should be worked!

Last night the BBC showed their online version of the Dragons Den which has been running for the last few months.  The Online Den has a couple of twists on the standard BBC show that we all know and love…

Firstly there are only 2 dragons – one of our extraordinary entrepreneurs, Julie Meyer who made her fortune by launching and selling one of the most successful networking organisations, First Tuesday and then subsequently launching and creating Ariadne Capital and Shaf Rasul, the entrepreneur behind E-Net Computing, the largest storage media distributor in the world and portfolio investor in property and digital media.

How does it work?

The inventors and entrepreneurs upload raw video pitches for their business onto the BBC website and viewers can vote on which pitches are the most interesting or have the most potential.  A select number of entrepreneurs then get to pitch in front of the Dragons.  Julie and Sharif are not allowed to see the original raw pitches and have to base their decisions on what they see in front of them.

The show is only 30 minutes long and does have some similarities to it’s bigger brother however in many respects the business aspect of it is much more real world rather than the pure entertainment focus of the original.

We get to see some really amusing products… the mpod a roadside koogul to protect your dignity(!), the hairbrush for men (?!) and the bicycle that folds into a suitcase (with no room for anything else).

Pitch 1: Chinese in Primary Schools

Julie is definitely the star of the show and her ability to drive down to the core elements of the business is impressive.  But woe betide anyone who doesn’t take her seriously!  The opening pitch was from Marcus Reoch pitching his Primary School Teaching Chinese after school club.  But oops – he directed most of his pitch towards Shaf, barely looking a Julie and she didn’t hold back on calling him on it – not a great start!

His profit margin was small with very little growth over his 3 year projections with an overall profit of £68,000 after 6 years of trading.  This is great for a sole trader, particularly if you factor in paying yourself a salary, but as an investable vehicle there is not much to attract an investor.  His biggest sin was a lack of business ambition – therefore no deal was there to be done.

What we learned from Julie… Investors are looking for a business that has a sharp acceleration over the first few years.  Investment is not about building a small business.

Pitch 2: The Cosy Shopper

Lisa and Matthew Penn have created a great product called the cosy shopper.  A snug for your baby when you take them shopping and have to put them on those hard (and let’s face it, often dirty) reclining baby seats in shopping trolley’s.  It was all looking good for them until they revealed that they only work 2-3 hours a day on their business and are planning to increase that to 30 hours a week!  I could only dream of only putting in 30hours a week in my business!

What we learned from Julie… To build a successful business you need to be investing at least 45 hours a week

Pitch 3:  Family Fridge

The third and final pitch was from a young entrepreneur Alexi Deak who has created an impressive website called Family Fridge.  It’s an online family organiser and a great concept.  It’s business model is advertising revenue and sponsorship and Alexi is hoping to get 50,000 users resulting in a projected advertising revenue of £300,000.   His pitch was competent and his idea is quite a good one (though I suspect it’s going to be harder than he thinks to get that £300k of online advertising revenues!).  The result was Julie and Shaf both offering to put up the money… with Alexi deciding to go with Julie

What we learned from Julie… Watching the way that Julie disseminates the business was really interesting.  She had a few questions that we think every business should ask themselves whether they are looking for investment or not.

Q1.  What is the piece of your business that is going to draw people in

Q2.  Why do people want to use your business …

Q3.  How are you going to deliver that

Q4. Tell me what the business model is

Click here to watch the whole pitch and let us know what you think!

If you are looking for funding, check out our Extraordinary Entrepreneurs Dinner on November 18th where you could have a chance to dine at Julie’s table.

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About the Author: Julie Hall is the founder of Women Unlimited and also the owner of Springmedia, a  London based digital media agency.