Chris Barrow’s Blog

Thursday morning I was coaching my most successful UK client and the ONLY client I work with on a 1:1 basis.

He took me back to my financial planning days by showing me a future cash flow forecast he has created, showing his net worth and income from his current age of 45 through to an assumed life expectancy of age 90.

How’s about that? Planning assets and income 45 years ahead?

Obviously the planning assumptions could be way out over time – but they can be tweaked regularly to reflect experience.

The objective of the exercise was to help him answer a fundamental question – “what age should I be planning to sell my business?”

I’ll fast track you to a surprising conclusion that we reached after an hour’s discussion – answer = never.

Never sell your business.

That’s radical – what about life balance, what about a golden retirement, what about health and ability?

The scientific answer was that his business provides the highest return on investment (ROI) of any asset that he owns – by miles.

So why would you sell the cash cow?

Because you either don’t want to or cannot go to work anymore?

But here is the distinction – you can stop going to work but still own it.

We have decided that his biggest business objective for the next 3 years (and I’ll be working closely with him) is to re-create his business without him showing up (but still owning it).

Strategy – a cash cow that will last 45 years.

Tactics – build a world-class management team operating robust systems + groom a leader.

This will be a fascinating project.

I need to stop smoking (again!).

My resting heart rate has increased from 47 (where its been for 20 years) to 68.

I can feel my blood pressure rising (not just because I’m self-employed and work for a lunatic).

I look crap and tired.

Its week one of the workshops and I’m already exhausted.

I’m doing no exercise and my body is turning flabby.

I’ve been a fitness enthusiast all my life.

Yesterday there was an interesting final straw – I was listening to one of our workshop delegates in Surrey describe her stepfather who, at age 60, is still competing in triathlons and will be UK over-60’s champion next year and taking part in a European chamionship competition. 60 years old and “with a better body than a fit 30-year old and amazingly motivated and enthusiastic about life”.

It reminded me that health and fitness have been one of my core values for over 20 years and that I’ve really lost the plot in the last 18 months.

I want to return to that core value. I’ve always enjoyed people telling me I don’t look my age – they seem to have stopped.

So I’m going to try and cold turkey my way through 21 days of non-smoking and see if that works.

I’ll need to know that I’m accountable to all of you – there is no need to respond to this or any other blog entries on the subject – just knowing you are there will help me enormously.

Today is day 1 – here goes.

This is the first of 5 weeks of workshops, on tour around the UK. I presented in Exeter on Monday, Newport, Wales yesterday and even drove to Farnham in Surrey for a “taster” session for potential new clients last night. Today is the Farnham workshop proper.

I’ll be seeing all of my clients in The Dental Business School and then presenting the Better Practice Tour 2005 and meeting more potential new clients for a series of full-day Intensives on pricing and selling dentistry.

This week, I’ve used the ezine (due out today) to advertise for a new sales manager for The Dental Business School.

We are just so busy that Team CB cannot manage the business and convert leads as well – so its time for the business to expand again.

Heady days.

And on workshop weeks the schedule gets pretty tough.

The only way I can keep on top of client and operational emails is to start each day at 5.00am and spend 2 hours on the laptop before each workshop.

It hurts and I’m not getting any younger.

Which is why I’ll be taking a close look at my 2006 schedule with Barbara next Tuesday and probably making the first major change in my work habits since 1997 – spreading the workshop weeks across the year instead of piling them into one crazy month in three.

Well I’m back in the UK and recovering from jet lag – but reflecting on a wonderful experience with the clients – very much the proud parent of 16 coaches who are building thriving practices.

On the last morning I went for my customary Starbucks and, whilst sat watching that homeless guy (still there asleep after 5 days), I noticed a large black canvas bag sat in the middle of the sidewalk just a few feet away.

I asked the guy on the nearest table if it belonged to him – negative.

So I watched the office workers walk around it for a few minutes and, feeling very spooked, walked away.

Passing a security guard at the entrance to the building, I asked him if he knew what is was – he didn’t and wasn’t interested.

I reflected on the fact that, in the UK, by now the street would have been cordoned off, traffic backed up for miles and the bomb squad arriving.

How lucky Toronto is that it’s people don’t feel they have that to worry about – and I find that quite worrying.

On Monday evening my right hand swelled to twice it’s normal size – we had a good giggle about it over dinner and assumed it must be a mossie bite or something.

Tuesday morning I woke with the right hand side of my face twice its normal size – I looked like Rocky – after the fight.

Presenting myself at St Michael’s Hospital in downtown Toronto I was eventually informed that the cause was either:

a. an allergic reaction to the detergent used to wash my bed sheets or

b. an infestation of bed bugs

Nice.

So I’ve been taking Benedril and rubbing cream on myself ever since.

It’s Wednesday morning and my hand is normal sized, my face still swollen but kids have stopped crying and dogs barking as I walk down the street.

The vagrants I mentioned yesterday were getting annoyed because people were throwing money into my Starbucks Styrofoam cup.

However, every cloud has that silver lining.

And yesterday’s was my client Sital Ruperelia from London, England – who stepped into the breach (as I sat in the ER) and gave our group a 90-minute presentation on how to help people find the right career.

I hobbled in to hear the last 30 minutes and it was excellent stuff – which led to a Strategic Alliance between Sital and I to co-present Intensives on how to:

a. recruit, train and retain;

b. key staff in a dental practice and

c. a business manager for a coach.

Question: How many coaches do you know with whom you could co-present?

It’s my final day in Toronto and I’m looking forward to sitting on a bar stool in 30 minutes and just asking “how can I help?”

Today was the first of our 3-day coaches Intensive in Toronto.

I’ve been here since Saturday afternoon and have enjoyed the beautiful weather and the bustling city over the weekend.

The Film Festival is in full swing (although I wouldn’t recognise a starlet if my life depended on it), U2 are playing 3 gigs this week (tickets on the black market at $500CDN) and there is a general air of optimism about the downtown area that is only slightly jaded by the numerous vagrants who are sleeping on the sidewalk.

One has been asleep under a blanket on the corner of Yonge and Richmond (and right outside Starbucks) for the 3 days I have been here, without a break. He just sits and waits, he doesn’t beg, although there is a sign by his blanket asking for money. I suppose he must get some – and maybe only packs up and moves at night when there is no audience.

Yesterday I bought myself a new pair of running shoes in the Eaton Centre and walked out for a bite to eat with my old trainers under my arm. In just a few minutes I passed one of these homeless guys and probably made his day and confused him by handing over a pair of Nike Air which looked good as new, even though I’ve run them out of bounce. He thanked me profusely and was suitably impressed when I told him his new shoes has completed the London Marathon this year. Actually, he more likely thought I was as mad as a hatter.

Which side of the wall is the asylum I wonder?

Back to today – a group of 16 of us began to share our progress of the last 90 days prior to some live coaching – and completed those 16 reviews just before the 5.00pm close of day one.

I felt like a proud parent – listening to the advances that each of our “tribe” have made. Some simply deciding on a niche and a message – others building programmes and web sites – a few actually recruiting clients and making a living.

At the close of day one I asked around the room what was their main impression – overwhelmingly it was confirmation that building a viable practice is a slow process.

That’s what I’ve always maintained – but my clients are now proving that the the slow way is the way that lasts.

The tortoise wins the race – as one client observed.

Whether its on the pavement outside Starbies, or building a practice, patience is perhaps a virtue.

Yes folks, amazing though it may seem, I’m 52 years old today.

Always a time to reflect upon our blessings – and so that’s what I’ll do today.

Even though here in the North West of England it’s grey and wet outside – inside myself I’ll be enjoying the sunshine.

I also want to mention that I share the same birthday with Kimberly Black – webmaster and techno-whizz.

Yesterday, Kim walked me through the creation of my first podcast and they will become a weekly feature of our “coaching pie” from now on. Kim is a great teacher.

Tomorrow I begin my journey to Toronto – there to meet with coaches in The Coaching Business School (16 of us) for three days of Intensive masterminding – I just cannot wait to get there – it feels like a cross between summer camp and an alumni meeting.

I’ll let you know here what happens.

There is a path to success in building a professional practice:

1. determine exactly what your message is and to whom it is directed;

2. create visibility in your chosen niche (the marketing funnel);

3. generate leads -those who are curious enough to ask for more information;

4. convert leads – into fee-paying clients;

5. retain clients – give them services that will allow them to stay and not leave your fee-paying circle.

I have always been very good at some of these steps and lousy at others:

1. the message – more profit in less time for dentists – a viable practice for coaches – 10/10;

2. visibility – gigs, articles, guest appearances – 10/10;

3. lead generation – the ezine – 7/10;

4. lead conversion – entirely passive – lousy – 1/10;

5. retention – never offered anything beyond my core programme – lousy – 1/10.

I want to change this.

1. I want to recruit a sales manager for The Dental Business School – working for 10% of gross revenues and solely responsible for lead conversion from our massive and under-utilised database of warm prospects.

2. I want to introduce an ongoing membership scheme for dentists who have graduated from the core programme and want to stay in the tribe.

Do you know of somebody who could fulfill the sales manager role? If so -ask them to email me please.

I’ve noticed a growing trend in questions from clients that has helped me to a clarifying revelation.

The questions usually begin with a shopping list of options:

1. I could do this or

2. I could do that or

3. I could do nothing or

4. I could do something completely different and

5. I HAVE TO MAKE THE RIGHT DECISION

So it occurred to me today that we do not have to make the right decision.

We just have to make A decision to do something that gets us out of that proverbial front door that I keep going on about.

I want to stop hearing clients tell me they have sat on their sofa, in their home office, in their tower block – contemplating the “right decision” and doing nothing.

Scientific progress is made through experimentation – the 9,999 light bulbs that didn’t work.

Artistic progress is made through experimentation – the canvases and manuscripts that were never finished or allowed into sunlight.

Business progress is made through experimentation – through the experiences of events and relationships.

If I had never experimented, I would either still be a bored financial planner or a coach who worked 40 hours a week flat out to support 30 clients with 1:1 phone calls (and was still bored).

I experimented my way to the Coaching Gym, to leveraging my time, to working with dentists and coaches, to developing weekly work-out logs, call-in days, webinars and blogging.

Tomorrow I begin experimenting with podcasting. I have no idea if it will work – don’t care – I’ll just try and see what happens.

Stop contemplating and start experimenting.

Waking at 4.30am is a good indicator that you have a little too much on your plate.

That’s what happened to me (again) this morning and it seems to come around about every three months or so.

At my age I quite often wake in the night (too much information) and try to avoid thinking about “what’s going on” – I may have mentioned to you before my mental image of those doors in submarines – with the big circular handles that have to be turned to create an air-tight seal.

We watch, with horror, those movies about submariners which feature an inevitable scene where, despite their best efforts, the crew cannot hold back the bursting flow of cold sea water which gushes around the heavy steel frame.

Such are my early morning thoughts on occasion.

Sometimes I can turn the giant handle, lock the door and fall back asleep – when the pressure isn’t so great.

Other times I haven’t the strength or the pressure is too high – the door swings open, the sea rushes in and I will drown if I don’t rush for cover or swim.

This morning the door swung open and the water rushed in – so I made a cup of tea and sat in my bed at 5.00am filling in application forms for a new banking facility.

Having said that, in spite of the initial “pressure” I have enjoyed a very fruitful day professionally – all the A’s have been accomplished, I’m tired (and will rest this evening) but I have emerged victorious from a tough day.

I wonder if I will sleep tonight?