Chris Barrow’s Blog

Yesterday was great fun – the morning with a young couple who want to start their own new dental practice in February. They are full of ideas, enthusiasm and talent – a real pleasure to share in and recall those heady, romantic days when we launch a new venture. I look forward to working with them in 2006 and adding a guiding influence.

I took lunch alone in a very nice hotel by Manchester Airport and just enjoyed the rest and a chance to catch up on emails and indulge in a little people watching.

A corporate conference was taking place and the lobby packed with bright young things taking a break from their proceedings. A host of blue suits, white shirts and red ties, smoking vociferously and chatting into their mobile phones. It was a reminder of my corporate UK days (the 80’s), when I dressed and behaved in much the same way, although we didn’t have portable phones in those days and used to fight for access to a pay phone – neither, for that matter, did we have email.

How on earth did anything get done?

I would drive into my Manchester city centre office at 7.00am and spend 2 hours talking into a dictation machine before leaving for a day in the car, visiting my accounts as a sales rep.

Then usually back in the office about 4.00pm to spend a good hour on the phone before clearing the decks for the next day.

With an hour’s commute each way, the days were long but exciting – I was a performer, winning every sales competition going and loving the applause of the crowd.

Looking back, there wasn’t so much technology but I was always very effective and efficient – in fact, a version of the Franklin Covey time management system accompanied me everywhere then and still does nowadays – I’ve been in and out of electronic “to do” lists in the intervening 20 years and ended up back with a paper-based system.

Yesterday afternoon and evening I enjoyed an excellent business meeting and meal with arguably my biggest Strategic Alliance partner for The Dental Business School. We agreed joint-marketing ventures through to May 2007 and I already know that this will maintain my visibility in the profession. To top that off with a relaxed meal in an excellent Italian restaurant – perfect.

Today, I’m sat at a desk just clearing emails, post and phone calls – wearing an old pair of walking pants and a fleece – I look a bit of a mess but that’s one of the pleasures of self-employment.

Last night, I was discussing with my S/A partner his thoughts about retirement, having reached his 60th this year.

“Not a chance – I’m enjoying myself too much. I’ll just focus on increasing my current 14 weeks of annual vacation by a little more each year but wouldn’t think of stopping unless and until I stopped having fun.”

So I begin the day with a start-up couple enthusing about their future – and end it with a 60-year old enthusing about his future.

My blog entries will be intermittent over the days head.

Have a good rest.

and all the dental clients stopped answering mail, email and phone calls.

Suppliers slowed down their deliveries.

Every project was put “on hold” until after the holiday.

“We’ll do it in January” became the mission statement for many businesses.

However, I have a full week of work ahead of me before I take a 2-week break and I intend to use this time very productively.

Today I have been on 1:1 telephone coaching calls and client bridge calls.

Tomorrow a dental practice visit in Blackburn, followed by an afternoon meeting with an important Strategic Alliance partner.

Then Thursday and Friday clearing the virtual decks and speaking to my team members.

Friday night at 5.00pm I’ll finish – and start thinking about the “retail festival weekend” (we are no longer allowed to call it the C word at risk of upsetting non-Christians – although none of my non-Christian friends are the slightest bit bothered – that’s called political correctness and that’s why politicians are no use).

It will soon be January…..and we can start thinking about Easter Eggs.

Its interesting to see the reaction to my last two ezines, where I have (with tongue firmly in cheek) complained about the falsity and excess of the Christmas season.

Some have seen the irony and thanked me for the humour.

Others have written quite stern feedback, suggesting that I “get a life” and cheer up.

Irony is such a difficult genre with which to “hit the spot” – but then professional comedians will remind me that that you cannot appeal to 100% of your audience.

Part of this pre-season grumpiness is, I suppose, fuelled by the fact that I’ve stayed in numerous hotels in recent months and can’t take any more piped music and neglected Christmas trees.

Last night I was chatting to a lady who runs her own accountancy business, performing internal audits for hotels.

She had been working 5 days a week at the hotel we were staying in – since September! Commuting from Leeds to Winchester on Sunday afternoon and returning home on Friday. We shared a few minutes conversation, bemoaning the “road warrior” lifestyle. Its bad enough all year, but with Christmas melodies playing in the background, the sense of “lost in translation” is heightened.

The great news is that last night was my “last night” in a hotel this year – “hallelujah” is probably the appropriate exclamation!

I can soon focus on spending the holiday with those I love – and perhaps get that “spirit” back.

Yesterday I was travelled from London to Kings Lynn, Norfolk for a dental practice visit.

Along the way, we pass the site of Sunday’s massive explosion in Hemel Hempstead (the largest fire in Britain since WWII) and saw the 70 mile smoke stack rising West across the sky – quite awe inspiring in a gloomy way and a reminder of the pollution that we create in this carbon burning age. This after my recent ezine musing on the gas guzzling vehicles I drive.

I’m working in North London this morning and have joined the commuter traffic winding it’s frustrated way towards the city. The exasperation of such travel is evidenced by the standard of driving – no quarter given.

Having reached my destination with an hour to spare, I’m sat in a cappuccino bar (again) and watching the world news on television.

This isn’t something I do voluntarily and today is a reminder of why.

How sad to see racial riots in, of all places, Sydney, Australia – a place I have visited only once on a whistle stop tour some years ago and yet I am still impressed with the place and its people.

I, perhaps mistakenly, believed that Oz would be above all that stuff – but no – bored youth choosing violence as a means of expressing their frustration (that word again).

Then the story that the Governor of California may have (or has) chosen to ignore clemency and sign the death warrant for a man who has spent 25 years campaigning for racial tolerance and non-violence, who has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize four times. The signature ending his life from a man who made his millions glorifying violence as a form of entertainment on screen.

This is all casting another pall over my day – so I’m going to focus on the positive.

1. Working with a coach in Canada last week, who expressed the view that she was tired of coaching and tired of “having to make a living”. We discussed and agreed that she may well take some time out to do voluntary service in Africa.

2. Attending a bridge call last night and discussing with another coach how he intended to bring spiritual coaching to the 81,000 people who have registered for his ezine in the last 12 months.

3. Meeting Michael Bungay Stanier last Saturday (read more in this week’s ezine – out today) and hearing his vision to “inspire a billion people with the possibility virus”;

4. Chatting to my cab driver in Toronto on Saturday night – an Ethiopian by birth who is building a life for his family in Canada and intending to return home with money and skills in the years ahead;

5. Working with a dentist and his wife yesterday afternoon on building a compelling 3-year plan to create the practice (and the life) that they really, really want to live.

We are fed a diet of gloom by the media – that’s why I don’t watch much TV or read many newspapers.

But there are people out there who are trying to change the world, one person at a time.

Today I am proud to be a coach.

I enjoyed a fascinating conversation with Michael Bungay Stanier over breakfast this morning and I was so inspired that I’ll write an ezine article about it next week – don’t miss it, he is an exceptional person.

For now, he asked me “if I took one of your clients to the bar and they loosened up (after a drink or two) and I then asked them “what were the three main benefits of the last 3 days working with CB?” – what would they answer?”

Great question – made me think carefully before I responded – as follows:

1. Permission to play a bigger game.

We all have a tendency to set our sights too low. I have a “million-dollar practice” and I was thinking about how to generate $2 million in sales in 2008. Michael challenged me to imagine a $10 million enterprise – simply because it would force me to think about different business models, rather than making my existing model more effective.

I have challenged my clients to undertake the same process and, in one memorable moment, a client committed to a 300% increase in revenues and profit next year. She knows she can do it – and just wanted a reason, which revealed itself in conversation.

2. The importance of building a team.

Looking at the sales and profit figures, we noticed a trend – increased sales lead to decreased profit through reinvestment in people (team).

At $30,000 sales, coaches are operating truly solo and have low overheads, high profit (80%?) and no way to grow – they plateau.

At $60,000 sales, coaches are operating with virtual and/or part-time assistance – maybe 50/60% profit and plateaued.

At $120,000, a full-time dedicated assistant, 40% profit and plateau.

At $240,000, a team, 33% profit and plateau.

At $1 million, a full team, 33% profit and plateau.

I’m imagining that, at $10 million, a full team and a full range of multiple stream products and services. I don’t know what the profit margin will be (I’ll let you know) but I guess I’ll be plateauing.

3. The value of community

We have created a mastermind group here in the last year. They began as a disparate group and have evolved into friends for life. My work is done but the group will live on – and continue to inspire each other.

We were discussing this issue here in Toronto on Wednesday.

In other words, why do people actually hire a business coach?

1. Because they do not have enough:

Time
Money
of the right People in their team

2. Because they have feelings of:

Quiet desperation
Low self-esteem
Frustration
Lack of focus/direction
Fear
Overwhelm

3. Because they have a business which is:

a start-up
failing
plateauing
ready to sell.

And, of course, because they woke up that morning, having had enough of the situation and ready to do something different.

The secret is to be there (in their minds) when they wake up. That’s called marketing.

And to ask them to join your programme. That’s called sales.

The more I do this I realise that coaching is a sales-driven business just like any other – and so I’m regressing back to my days as a financial planner and re-building lead generation and lead conversion systems.

I could never quite understand why Superman chose the frozen wastes to build a place where he could think straight. OK – he didn’t feel the cold but you would have a thought a nice little hut on stilts over the Indian Ocean or something?

Anyway – I have found a couple of places here at The Grand where I can think:

1. the patio. Obviously during the summer months people eat al fresco but presently they are huddled indoors as the temperature steadily drops towards -10. However, there are heaters and, provided you situate yourself right under them, its quite pleasant.

I’ve been taking breakfast there, listening to the background chill-out music and sharing my toast with a black squirrel (christened Nelson) and a small gang of city-sparrows.

Last night I took dinner there alone after a busy day of coaching and teleseminars.

2. The pool – is in the basement. Its very big and well decorated to look like a 17th Century English estate. Nobody else has been there except me – and the last two evenings I have plodded steadfastly up and down the pool for 30 minutes and then relaxed in the jacuzzi and sauna – not a soul about.

Great time to reflect on the day just gone and look forward to the day ahead.

I was also in bed for 9.30pm last night – all tucked up and lights out – so I feel great today.

Time to think, to relax, to plan, to rest.

Probably why the coaching yesterday was superb.

I arrived in Toronto last night and was somewhat uneasy as the cab drove past the downtown financial area.

That’s where I have stayed on my last 3 or 4 trips, using well known brand name hotels such as the Sheraton or Royal York.

We arrived at The Grand and my heart sank a little as I realised that we were not central.

The hotel is just 10 minutes walk from the Eaton Centre but away from the bright lights, the restaurants, the underground railway and the waterfront.

My unease has been dispelled in the last 12 hours – because nothing is too much trouble here. They clearly understand that the location isn’t ideal and so the owners have taken the trouble to make the stay as enjoyable and trouble-free as possible.

Free wireless internet access on every floor – so that my junior suite has become and office without the need for messy wires or daily charges.

Free breakfast – and a plentiful supply of hot and cold food.

Free TV channels, including all movies free of charge.

Free local phone calls and voice mail.

Free newspapers.

Free shuttle transport to anywhere in the financial centre.

My room is spacious and includes 2 TV’s, VCR and DVD players, a full kitchen (!) including microwave and a great bed and power shower.

I’m happy, relaxed and ready to work – exactly as it should be. There are fantastic sport and leisure facilities, including a magnificent indoor pool.

Most important of all – the team that work here are friendly, caring, pleasant and want me to have a nice time – it shows in everything they do.

The moral of the story – sometimes we cannot have the best location for our business – but we can make up for it by delivering world-class customer service and lots of added value.

The Grand Hotel and Suites, Jarvis Street, Toronto.

Monday morning in the Heathrow Hilton before I fly to Toronto. I arrived yesterday to be told that my Silver rewards card with Hilton had been enhanced to Gold status and I was upgraded to a fancy room on the Executive floor. Ah the joys of reward cards – I’m pretty “hotel-ed-out” at this stage in my life but it was a nice gesture by a very helpful girl on reception.

I enjoy working in the hotel lobby at these places, rather than sit in my room like a saddo – so I’ve perched myself on a bar stool with a power-point close by and I’m working through the weekend emails with a cappuccino, occasionally pausing to people-watch.

It’s a reminder of the world of the road-warrior – over 90% male and all sat around either doing the same as me, or meeting with colleagues or just sat reading the paper before they whiz off somewhere.

I’ll be flying at 3.40pm today and the check-in is just a 10 minute walk from the hotel (thankfully under cover) so this has become my office for the morning.

Julie (my personal concierge) has also arranged a business-class seat with economy-class service today – I value the seat more than the fancy food and wine – and that means I can enjoy the journey ahead and just chill with Alan Bennett’s “Untold Stories” for company.

The title of this blog entry refers to a comment made on a client bridge call last week.

A client explained that she had started writing an email to me with a question, figured out what my answer would be half way through the email – and so didn’t bother to send the email, she just got on with the answer!

That happens a lot – it even has a name, “energy coaching” and it’s what happens when the client knows you well enough to know the answers you will give.

You might wonder why the client still pays.

Its because we create the environments in which the clients ask the right questions of themselves. Part of coaching is to teach our clients which questions to ask – and which to discard.

Its an old cliche that “efficient is doing the thing right and effective is doing the right thing right.”

Sometime about 2.00am UK time, I’ll be checking in to the Grand Hotel on Jarvis Street in Toronto and preparing for a 3-day workshop with North American coaches. Toronto will probably be a very cold place this week, so I’m expecting to take advantage of the 5 miles of underground malls in my spare time.

I’m also looking forward to connecting with our clients and hearing how their practices are evolving.

I’m working in the City and West End of London the next 2 days, with dental practices that exist in a world very different from the rest of the UK. The big city lifestyle – everyone rushing about, nobody making eye contact, prices much higher and customer service a rarity.

And yet the principles we espouse in The Dental Business School still hold good – 80% understanding people (even busy people), 20% clinical and operational skill.

You would think that offering cosmetic dentistry to city-slickers (who are just being paid their biggest bonuses since 9/11) would be a walk-over. It is not.

They expect world-class customer service, they can shop around – and they do misbehave on a regular business.

James Goolnik has built a world-class practice here – and I’m proud to call him a client.

http://www.bowlanedental.com/

take a look.