Settling for Less Do you have to be settled to hold down a job? Is this still the case? Many businesses think so. I would challenge this. Societies values have changed we would suggest. It has lagged behind the technology curve but early adopters or “Mavericks” are being followed and the opportunities or cost has …

Disability widened my horizons By : Rebecca White Co-chair Titchfield Disability Diversity Group Chair ONS Fibromyalgia, ME & Chronic Fatigue Support Group Surprised? Doesn’t disability make life more difficult and mean you can’t do things? I think many, including myself, have felt that way about disability. We may believe that disability is a burden and …

We all have a “Bank of Courage” Trench Warfare and the IOS This blog relates to a late night Radio 4 programme, an experience @ THE TRENCH-Bodmin and a week in the Isles of Scilly – how is that for a random collection? Let us start at the Keep in  Bodmin on the evening of …

Co-Creative Working (Part 2) A History Lesson In part 1 we discussed briefly the benefit of working collaboratively or Co-Creatively. Let’s look at why we got to this point and how the market works. We are at the start of the next industrial revolution and as businesses we need to adapt, change and innovate. How …

The Price is Right “Knowing the price of everything – but the value of nothing!” It’s difficult to buy with confidence, unless you are a professional buyer – when dealing with often some very good salesmen you are definitely at a disadvantage. The advice of getting three quotes is fine if you understand more than …

Networking & Technology Get the right balance Zamu’s has been very busy and has lead Sam to reflect on networking and technology.  Part of Zamu’s ethos is balanced business. On a Thursday Sam was in London serving on two of the steering groups for the ATT (Association of Taxation Technicians). This gave her a chance …

Deadlines & Tav Don’t Miss The Vouchers With the rising costs of childcare where nursery costs in provincial towns are often £50 per day, many families are trying to work out how to fund this cost. If family has low income they can look at tax credits, or universal credits.  For many working families this doesn’t help as …

Walk the walk Talk the talk Zamu attended a net-walking event organised by Cornish partnerships and it got us thinking about networking as a business tool. Netwalking yes you heard it correctly! You could be dubious about discussing business issues, aspirations or solving problems in the Forrest or on the beach with dogs running around …

Finance Director Need an FD? Forecasting, Balance Sheet, Profit/Loss, Costs, Vat, Lending, Sales, Products and Logistics… Funding Cashflow and Support Kirsty and Sam have been working with a client to fund cashflow and ongoing support. The client had looked at the expenditure and considered they needed a loan of £20,000 – £25,000 for 5-10 years. …

What Accounting Software? Change, Technology and the Digital World “The Cloud” Adapting and agile working. Many clients are hearing about cloud accounting and asking questions about what, how, why, and how much. There are many cloud accounting solutions. FreeA-gent, Xero and Kashflow are a few that Zamu advise on. First consider why switch at all? …

Productivity Working Smarter improves Productivity In the last budget we were given figutres for growth the Chancellopr Mr Hammond quoted from his source at the Office for Budget Responsibiloity (OBR). The OBR is an Independent body. So productivity growth was down to a 1 percent prediction from 1.8 percent. This is per annum! So what …

Banking and Finance Banking On SWIG Funding at start up or growth can be necessary but perhaps complex. We look here at what Sam and Kirsty have been doing to help make things simpler for businesses. Kirsty and Sam recently met with SWIG to review how their offering can assist clients with their business growth. …

Co-Creative Working What Value working collaboratively? We discuss below what is working collaboratively across organisational boundaries. The co-creation market is firmly fixed with the considerations of the customer journey to decision and purchase. Resource cost and lost opportunity cost can make certain activities unsustainable if they impact on your core business activity. Experience and engagement …

Leadership Family a training ground for good leaders? A new approach to Leadership Training I received a picture from my wife recently of my two daughters (below).  I’m a proud Dad. They are lovely young ladies. I mean this from a personality and social environment consideration. They respect others, are motivated and think for themselves. I …

Balance Work Life Balance Making the right decisions in Life & Business. A client who has been self-employed for a number of years identified a need to change due the nature of their work putting a strain on physical health. Decisions were made to move to a new county for a better work life balance. …