Overcoming Writers Block on Your Blog; 3 Tips

What’s the first thing you did this morning when you switched your pc/laptop/tablet on?

I’m guessing you checked your emails.  Or at the very least scanned the total in your inbox to see by how many it had increased since yesterday (or earlier this morning if you were burning the midnight oil).  Am I wrong?
Ok, so if you didn’t check your emails I bet you went straight to your favourite website or some other ‘habitual’ place.  Don’t worry I’m not watching you, nor am I the new Derren Brown, it’s just something we all do.

Let me ask another question.  At some point over the last week how many times have you had an opinion about something?  Quite a number I would hazard a guess, and equally how many times have you thought ‘I should write that down’?  I have and I suspect I’m not alone in these thoughts.  I sometimes worry I’m having a seriously high number of ‘senior moments’ for someone in their thirties, such is frequency I forget what it is I was going to write.

However I’m beginning to realise that the reason for what I politely term ‘bloggers block’ (and impolitely harangue myself about) is more to do with the habits I’ve formed over years of working at a computer.

So some simple tips to overcome bloggers block and make a start on that company/personal blog you’ve always wanted to write:

Start your day different

We all need to check emails, after all it could be a new sale, a customer that wants a reply or 10% off at Krispy Kreme.  But how about for once, maybe only one day a week you (horror of horrors) switch your machine on and instead of going straight for the emails, you pause open Word or some other writing programme and get writing.  Don’t worry if you haven’t got a clear idea of your article, just the process of ‘brain dumping’ your thoughts on a subject can make things a whole lot clearer.

Get some inspiration

Sometimes you’ll have a fantastic idea on an article you want to write.  Other times you’ll know what you want to say, but you’re missing some bits.  Don’t despair, get the thoughts down you’ve had and then have a search round.  Try searching for your subject, check a couple of books, maybe send a tweet out and ask your followers their opinions on the subject.  Sometimes the very process of searching can be enough to formulate your article in a much more coherent way.

Fresh Air

It’s amazing how many times we have our best ideas when we don’t mean to.  Generally that means we are doing something else entirely.  Having a shower, working out, sat on the toilet or even having a bath (it worked for Archimedes) all seem to be favourites for eureka moments.  Rather than sitting at your machine, putting yourself under more and more pressure to get an article written, why not put your coat on and take a little stroll in the fresh air.  Even if it’s rotten weather, the process of concentrating on something entirely unrelated can get your subconscious creative juices flowing.  At the very least you’ll be getting away from your screen.

Writing a blog is a fantastic tool for promoting and growing your business, it is all about consistency and content.  Unfortunately we all get caught up in our work habits and forget that masterpiece of an article we wanted to write.

So to use some poetic licence on a programme I do remember from my youth I’m going to ‘Turn off my email and do something less boring instead’.  Why don’t you.

What a lucky shot: football and business opportunities

It's nearly football season time again. The time when every football fan in the country experiences a massive high of expectations in that last 10mins before kickoff.  A feeling only a relative handful will continue to feel for the remaining 9 months of the season.

For those of you who are not followers of our national sport you will be quite justified in dismissing the upcoming months as yet another year of pointless running around with a pigs bladder.  But there is no getting away from the fact that football as a sport, way of life and increasingly a business, is a key strand of our local and national pysche.

Take Burnley, many non-football fans in the town (of which there are very few) will point to the glorious industrial past, ringing singing tree and the beautiful pennines as major selling points.  But few will be able to argue that the town has been put back on the map of England in a major way by the promotion and season in the Premiership that filled the past year.  Even those businesses that didn't benefit directly from the increase in the football club's spending in the local economy will have seen the benefit that having a team in the Premier League with the eyes of the world focused upon it brings.

It is certainly a benefit that Blackpool will feel this coming season as they emulate Burnley by taking their turn in the 'big league'.  Without doubt it is an opportunity that must be taken, as an Oldham fan I can vouch for that.  Our town saw our Premier League opportunity come too early (before the big money really arrived) and despite 3 seasons in the top division our team now prepares to embark on it's 13th consecutive season in League One (or division 3 in old money).  As a club and a town Oldham didn't take the opportunity to maximise the chance they had, and that is really where a business lesson lies...maximising opportunities however big or small they may be.

Luck plays a part with all opportunities, and rather than declaring that luck has nothing to do with business I like to look on it another way.  Luck or LUCK really is all about maximising opportunities and how do you do that?  Well through LUCK:
L - Location, getting yourself out there and speaking to as many people as possible, mentioning your aims, your goals and your challenges and where you're looking for help.  Be on the field.
U - Understanding, know your chosen field as well as you can, who are the players, where are the opportunities
C - Contacts, speak to people, network (both in real-life and on social networking sites), draw up a list of the people you would really like to speak to and mention them to everyone you know...you've played the Kevin Bacon game right??
K - Knowledge, know your subject, be an expert, you don't need to be working in an industry for years to know about it, do your research.

Or to bring it back to football, Rooney worked hard on his skills and that enabled him to score 36 goals in total last season.  But he also used a big slice of LUCK...he knew where he would score most goals and got himself there. He worked in training on where the opportunities best arrived for him. He had some excellent teammates, and he knew exactly how he needed to strike the ball each and everytime in order to take advantage of the opportunities that came his way.  (World Cup aside of course!!!).

So increase your chances of scoring by using your own slice of luck, and take a leaf from Burnley and maximise the opportunities when they arrive.  And any time you get that feeling of complete optimisim in the 10 mins before kick off hold on to it...it will get you through those cold winter Tuesday nights at home to Gillingham.

Dragons Den; Inspirational business show or Takeshi's Castle in suits?

The new series of Dragon's Den flew back onto our screens and brought the usual mix of the wierd, the misguided and the tearful.  But how do we view Dragon's Den?  Is it an inspirational business show or is it just another ritual humiliation show in sharp suits (in most cases without the crash helmets...most cases!).

Dragon's Den actually originated in Japan, the land of Takeshi's Castle, a show who's format set the bar for more recent shows such as Wipeout.  It was first broadcast there in 2001 under the name Money Tigers, but first broacast in the UK in January 2005.  It is the UK format that has spread across the rest of the world.

But now entering it's 8th series, has the Dragon's Den programme changed, not in format or style, but in the minds of those viewing the programme?  Now we know the likes of Peter Jones, Duncan Bannatyne and Theo Paphitis, not just on screen but by the plethora of books, sites, blogs and programmes has the 'inspirational' story gone.  There were times in the last series when each of the characters lived up to their charactures...brilliantly spoofed by Harry Enfield and Paul Whitehouse.

There was a time when the Peter, Duncan, Theo, Deborah and James (et al) by their mere prescence and associated backstory would generate the kind of inspirational feelings that made the dream of running a successful business a reality.  Even those entering the den sparked the 'I could do that' feel, yet there were times in the first episode of the new series that you got the impression that 'good for TV' had taken over.  It almost lifted a veil.

The dragons, because of what they've achieved will alway be an inspiration as individuals, that isn't in question.  What is though is this, does the format create inspirational feelings to go out and start a business?  Sadly as a long time fan of the show I fear not. 

What we are left with is ritual humiliation on a par with watching Japanese gameshow contestants being pummelled by massive padded swings.  Sometimes it is eye-wateringly hilarious, and other times a strong feeling of pity just pervades everything.  A few forgotten numbers here or there and that's all that is required for the humiliation to begin.  Big Brother is ending because we've tired of watching people putting themselves up for similar humiliation, so is it time for a change in format or even putting the dragons back in their respective castles?

There was an exception to this general feeling that has been gathering momentum over the last few episodes.  Kirsty Henshaw gave a great demonstration on just how to inspire anyone to start a business.  Taking 2 (and a half) jobs to pursue her dream, fantastic.  A real inspiration, especially to women of all ages, much more so than any WAG or TV star.  But, Kirsty's fantastic success was slightly tinged with a fear for me, that we are about to embark on a Dragons Den series with more 'journey's' and weepy stories than inspirational stories.  Kirsty and her story was the perfect balance, and perhaps began to restore some of the balance between inspiration and humiliation!

Why am I here??

It's been a testing time recently, and in a lot of ways these are the times when you have to take stock and ask yourself good questions. So I'll start with - Why am I here?

Well taking that as the lead I thought I'd let you know why I started this blog.  The theme that 'Starting a Business in the Credit Crunch is Great' sounds a very positive one, and so it should be.  As I listened to the debate on BBC This Week last night on cynicism or scepticism and (I think it was Michael Portillo) it was said that scepticism is heathly (questioning of motives) and cynicism is a disease, a debilitating mind set which is all too often these days the first and primary response.  I have to agree to a point, it is becoming so much easier these days to be cynical and the glass half empty response is given more credibility than a glass half full response.

It has been a tough 18 months for the country for all kinds of reasons and even from the 'half-full' viewpoint that is the reality.  However, that's where I do draw the line (after a bit of a moan of course).  Recent events seem to me to show a growing mindset from some quarters that we are looking back and down as the norm.  Now as someone who does a bit of walking I've yet to achieve much in the way of distance by walking this way.  I'm pretty sure that isn't what Run DMC and Aerosmith were meaning either.  If you travel forward whilst looking back and down it doesn't take long for you to hit something or end up with something nasty on your shoe.

I started this blog to say look, I'm here and I'm looking forward.  There may be a recession, but then there is never a wrong time to take control of your life, dream a dream and go for it.  I've mentioned my Dr Pepper moment before and I'm not sure if I was extremely cynical that I'd have been able to give a measured and positive response to 'What's the worst that can happen'. 

I started this blog not to say, look at how well everything I touch is going, let me just put that point to bed now.  It's been tough and very, very loney running the business, and for someone who has boughts of depression that isn't a good combination.  But you know what? I wouldn't change it! I'm now doing something that makes me happy.  That isn't to say it just puts me in a happy mood, I have a genuine deep feeling that this rocky path is MY path, it's taken me a while to find it but it's the right one for me.

So whilst times are tough and the air of cynicism is seemingly growing it is up to all of us as individuals to do the things that are guaranteed to make us happy, learn from mistakes (but don't be afraid to make them) and raise our heads and turn them forward.  Then we'll all get where we are going a lot quicker and with a few less (smelly) bruises!

Mum...I'm in the paper!

So the power of social networking shows itself.  Just 48hrs after returning to this very blog and sending the update on my Twitter account (@simonbrooke) I've entered the world of social commentator.

Lancashire Business View magazine, top lancashire business publication read my latest posts and have now featured it on their e-bulletin update. To see a copy follow this link http://www.lancashirebusinessview.co.uk/news-details.htm?news_id=73 . 

This is a great example for one of the best lessons I've learned over the past 15months of being an entrepreneur...you are a trumpet so make sure you blow!  Ok, that is a little silly, but the old adage is certainly true, always blow your own trumpet, particularly in these tricky times.  And the other thing is - always say yes (ok maybe within reason).  It is amazing in this age of social media how quickly your voice can be heard and promoted. So don't be shy!  If you have done something, plan on doing something (that you can talk about - no revealing secrets early), or even have an feeling that something is 'good news' talk about it.  And don't think that you need expensive PR to do it, its promotion not a black art.  (though I should say at this point that professional PR are brilliant if used right - mwah pr bods x)

So tell your story, we need more good news stories - the more positive stories that are out there, the quicker we'll see us normal folk back on a natural high.

We learn so much from each other, from people we can relate to, people in our situation, people who provide us with a living example.  So why not be that example, then you'll be making the call 'Mum...I think I might be in the paper over there, can you go and get a copy please, no I don't know what it is we haven't put it out...put it on the fridge next to that finger painting from 1984'.