Archive:2016
The Importance of Being Idle
Posted on 30 / 11 / 2016
Bertrand Russell is someone who I admire. He was arguably the finest philosopher of the 20th century and certainly the most prolific. He wrote the “History of Western Philosophy” which narrated the progression of western thought from the Greeks through the dark ages and the renaissance to the mid-20th Century. He had a massive impact on mathematics and logic as a result of co-writing “Principia Mathematica” with Alfred Whitehead. read more >
More Serious Play
Posted on 29 / 11 / 2016
Back in April I wrote a short blog post about the management method Lego Serious Play® which I imaginatively entitled Serious Play. After reading through the theory I decided that I had to give it a try so booked myself onto a workshop.
At the start of the month I attended an event at DOCK Innovation Centre that was being held as part of the Leicester Business Festival. read more >
The Start Up Series Investment Competition
Posted on 29 / 11 / 2016
Worth Capital and startups.co.uk have teamed up to provide investment for UK based start-ups looking to grow rapidly. Investments of up to £150,000 will be made to suitable businesses with a total of £1.8 million likely to be invested by the end of 2017.
The fund takes advantage of the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) so businesses will need to be eligible for SEIS in order to be eligible for the Start-Up Series. read more >
Enterprising Grants
Posted on 21 / 11 / 2016
As everyone likes free money I thought I’d write a short blog post about some of the grants currently available to businesses. I think it’s fair to say that there’s not been much in the way of government funding in 2016 but things are starting to pick up with new schemes starting to come online; here are a few of my favourites.
Grant for Enterprise (NBV)
Grant for Enterprise supports the growth or development of existing micro, small and medium-sized businesses based in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Greater Lincolnshire. read more >
The Value of GROW Method Coaching
Posted on 15 / 09 / 2016
My father sold bathrooms for a living back in the 1980’s. Business was good and at one point he owned a chain of showrooms across the East Midlands. I remember that he was always on the go: Buying, selling, shifting stock, doing deliveries, you name it my father did it. He worked really hard and was a very busy man.
He always said that he didn’t run the business, the business ran him and now I’ve started Gambit I understand what he meant: Business is tough and if you’re not careful you end up reacting to circumstances rather than planning for the future; long term goals fall by the wayside as more and more time is devoted to the day-to-day task of running a company. read more >
What Do Angel Investors Look For in a Business Opportunity?
Posted on 16 / 05 / 2016
Convincing angel investors to invest in early stage ventures is tough – really tough.
Research published in 2011 suggests that just 2.5% of business plans presented to Business Angels Networks go on to win funding. The above statistic is daunting but knowing how to tailor your business plan to investors will significantly improve your chances.
Whilst every investor is different I’ve attempted to list the 6 most common things that angels look for in a business opportunity based on my experience of speaking to network fund managers and private investors. read more >
Monkeying Around With IPR
Posted on 24 / 04 / 2016
Back in 2011 an Indonesian monkey took a photo of itself using British photographer David Slaters camera. The image was used in the book “Wildlife Personalities” and also became an internet sensation; going viral before eventually being uploaded to Wiki Commons.
But who actually owned the photograph? The Monkey who took it? The Photographer who set up the shot? Or the general public who had liked and retweeted it? read more >
Serious Play
Posted on 02 / 04 / 2016
I recently came across the management method Lego Serious Play® whilst searching for enterprise training tools. Having yet to experience the process first hand I’m unsure how seriously to take it as an education tool but it’s peaked my interest.
Under Serious Play® participant groups are led through a series of questions that probe into the problem they are seeking to address. Each participant builds their own 3D model in response to the facilitators questioning using specially selected LEGO elements. read more >
Opening Gambit
Posted on 02 / 03 / 2016
Whilst it’s a little bit self-indulgent of me to devote a blog post to opening Gambit I do get a lot of questions about the choice of name and my decision to start-up. I thought I’d take a few moments to explain it all.
A lot of people assume that Gambit is a nod to the Marvel Character Remy Le Beau who throws exploding playing cards and wields a large staff – It’s not. read more >
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