Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 6: It’s a small world after all
To outsiders bound by the shackles of office imprisonment, the geographical recklessness of entrepreneurship can at times seem like a fairly compelling proposition. After all, who wouldn’t want to conduct their Skype meetings from a coffee shop in Milan, or chase...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 5: The introversion dilemma
The word “entrepreneur” traditionally conjures up images of big talking, outgoing personalities – people with plenty of hustle and endless capacity to talk a good game. They’re the kinds of people you see motoring their way down the streets, latté in one hand,...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 28: Is more really merrier?
More clients. More money. More staff. More, more, more. This appears to be the mantra of every aspirant entrepreneur, whose personality traits are seldom well-suited to basking in the status quo. But is more necessarily merrier? As someone with a near pathological...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 34: Leaving a Legacy
“You could get hit by a bus tomorrow.” It’s a commonly used phrase, traditionally utilised to encourage its listener to seize the day or something to that effect. But upon hearing it in passing recently, I got to thinking – what if I DID get hit by a bus tomorrow?...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 35: The Absentia Affliction
The French are big fans. The Italians consider them a de-facto birth right. And the Spaniards cleverly work one into each of their legendary afternoon siestas. But are holidays a luxury any entrepreneur can really afford? I recently put this theory to the test with a...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 36: The Acquisition Acclimatisation
More money, more problems, or so the saying goes. And never has this been truer than in the world of business, where profit margins remain frustratingly unchanged despite the acquisition of new clients (and their plentiful associated problems). Yep, just when you...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 37: Knowing When To Walk Away
During the fledgling stage of any business, paying clients are undoubtedly atop the must-have list, irrespective of their varying degrees of psychosis and/or unyielding ineptitude. Those paltry pay cheques we cash every month are what prevents us from checking in at...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 38: The Lunch Conundrum
It’s the most wonderful time of the year, or so they say. Yet as the end of 2017 creeps nearer, and work days are increasingly replaced by indulgent staff parties and lavish lunches, the only wonder I have is whether I’ve got things all wrong. Should I in fact be...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 17: Who’s the Boss?
Ah, to be your own boss. It’s the dream of the deskbound, who long for such lofty freedom as they punch in and out, fill out timesheets and take in the plentiful charms of micro-management. Yet, as someone who’s enjoyed the dubious privilege of being the ‘boss’ for a...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 13: Boardroom Bullies
For anyone with a marginally productive disposition, meetings are perhaps the most painful of all professional obligations. Not only do they upset your hard-earned momentum and require a hair-raising venture into rush-hour traffic, but they also expose you to some of...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 40: When In Doubt
It was just another Wednesday, or at least it seemed like it at the time. But at some point during an otherwise innocuous morning, as my unread email tally slipped into triple digits for the first time, I felt the first nagging pangs of doubt. Now doubt is something I...
Diaries of a Barefoot Businessman Chapter 21: The Public Holiday Paradox
Tuesdays masquerading as Fridays. Weekends sporting ill-defined boundaries. Increasingly blurred lines between work and play. Yes, it’s public holiday season again, which, for many, understandably represents the highlight of the year. After all, with so many off days...