The British economy is still struggling to recover from the pandemic, according to the latest data. The economy is 0.5% smaller than it was before the pandemic, and experts say that the main reasons for this are the lingering effects of the pandemic and the tighter post-Brexit immigration rules.

The ongoing skills shortage is a major challenge for businesses, but it is also an opportunity for those who are proactive. Here are our top tips for businesses facing labor challenges in 2023.

UK industries with skills shortages

To begin, it is important to identify the industries in the UK that are most affected by the skills shortage. A recent study found that the country’s biggest shortfalls are in a variety of sectors, including:

• Transport and logistics: This sector is facing a shortage of skilled drivers, warehouse workers, and customs agents.
• Hospitality: This sector is facing a shortage of skilled chefs, waiters, and hotel staff.
• Manufacturing and construction: These sectors are facing a shortage of skilled engineers, carpenters, and electricians.

Invest in your workforce for long-term success

Recruiting top talent is a time-sensitive process, as there is only a limited pool of qualified candidates available. A recruitment agency can help you find the right people quickly and efficiently.

Recruitment agencies have wider referral networks as a third party, allowing them to identify candidates with the necessary work experience. They also focus on different industries, so you can locate an agency that meets your specific requirements.

Recruitment agencies can help you find new talent with the core skills to help your company reach its goals.

Invest in your workforce to boost your business
Often, the skills you need are already present in your workforce, but they may not be fully utilized. By upskilling your employees, you can give them the skills they need to take on new challenges and responsibilities.

Upskilling your workforce can be a great way to improve your business and the skills of your employees. By following these tips, you can make the upskilling process a success.

Organizations with more resources may even pay for their employees to enroll in external training programs offered by universities or colleges. This personalized investment in your workforce can build loyalty and even provide a valuable public relations opportunity.

Utilise Apprenticeship to train and upskill your workforce
Apprenticeships can be a long-term solution to skills shortages. They can help employers reach a wider talent pool and offer prospective employees a strong, high-quality alternative to the traditional university degree.

A multi-pronged approach to recruitment that includes building relationships with educational institutions can help businesses find top talent at the source.

Boost your marketing reach and visibility
A strong marketing strategy can make your company more attractive to prospective employees. This is because it can help to increase brand awareness and generate interest in your company. You can partner with local educational institutions, promote your job openings on social media and in the local press, and track your results to improve your marketing strategy and attract future employees.

Sources 

GDP – data tables – Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk)  

Immigration – Winckworth Sherwood LLP (wslaw.co.uk) 

UK employers struggle with worst labour shortage since 1997 | Business | The Guardian 

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Driven to create a better life, one that meant flexibility to be with her daughter more, she built Larionne Mariah, a company dedicated to helping small and medium businesses expand their reach and visibility through digital means such as social media, web production, and more.

Prior to starting her business, she worked in marketing, and didn’t agree with how things were being done. It was frustrating to be in an environment that put a limit on her worth and left her drained at the end of the day due to improper management. Clients weren’t happy, and the boss made excuses like blaming his staff. She knew she could do better. She had to. Her daughter was counting on her.

Today, Larionne Mariah owns a social media management firm, which works with small to medium sized businesses. Her happy clients are thrilled she opened the doors to her own brand, along the results she gets them and top-notch customer service she provides. It’s a win-win situation for the businesses she works with.

She’s driven to get her clients results, real results, so they can accelerate their business growth while letting go of time-draining tasks that take them away from other work they could be doing. Social media management allows the business owner to let go of these tasks and zone in on their strengths and areas of expertise.

She provides them with the support and social media management they need to reach higher levels of engagement and visibility. With their bigger, better digital presence, it becomes easier to be seen and heard in an online world filled with noise.

LarionneMariah.com offers both small businesses, medium businesses, and solopreneurs services including web creation, ad account setups, brand audits, and social media management. She offers her clients the opportunity to free up their time by tackling their digital and social needs.

By bringing clients the results they love with realistic expectations, she offers them freedom of time, less headaches and frustration, and accelerated business growth.

If you’d like to learn more about Larionne Mariah and her social media management services, find her at LarionneMariah.com. Isn’t it about time to take your business to the next level?

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She once struggled with her mental health challenges. On finding a path to healing, she knew she could help others. It was her calling as an empath to connect with others and help them journey to a place of health and well-being. In going through her Empath Alignment Accelerator program, which is a group coaching course that runs for 8 weeks, she’s able to coach clients in an environment that enables them to move forward, awaken their potential, and have a deeper understanding of their emotions.

Cultivating and nourishing strong relationships is vital, as well as being fully in touch with your emotions. Self-awareness is critical in her clients reaching their peak potential. But, to heal and grow, they must look at past traumas and issues to push beyond them. It’s a program that speaks to the heart. Gabby includes multiple modalities in the healing journey.

If she can bring about peace so others can have a spiritual awakening, she knows she’ll have succeeded in helping them build resilience. Gabby knows what it’s like to struggle and can relate to her clients. She’s been there. She learned to heal, though it took a long time. But, through hard work and opening herself to spiritual aspects within her, she was able to put a difficult past which included being plagued by depression, anxiety, and self-harm behind her. Gabby leads others on a journey of healing, so they too can be free of their internal struggles.

When clients are willing to be vulnerable and focus on healing, there’s a better path ahead. She values self-healing, taking care of oneself, emotional intelligence, along understanding her connections to a Higher Power. By leading her clients on a path of a better realization, one where their body, mind, and soul works in sync and is free from their traumas and struggles of the path, she helps them connect to their true potential.

If you’d like to connect with Gabby or learn more about her program, you can find her on Instagram or via her program, Empath Alignment Accelerator.

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Mollie Lyst didn’t first jump into Mermaids Waves with the intent of being seen. It was an opportunity for her to express herself freely without everybody watching. What she found though, was that being true to who she was and sharing messages about self-love, it resonated with something inside of her.

She knew there was potential to impact other people and help them grow in their journey as well. With that in mind, she grew Mermaids Waves as a place that offered a sense of community while helping people find their authentic selves. By helping people connect to their natural leadership abilities and empower them with grace and self-love, she’s found her calling.

As a coach who spreads a message of inner strength and self-healing, she’s helping others connect to their authentic confidence, so they can lead and reach out to others in return. She does this by helping clients connect to their physical, mental, and spiritual well-being. In return, it helps them tap into their creative and intuitive gifts.

Through her program, Rise in Love, she empowers others to focus on their inner work, so they can thrive and finally come into their authentic selves. She sees a future where the impact of one person reaches many, as each person thrives, they can in turn impact more people.

Sometimes it comes down to trusting that you can transform, and with the right gentle nudge, you can find your true self.

She also works 1:1 with clients to help them find their fierceness, which helps them see their potential. Feel Fierce offers deep inner work that will help you find your inner fire. It’s so easy to get caught up in pleasing others and ignoring the things that are important to you. We often put ourselves on the backburner. Feel Fierce allows you the chance to put your own needs and feelings upfront, so you can connect with your true desires.

With a solid plan and smart strategies, you can achieve your goals, transform your life, and finally live the life that fills your soul. Live in alignment with who you are and what you value, rather than what you think others expect of you. If you’d like to learn more about Mollie Lyst and Mermaids Waves, be sure to visit her at MermaidsWaves.com.

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Daniel’s brand EiFit is about giving back to a community that needs healing, needs joy, and needs comfort in knowing that by the willingness to work hard and not give up, you can make great strides. Not only did he rise above the challenges of his childhood, but he also pushed himself by working multiple jobs, going to college to become an engineer, and ran the USATF track through his schooling.

His first thoughts were about escaping the raw community he grew up in, but something struck him one day, and he realized his purpose was to help other children in the area that needed strength to keep going in a broken community. He became more determined than ever to make a difference.

With his brand EiFit, he’s focused on helping others feel good, strive harder, and learning to understand why you do the things you do, along with why they matter. This athletic brand is more than about working out, it’s more than simple clothing, it’s about a lifestyle of belief, and knowing that you can make an impact by being the best you can and challenging yourself to grow and learn.

With an adverse background, Daniel knows that it was his ability to face difficulties head-on that made him into the person he is today. He wants to bring that strength of clarity to others. EiFit is a brand that says you matter, that you’re heard and that you’re not alone.

He knows what it’s like to be down, to lose everything, to not know how to take the next step, but choosing to step forward anyway. He wants to bring that joy to others, the joy of knowing that you gave your all and you feel better about yourself for doing it. And in doing so, he hopes to lift a community that needs healing, soothing, compassion, and visibility. There are children living through traumatic things that no child should have to be exposed to, and if he can make an impact in their lives, his purpose has meaning.

You can find Daniel Eiland on Instagram, here.

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There’s stress in money management for so many people, and blessing others with this knowledge of success, can help those struggling to move forward. He looks back at the things his family has provided him, and aims to give back, help them, and be there as they were for him by continuing to fund business projects and building his empire.

Tell us about your background, and what you do for a living.

My full name is Olutimilehin Michael Adeyingbo but to many others, I am known as Tim Adeyingbo. I was born in Hazel Crest and raised in the northside of Chicago. I later moved to the South Suburbs with my parents who are from Nigeria. I also have two siblings, an older brother, and a younger sister.

Growing up, I was faced with a lot of adversity and challenge, but made me into the resilient person I am. I learned I could overcome anything that gets in my way. It wasn’t easy, but it’s helped me become who I am.

Currently, I trade on the Foreign Exchange Market. This is also known as Forex. We are the largest financial market cumulating around $7.7 Billion. Under the Investment group of Supreme Billionaires Club/Money Bag Collectors, we change lives daily and help about 12,000 people across the globe. We’re excited to help others skyrocket and strive, especially at a crucial time in life due to the pandemic. We follow a blueprint, move with urgency, and change lives daily for the better as much as possible.

Aside from trading, do you have other projects in the works?

Yes! Aside from doing Forex trading and helping expose the business to others, I’m working on my very first book called. It’s called “God is Behind Me” and gives a brief look at my life, things I went through, and how I overcame challenges with my strong faith in God. It covers a period from childhood to where I am today.

The book is almost complete and soon to be released, so stay tuned for that announcement. Another project that I’m involved with is PFS. This is a financial service company. Our goal is to help people by showing them how to work from home while teaching financial concepts to them that the banks don’t want us to know. It’s very important to know where your money is going. If accepted, we help them get licensed and guide them on a journey to Generational Wealth.

What are the challenges you face daily?

Every day I face challenges ranging from trying to balance school as an engineering major and finding time for my business. I work hard to accomplish and achieve, but it’s not easy because things changed rapidly due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Sometimes I get frustrated and shed tears at the challenges, but I let that motivate me, rather than destroy me. With prayer and my powerful faith in God, I can get through the challenges that come my way. I stay ten toes down through the storm and keep going because I’m on a mission to fulfill my purpose and accomplish that goal.

How do you manage your finances?

As far as managing my finances, I invest my money very wisely. Before I altered my mindset and changed my perspective on money, I used to think about working a 9–5 and spending hours working hard would lead me to financial freedom. But, it’s the complete opposite. When I looked at, then tapped into investments, I learned how important investing your money is. Your money must work for you. Learning this altered my mindset. So as a result, I invest, think about long term investments, and let my money duplicate.

Tell us about your future vision. What is your dream of getting to the next level?

My future vision in this business is to reach Chairman 750, build aspiring business owners and entrepreneurs, and to help others reach that milestone. I want them to be able to fund businesses that help them reach their financial goals, such as retiring their parents.

My dream about taking it to the next level is to help millions and millions of people to reach their goals no matter how long it takes.

What message would you like to give to anybody who has a plan of creating something of their own and making a living through it?

My message to the masses is to first, figure out what your purpose is in life and what you want to do. Once you do that, pray and manifest that everything will work out. Next, make that plan of action. Set realistic goals you want to attack and accomplish daily. Lastly, execute it and achieve that project and business you always dreamed of having. Remember, “We are the shift in this generation!!! Build that empire and make this world a better place” — Tim A.

Leaders, Entrepreneurs, Six Figure Earners, Investors I study and look up to. There’s a lot of successful people I look up to. I try to duplicate what they’re doing which makes me want to go hard every day. Those people are Alex Morton, Jason Brown, Grant Cardone, David Imonitie, Bryce Thompson, Jaylin Goss, Branden Thompson, Matt Rosa, Neno Torres, Guy Ramses, Allen, and Avery Killiebrew, Reynaldo Perez, Von Maitland and lastly, my mentor: Marlon Collins.

Company Name: Foreign Exchange Market

Instagram URL: www.instagram.com/kingtim_ade

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Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I am a licensed Realtor, specifically in South West Florida, and currently in pursuit of my California real estate license.

I have experience in helping buyers look for homes and helping homeowners sell their homes for fair market value (top dollar).

I am a master of the door to door sales, who has generated millions for the industry as a solar energy consultant. I am able to generate business “out of thin air”.

I am experienced in high ticket selling.

I am a master of pitching products, building value, and turning people into profitable/repeat/referring customers. Through communication and business, a strong background in sales, and a natural gift of persuasion, I am helping people awaken to their inner greatness. I am currently on the path of enlightening the mass population to the fact that they are powerful, limitless, divine beings who are here with a special unique purpose.

I am the founder of @health.wealth.show, a podcast featured on Spotify & iTunes that is about health, wealth, love, and happiness. I feature guests from all walks of life to share their story, their visions, their ideas, their journey, their success, their advice, etc. The topics we cover a range from business to relationships, pop culture to upcoming trends, current events to future predictions & more.

I am the founder @igrowclub www.igrowclub.com, a digital social media marketing agency that organically grows the presence/footprint of people and businesses online, allowing them to reach their target audience and scale. I help numerous people and businesses identify their personal or brand mission statements. I help with personal and brand development. We handle the marketing for people and business while they focus mainly on the content creation, however, we are now expanding into content creation as well. Therefore, we are able to cover most digital needs.

I have had successful Shopify and Amazon business models and created strong affiliates who are earning 6–7–8 figures using e-commerce.

I am very good at networking and building relationships. I consult students on how to free themselves from the 9–5, how to live their dreams, how to escape the rat race, how to level up, how to reprogram their mindset for success & shift their paradigm about what is possible.

I have a bachelors degree in Communication

I was born and raised in upstate Rochester, New York in Rochester General Hospital on November 23rd at 8:01 PM.

Small city. There is not much opportunity. I hadn’t to really hustle and grind to get ahead. I had to become a man fast and learn principles of wealth creation fast. I grew up living in an apartment. We were not suffering or mega poor like that but we didn’t have much. My mom and dad were never married. They split up when I was 4 or 5. I still maintained and still have great relationships with both my parents and they get along fine. Mostly, I grew up living with mom and then I would see my dad throughout the week/weekends. Both of my parents were and are supportive, however, neither of them were or are rich/wealthy. They are the working middle class if that. Honestly, we never had cable TV. We didn’t have new houses or new cars. We didn’t go out to eat at super fancy restaurants. Tyson chicken nuggets & Digornio pizza. We were happy and felt blessed living in our small, simple city. I played sports; basketball, baseball, soccer, wrestling. I studied music for 6 years. I have always been creative and innovative. I always wanted more for myself and my family. I went to catholic private school my whole life, uniforms, etc. and that was great because I had a lot of friends from all over the area ( cities, towns, suburbs, districts), etc. This allowed me to see different lifestyles. I was popular growing up. I was always outspoken, bold, creative, clever, a critical thinker, and had a personality larger than life. I always had big dreams. I always wanted to be rich and successful. I wanted my family to be family and I wanted to help other people do that same thing. I remember setting up a shop, with my tables and chairs & started selling lemonade and pokemon cards on the side of the road. I would do garage sales. I would go door to door, ca none of which really fueled my fire or would lead me to financial freedom. I want to teach people how they can become financially and time free. Going back, I would sell chips, candy, magazines, whatever I could, wherever I could! I also loved saving money and watching it stack up. It always fascinated me to see money add up. I would find things on the side of the road and sell them online on craigslist, Facebook, etc. I remember watching my parents struggle sometimes; not being able to afford the nicest and newest this or that. I was raised well and did get a privileged childhood in some regard. I had a lot of random low paying jobs like food services & office positions. My parents were strict however liberal and would let me pursue things and programs like cub scouts, explorer program, band, talent shows, field trips, etc. I was basically an only child. Dad met another woman later in life and now I have a half-sister. I went to school every day, wasn’t really a bad kid although I did get into some mischief and trouble. Was not the best and was not the worst haha. I was smart. I got good grades. I made the honor roll all high school and then graduated from the university at buffalo in four years with my BA in communication. I left college and started learning more about investing. I was working for corporate radio (ESPN, PYX, BUZZ, WCMF) and doing public relations. I did some high-end luxury/designer fashion & vacation/timeshare selling commission-based jobs. I saw all of this as a stepping stone. I moved from New York to Florida, literally drove state to state, and got my real estate license. I started doing realtor things. I got a call from a previous co-worker who invited me to California to sell solar. I took the opportunity and drove across the country. In spite of all that, I have grown a personal brand that is framed on positive development and achievement. I have a good credit score. I have a strong growing social media presence. I have a positive message and mission to improve the quality of life of others by helping them realize their purpose and maximize their potential.

Honestly, Rome was not built in a day. It’s a game of inches. It’s one step, one day at a time. The reality is that things take time, effort, and focus. Anybody claiming that their success occurred overnight does not realize all the work and intangible things that have been factored into the equation. People just want to make their accomplishments seem and appear easier than they were because this gives them a higher perceived power/level of intrigue. I’ll be honest. This has been a lot of early mornings and late nights, a lot of sacrifices, a lot of trial and error. Literally blood, sweat, and tears. A lot of stress and failure. A lot of learning and overcoming challenges. A lot of mental and behavioral changes. A lot of reevaluation of who I spend time with & how I spend time. A lot of research. A lot of studying. A lot of calculated risks. A lot of energy, time, financial investment. A lot of networking. A lot of traveling. A lot of calls, messages, emails, voicemails, follow-ups.

I want to be in full control. I want to be able to do whatever I want whenever I want. I believe that we are blessed to be living in America, USA, and should take advantage of the taxes and systems in place that benefits entrepreneurs and business owners. I want to create an immortal legacy. I want to create something, own something. Being an entrepreneur is puts the power back in your hands. It is not always easy, but it is fun and can be rewarding when all goes right. Entrepreneurship is what I see when I look at any successful business or brand. The CEO or founder was an entrepreneur, a creator, a problem solver, an innovator. That is what I want to do.

The biggest challenge in starting a business is maintaining the faith that everything will work out during initial start-up periods and phases of uncertainty. That, along with scaling, remaining relevant, and retaining customers. The biggest reward is knowing that you built and created something that is helping people and generating a profit. That, along with the assurance that you are in control of something that in theory, nobody can take away from you (if you comply with all ordinance and laws haha)

Honestly, the most interesting story is ever since I moved to California and started my journey here, an increase of interaction from celebrity/verified public figures has been observable. They reach out to me, interact with me, and support me. This is cool because I’ll wake up with messages, likes, or comments from people who are doing big/great things. Getting that constant recognition inspires and motivates me to keep doing what I do.

1) It all starts with you. Think bigger, believe in yourself, do something to get forward every day, and always trust the process. Don’t be afraid to ask for help or look dumb. Be vulnerable.

2) Invest in yourself, don’t be scared of good debt that results in cash flow, & money follows attention, so get it at all costs.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person

who you are grateful to who helped get you to where you are? One entity would definitely be God. My Mom has been a huge help too. I learn a lot from everyone I encounter, whether it be what to do or what not to do. Some of my mentors include, Grant Cardone, Tony Robbins, Les Brown, Jim Rohn, Tai Lopez, Bob Proctor, Robert Kiyosaki, the lesson did you learn from

them?

What is your entrepreneur’s story? How did you come about building your business?

From rags to riches. I saw a lot of people struggling where I’m from. There was never much money in my family. My parents sort of having a scarcity mindset. It was not their fault. They grew up in different times. They raised me very. I just never learned wealth creation principles really. Although they did give me some applicable and practical advice like “save your money to invest”, “take care of your credit”, “don’t waste your money on things you don’t need” etc. My parents always supported me and gave me what I wanted, however, we were not rich or wealthy. I grew up and started my first business when I was 21. I formed an LLC from LegalZoom and started learning about different tax strategies and business operations I started off by hiring someone to make a logo and then built a website. I remember investing my own money into getting the logo printed on t-shirts before I even had a real audience. I just had a vision and idea. The company was based on a music and entertainment campaign and blew up internationally. To this day, the #ayeliens brand and tag on Instagram and Twitter have reached tens of thousands of people. I was the first person to use #ayeliens on Instagram and the community is now an immortal legacy. I do most of the work in house with some help from virtual assistants.

What is your business model — how were you able to grow so fast?

Door to door sales. Cold calling. Face to face sales. B2C. B2B. Online marketing. I am an independent contractor for solar and real estate. I also have affiliates and global marketing teams and campaigns for my e-com and social media marketing agency. A lot of online marketing. I have a service that everyone on Instagram wants and needs.

Instagram automation: 100% real & organic engagement — 24/7 • Targeted Likes

 • Targeted Follows/Unfollows ✅ • Customized Comments

• Location Targeted

• Specific Hashtag Targeted #️⃣ • Similar Username Targeted

Can you give me an overview of who you are, what is your educational or overall background? What are some of your achievements?

Educated. Worldly. Biracial. Naturally persuasive. Ambivert. Bachelor’s degree in communication from a division one university. From New York. Moved to Florida. Moved to California. Seeking a good life. Creating life by my own design. Forming multiple companies that generate money online. Complete Cardone u certification. Sold millions between real estate, solar & digital services. I can help grow on Young ambitious entrepreneurs with big vision and goals to help people and businesses grow while positively impacting the planet.

What have you learned through your experiences as an entrepreneur that can be used by aspiring business individuals?

You must have a positive mental attitude, unwavering faith, patience, take radical/calculated action/risk. Accept temporary defeats. Learn from failures. Network = networth. The more you learn the more you learn. Building a business is not “easy”. Success won’t happen instantly overnight. Enjoy and trust the process. Be prepared for change and be able to adapt. Understand how money works. Understand how credit works. Get a good CPA.

What makes your business so unique and successful?

I offer above and beyond service while providing an extraordinary customer experience. IGrowClub offers real organic interaction & we provide companies and people with a guaranteed number of likes & views on every post/video. Also very successful with turning prospects into repeat clients by adding value and helping them increase engagement/conversions.

What have you learned through your journey as an entrepreneur?

I have learned a lot about myself and about how people think. The psychology of humans. I have learned to keep up with the current trends. I learned that people will overpay for convenience. I learned that people consume more than they produce. I learned how to create value, find solutions to problems, communicate effectively, eliminate distractions & doubt. I have learned about taking risks and making sacrifices. I have learned that things take time and effort.

What skills and attributes make you as successful as you are?

My ability to be upfront and honest. My extroversion and limitless outgoing personality. I am confident. I look good. I have good vocabulary, diction, attitude. I am fearless. I like people and know how to make people feel good, appreciated, valued, accepted. I have studied the 7 habits of highly successful people. Read a lot including:

Here is a list of the books I have been implementing since last year:

2018 BOOKS:

1. Influence
2. The 25 ways to win with people
3. Tipping Point
4. The psychology of self-esteem
5. Awaken the giant within
6. The key to living the law of attraction
7. Book of the way
8. How to make people like you in 90 seconds or less
9. 100 ways to motivate yourself
10. If you’re not first you’re last
11. The science of being great
12. Before you quit your job
13. Retire young, retire rich
14. The Four Agreements
15. The path of prosperity
16. The science of positive mental thinking
17. The alchemy of finance
18. Get out of your way
19. The power of now
20. The art of money getting
21. The power of habit
22. How to stop worrying and start living
23. The little money bible
24. Yes you can:1200 ideas for work, home, & happiness
25. The art of communicating
26. The art of seduction
27. The art of thinking clearly
28. Visualization
29. The magic of changing your thinking
30. Don’t Sweat the Small stuff
31. Your word is your wand
32. The magic path of intuition
33. At your command
34. I know my father
35. It works! The famous little red book that makes your dreams come true
36. The obstacle is the way
37. Ego is the enemy
38. The 23 secrets to wealth
39. Laws of success in 16 steps
40. Ego is the enemy
41. Sell or be sold
42. The one thing
43. The 10X rule

2019 BOOKS:

1. Sell or be sold ✅
2. Millionaire success habits ✅
3. Stuart Wilde — infinite self 33 steps to reclaiming your inner power ✅
4. The psychology of selling ✅
5. Jab, jab, jab, right hook ✅
6. Beyond positive thinking ✅
7. Starting over — living with purpose ✅
8. The success system that never fails ✅
9. How to raise your own salary
10. The compound effect
11. The automatic millionaire
12. Start with why
13. The one thing
14. The power of broke

Why is online business, marketing, etc important?

The world is transitioning to online. Major department stores and Amazon, for example, are dominating the online space. People are going online to find what they want more now than ever before. The internet is the new platform for most professions. Approximately 70% of the world had internet, therefore you have the ability to reach people all over the globe.

follow Henry on Instagram @henryaaronwestbrooks to Grow Your Online Presence

Henry Aaron West Brooks is the Founder and CEO of www.igrowclub.com

Get a chance to avail free solar at $0 from Henry if you qualify through his company and feel free to reach out if you want consultation or mentorship for help growing a personal/business brand online/sharing your story.

The post Henry Aaron Westbrooks on Cultivating Growth and Empowering Expansion appeared first on CEO Medium.

Kathy is the President & CEO of IT TechPros, and over the years, IT TechPros has garnered many awards, like the SBA Minority Business of the Year in 2013 awarded by the San Diego SBA and the Supplier of the Year in 2013 by the Women Business Enterprise Council-West, and her company has been recognized by other prestigious organizations.

Her second company is Alpas Athletix (www.alpasathletix.com), which was founded in January 2017. Kathy, a fitness enthusiast, and who loves being outdoors, was looking for a product she wanted for herself, but after a few Google searches found out quickly that what she was looking for did not exist in the marketplace. So out of her own need, she created the product to use for herself, and she was surprised that her idea worked.

Kathy is the inventor of the “Alpas Bra,” a patented, world’s first-ever strapless sports-performance bra. Kathy’s strapless sports-performance bra is an alternative solution for women. The bra will stay on and provide full support while performing physical activities, thanks to her patented creation and design. Her product will soon be released to consumers online sometime this year.

What is your entrepreneur’s story? How did you come about building your business?

I started in the corporate world and had a successful career as a banker for a fortune 500 financial institution for nine and a half years. In the last six years of my banking career, I had a significant focus on business banking and enjoyed working with my business customers, consulting them about business financial solutions and services. I had opportunities to meet with them at their place of business, see their operations, and I admired every single one of my business customers. I knew one day that I would start and have my own company, and finally, around Winter 2005, I put my resignation to leave.

It was a leap of faith for me. I left my job and took a month’s break to figure things out. At that time, I still didn’t know what I was going to start, but my husband, who at that time was an I.T. manager for a biotech company, asked what I thought about starting an I.T. firm. I thought it was a brilliant idea!

My corporate job was my training ground, and I learned everything from customer service to dealing and managing people. I learned systems and operations, H.R., sales, leadership, KPIs, and everything about running a successful business. I also got exposed to several technologies and network refreshes throughout my tenure at the bank, so I understood and was comfortable with technology. I was also highly competent in consulting with businesses. I loved solving problems and helping my businesses succeed. I was confident that I was able to transfer everything I learned from my previous career to a technology service start-up. I was excited!

After we launched in 2006, I was able to land our first contract within a month, and in less than a year, my husband was able to quit his full-time job as an I.T. manager and join our business full-time. Today, we are a seven-figure a year business and have grown as a boutique I.T. firm in San Diego County. We focus on small businesses that have 20 and up to 150 employees in manufacturing, engineering, construction, and other B2B companies. We have clients all over the nation and support their employees around the globe. We have a high-touch approach with our customers and focus on nurturing and building relationships with every customer that we work with. I couldn’t be prouder of where we are at today.

As far as my new venture, Alpas Athletix, I am still in pre-revenue, and I am still gearing up for my launch. I am excited that I’m now at a point in my life where I can start another company. This is what I love to do — creating and starting something new! My goal is to also build Alpas with the same love and organic approach that I have applied to my tech company. I want Alpas Athletix to be a leading brand in the fitness garment space. I know I can do it!

What is your business model — how were you able to grow so fast?

My I.T. company’s model is managed services. We are a contract-only based I.T. firm. This is the model I started back in 2006 before I knew the term managed services. I learned from working for the bank that recurring revenue is key to sustaining and growing a business, so I followed that same model. I have had the company for thirteen and a half years, and although we grew exponentially during the first three years, from zero to over $300K in annual revenues, I have learned that we prefer the steady, proven, and profitable way of growing the business.

The year 2013 was one of the worst years we experienced in the business. We grew so fast within a short period, and during this process, we realized our entire team was not prepared for the pace we were going. We were also at max capacity and couldn’t service all of our clients at the level we wanted to, and what our customers expected. It was a disaster! We did get many new customers but also lost a ton of business because of it.

We were way in over our heads. It felt like I was in a tornado. I was tossed around, beat up, and chopped up emotionally and mentally for the mistake I made to pursue growth aggressively. I seriously thought we were going to go out of business too. I felt that our ship was sinking fast to join the likes of the Titanic in the deep blue ocean, but somehow, I was able to get the boat back on the right course and prevented it from hitting a big iceberg that was going to take us down. That was an experience that I do not and, if I can control it, never want to repeat!

So, I understand why it is so sexy to hear stories about companies growing to become gazillion-dollar businesses in less than ten years, but what most people fail to realize is that it takes longer than that for the average person. It takes time to nurture and grow a business. There are companies like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Rent the Runway, and others that have a valuation of over billions of dollars, but those companies are “unicorn” type companies. It represents less than 1% of the businesses out there in the world. Most small businesses take a while to get to become seven, eight, or nine figures in annual revenues or higher. You’ve got to have serious skin in the game, and it is for the long haul.

As far as my product business, Alpas Athletix, I think I will be able to grow it quicker than IT TechPros. I know I can do it in half the time. That is what experience can do, and it can accelerate success. I do have more experience and wisdom under my belt when it comes to starting, running, and growing a business. I am in it for the long haul, and I am willing to invest the time to make sure that these two companies, and other companies I am still yet to build, will continue and will be successful.

Can you give me an overview of who you are, what is your educational or overall background? What are some of your achievements?

I started my full-time banking career at the age of 19 years old and stopped attending college because my job became a priority during my earlier years. My employer became my real-world training ground and university. I was fortunate that my previous employer also puts me through sales, operations, management, and leadership training workshops. I am lucky.

When I left the bank, I went back to school to get my technical certifications needed to be in the I.T. field. I went through several business and entrepreneurial programs at different colleges and Universities in Southern CA. In 2007, I was awarded a scholarship to attend the UCLA Anderson School of Management, where I graduated in 2008 from the Management Development for the Entrepreneurship program. This was a unique MBA/University level course work and Alumni program for established entrepreneurs.

I also received another scholarship to attend the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business program at Long Beach City College, and I graduated in 2013. In that year, I graduated from another business program called Founders First Business Bootcamp, a program by Founders First Capital Partners. The program is focused on teaching companies to scale a business beyond $5M of revenues per year.

My background has been super focused around business and entrepreneurship. I attend an executive-level program every few years to make sure that I am always up-to-date and learning about new and better ways of innovating in business. It is my passion; I love business!

Some of my achievements? Since 2006, I have received awards and have been recognized for Entrepreneur of the Year, Business Owner of the Year, Women CEO of the Year, and have graced the cover of two different magazines.

I operate with a positive mindset and love to be of service to others. These recognitions are a blessing to me, and I am grateful for the people who have nominated me and have given their time and effort to recognize the work that I do in the business community.

Outside of all the professional achievements and accolades, I am most proud of my two daughters and happy to be celebrating my 18th wedding anniversary with my husband this year. A quick fun fact: my husband is my high school sweetheart, and we are also celebrating our 27th year of being together. My family is important to me, and the business is a family-owned and operated firm.

What have you learned through your experiences as an entrepreneur that can be used by aspiring business individuals?

It takes time to build something meaningful. The world of entrepreneurship is a sport. You need a lot of experience, conditioning, and training to build your endurance. What has been helpful to me is continuing to go to school and take short-term business courses to get the knowledge, as well as the support from other like-minded individuals. Always be growing, have a positive mindset, and surround yourself with successful people.

Another important element as an entrepreneur is you must first learn about yourself. Get to know you! If you have never taken personality and competency assessments, I recommend that you start there. I have found all of the assessments I have done super helpful. I have learned to focus on what I am good at and managed through my weaknesses, but I have always focused on my natural talents. I have had a positive, professional career experience because I know where I should put my energy and focus on getting the highest input for my efforts. Getting a life or business coach is also something I recommend, but only if you are ready for it. Getting into mastermind groups is also very helpful to get feedback and support from like-minded people.

What makes your business so unique and successful?

What sets us apart and the value we bring to our customers is our relationships with them. Our customers tell us all the time how much they love working with us because we listen, we care, and we are attentive. IT TechPros is a high-touch, people-oriented, service-based I.T. business. Our values speak loudly about how we operate. Our values are connection, trust, expertise, family, and fun.

Our goal is to have a long-term relationship with all of the customers that we elect to do business with, and the connection & establishing trust happens at the very first engagement process. We are continually learning to enhance our expertise to ensure that our customers are getting the best from every single one of our team members. We are a family-owned company, our team members have families, and most of our customers are family-owned too; this value is very important to us, and we treat everyone like family. Finally, what is most important is that we do love to have fun, and we do different and unique stuff for our customers regularly throughout the year. We run the business with a lot of heart, and we do love all of our customers.

What have you learned through your journey as an entrepreneur?

Entrepreneurship, to me, has been a personal, spiritual, and self-discovery journey. I have learned more about myself; I have learned what I stand for as an individual and as a business owner, and I have learned so much as a human being over the last 13 years. I have been through some of the toughest situations a person can get themselves into, and I have persevered over and over again. I learned that I could accomplish anything I want as long as I am committed to it. It is essential to be committed.

What skills and attributes make you as successful as you are?

I am loyal to my cause. I am also resilient, dedicated, and confident. I am my biggest fan, and I think despite what is going on externally, I am my biggest cheerleader. I do have people that also cheer me on and support me. I am so thankful for everyone who has poured into my business and life, but at the end of the day, I have to believe in myself 100% and make sure that I keep myself accountable for the things that I said I am going to do. There are other skills and attributes that I can share, but I am choosing this one because this is a big part of my success. I believe in my abilities!

Why is online business, marketing, etc. important?

If you are in business, a small business, or an entrepreneur, marketing your company is essential. Marketing is the way you are going to share with the world what you do, how you can help your customers and a way for them to learn about you. The final result of your marketing effort is for you to get prospect interest, take them through your sales engagement, and finally, for your prospects to become your customer.

I used to go deep-sea fishing with my husband years ago, and the best way for me to explain marketing to the average person is like how a tuna fishing boat chums the water to get the fishes to bite. If you have never gone deep sea fishing, I recommend you to tune into Netflix, and watch the show titled Battle Fish. It is a good show, and there are a lot of business and leadership lessons that I have learned from this show. The show documents a handful of commercial tuna fishers who go out to sea during the tuna season to try to catch as much Albacore Tunas they can catch.

The captain of each boat studies the ocean and makes a decision based on data to go to the location to see if they can spot or land a school of Albacore tuna. Once they have narrowed in on the spot, they chum or throw bait in the ocean to get the school of fish closer to the boat. Once the school is under the boat, and eating frenzy starts, and the fishermen start hooking the fishes one after the other either using their fishing poles, or manually gaffing the fish if they are close enough to hook onto, and they try their best to hook on as many fishes as possible.

In business, this is making sure that you know your market, you know who your customers are, where you can find them, target the platforms where your customers are, then lure them in with an enticing offer, and then onboard them as your customer. Marketing is the process in which you create a method to market what it is you are trying to sell in the marketplace. It is, in essence, like fishing for Albacore Tuna. 

 Business owners need to learn and find out the best marketing channel or campaign they will use to get new customers. If not, the business is doomed to fail.

Social Media :

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_kathy_david_/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kathydavid/

Personal Website: https://www.kathydavid.com/

Business Website: https://www.it-techpros.com

 https://www.alpasathletix.com

The post Exclusive Interview with Kathy David on Success and Building the Life of Her Dreams appeared first on CEO Medium.

Tell us about who you are and what you do.

I am Clendon Brown. A god-fearing man who is enjoying the new responsibilities of being a father. I have infinity and passion for music. My content can be found on my Instagram page. Spotify, Apple Music, SoundCloud, and google play. Also very big on entrepreneurship, investing with the forex stock market (before the epidemic). I also am starting my entertainment group called Jazzy Jupiter ENT.  I also stream live on twitch or YouTube for my gamer channel rockstarmist

Tell us about yourself how you created this brand and what was the sole idea behind it.

On how I build my brain is I just do what I love to do. And show people about my journey. Learn from my failures let anybody in who will give me a listening ear. Most of my creativeness comes from my imagination or my emotions.

 What is your giveaway idea through this interview? 

My giveaway idea is to keep.striving.onward which is why people call me kso klindon – k.s.o is an acronym for keep striving onward. I want to become living proof that dreams are possible if you work smart or hard enough.

Explain the challenges you went through while you were working on brand creation. 

Some of the challenges I went through creating my brain was just finding myself. Being easily distracted. Finance, learning what to invest in and How to better invest in me. People believe in my ability, they didn’t take me as seriously.

How do you manage your finances through the services you offer?

To our well I handle my finances I like to pay myself first and help out anybody established with me pay their bills so I don’t even worry about my bills.

Tell us your future vision about the brand. How far do you want to take it? What is your dream about taking it to the next level?

My future vision for my branch/company is for everybody to be happy and successful and what do you do to be financially free wealthy and prosperous. with great amounts of passive income.

What message would you like to give to anybody who has a plan of creating something of their own and making a living through it?

For anybody else who is trying to become their own boss work diligently don’t give up even when it feels rough. Don’t let anybody weekend or downsize your dream. Surround yourself with people that will help you and you can help them and bring value to each other.

Follow Clenton Brown on Instagram:  kso_klindon1872

The post Exclusive Story of Clendon Brown on Becoming a Six-Figure Investor and Following His Passion For Music appeared first on CEO Medium.

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