Running your own business is nowhere near as tough as you might think. So what are you waiting for? Luke Johnson is Britain's busiest tycoon, with a personal fortune estimated at £120 million. From Pizza Express and Channel 4 to his incisive Financial Times column, Johnson has spent two decades on the business frontline. In Start It Up, Johnson sets out to inspire - and guide - every budding entrepreneur. He tackles the issues that really matter: finding the right idea, sourcing funds, and getting the best from the people you meet on the way - chiefly yourself. 'A must-read for inspiring entrepreneurs, probably the best book available on the subject' John McLaren, Management Today 'Part rant, part outpouring of useful knowledge gleaned from 20 very successful years in business. There is a great deal here that is good' Richard Reed, co-founder of Innocent Drinks, Financial Times 'For the budding entrepreneur, this clear, thoughtful and passionate how-to guide will be an excellent first investment' Economist Luke Johnson is one of Britain's most successful entrepreneurs with an estimated personal fortune of £120 million. He is Chairman of Risk Capital Partners and The Royal Society of Arts, and a former Chairman of Channel 4 Television. He writes columns for the Financial Times and Management Today. In the 1990s he was Chairman of PizzaExpress, which he grew from 12 restaurants to over 250; he also founded the Strada pizzeria chain and owns Giraffe and Patisserie Valerie. He lives in London and is married with three children.

     Author James Muir shares unique insights on how ‘closing the sale’ can be done with a natural, non-pushy sales strategy that breaks the stigma often associated with professional sales. Everything has changed. The latest science shows that old, counter-productive closing tactics backfire and hold you back. In The Perfect Close you will learn a closing method that is nearly always successful (in the 95% range). It’s zero pressure and involves just two questions. It’s a clear & simple approach that is flexible enough to use on every kind of sale at every given stage. It can be learned in less than an hour and mastered in a day. It is especially helpful for new and inexperienced salespeople and professionals who dislike the “stigma” of selling or find the selling process awkward or uncomfortable. In The Perfect Close: The Secret to Closing Sales you will learn: A simple method to closing that is nearly always successful (95% range), is zero pressure & involves just two questions. How traditional closing techniques damage trust & what you can do remain on emotionally higher ground. How to close more sales in way that makes clients feel more educated, in control and see you as a facilitator & consultant. A proven and repeatable process for advancing sales that can be used in any kind of sale at any given stage. How to add continuous momentum & advance your sales in a way that results in more closed business & faster closed business. A natural way to close that doesn't require that you change your personality or become someone you're not. How to completely eliminate the stress & tension that some people feel when it comes to asking for commitments. How to add value on every sales encounter. Everything you need to know to advance every sale to closure The Perfect Close represents the best practice in closing sales today. Apply it yourself and discover how this simple technique along with being genuinely authentic creates the highest levels of success and happiness. This is more than a just a book. It's a sales training course that outlines step-by-step what you need to do to advance your sales to closure. If you are new to sales, make this the first book you read. It will teach you how to be effective immediately and will literally teach you the rest of the steps in your sales process. If you are an experienced professional looking for ways to improve your performance, this book will help take your closing skills to a whole new level. SPECIAL BONUSES! With this book you will get access to a myriad of complimentary online resources including: The Perfect Close Reference Model, The Perfect Close Mind Map, Opportunity Research Forms, Encounter Planning Forms, Sample Meeting Agendas, The 21 Closing Secrets Reference Guide, Special Reports and more. Print them out and use these resources to help you while selling or just to refresh what you've learned.

    This book outlines a programme for success for new and future executives, and offers frank advice from accomplished senior executives on what to do and to avoid.

    

    Reputations are dying. Don't let it happen to your company, your team, or your family. You need to turn this potential liability into leadership, and you need to start today. Learn the art and science behind why digital reputations are determining: business winners and losers, your child's future, effective vs. ineffective CEOs & school teachers, your team's culture, church congregation sizes, your next job, everything..

    Coming from all walks of life, these empowered women discuss their many successes and their dreams for the future. Yet, they also venture to disclose the setbacks that have preceded hard-won conquests, the barriers, psychological or otherwise, that may have held them back at certain points and the compromises they've had to make to reach the top.Through these honest and contemplative revelations, thirty women in power answer those questions that confront all working women - from how best to balance the personal and the professional, to how to dismantle gender biases. Equally, the essayists consider seminal issues that concern every committed professional, man or woman: What are the qualities that define a leader? Where does one find a mentor? What are the ingredients in the recipe for success? Edited by business leader extraordinaire Naina Lal Kidwai, this topical and relevant book is a must-read, not only for the lessons it provides but also for the intimate accounts it offers of lives powerfully lived .

    The former CEO of Medtronic draws from his own in-the-trenches experience and lessons from leaders (representing an array of companies) who have weathered tough economic storms. With straight talk and clear directions, George shows leaders specifically what they must do to become strong leaders and survive any crisis. His seven lessons include: Face Reality, Starting with Yourself; Never Waste a Good Crisis; and Be Aggressive: This is Your Best Chance to Win in the Market. Seven Lesson for Leading in Crisis is a survival kit for anyone in a leadership position.A concise handbook for applying proven leadership lessons in tough times Written by Bill George one of America's most trusted business leaders and author of True North and Authentic LeadershipOffers realistic actions leaders can take to put their companies on the right long-term path Seven Lesson for Leading in Crisis gives leaders a solid strategy for staying the course.

    And Mother Teresa was its leader.How did this nun with no formal business training create a global brand, become a powerful fund-raising and public relations magnet, and lead a worldwide organization through every phase of growth over the course of forty-seven years? What were her secrets?When we shift our lens and view Mother Teresa from a leadership perspective, a wonderful success story emerges, one filled with inspiration, life lessons, and impact.Ruma Bose spent time in Calcutta working as a volunteer with Mother Teresa and her Missionaries of Charity in 1992. Over time, she discovered that Mother Teresa’s success resulted from the careful application of eight simple and unexpected principles.Through the pages of this book you will have the unique opportunity to learn these principles, share Bose’s experience with Mother Teresa, and discover how to apply Mother Teresa’s principles whether on a single project, throughout an organization, or in your life.Modern, well-timed, and humane, Mother Teresa, CEO helps you discover how you don’t have to be a saint to be a great leader!

    A brand must be elastic enough to allow for reasonable category and product-line extensions, flexible enough to change with dynamic market conditions, consistent enough so that consumers who travel physically or virtually won’t be confused, and focused enough to provide clear differentiation from the competition. Strong brands are more than globally recognizable; they are critical assets that can make a significant contribution to your company’s bottom line.In Global Brand Power, Kahn brings brand management into the 21st century, addressing how branding contributes to the purchase process and how to position a strong global brand, from identifying the appropriate competitive set, offering a sustainable differential advantage, and targeting the right strategic segment. This essential guide also covers how customer ownership of your brand affects marketing strategy, methods for assessing brand value, how to manage a brand for long-term profitability, effective brand communications and repositioning strategies, and how to manage a brand in a world of total transparency—where one slip-up can go around the world via social media instantaneously.Filled with stories about how Coca-Cola, The Estée Lauder Companies Inc., Marriott, Apple, Starbucks, Campbell Soup Company, Southwest Airlines, and celebrities like Lady Gaga are leveraging their brands, Global Brand Power is the only book you will need to implement an effective brand strategy for your firm.

    In a 1995 interview, the late Steve Jobs claimed that the secret to his and Apple’s success was talent. “We’ve gone to exceptional lengths to hire the best people,” he said, believing that the talented resource was twenty-five times more valuable than an average alternative. For Microsoft founder Bill Gates, the multiple was even higher:A great lathe operator commands several times the wage of an average lathe operator, but a great writer of software code is worth 10,000 times the price of an average software writer.While the actual number might be up for debate, the importance of technical talent is not. The most successful companies today are those that understand the strategic role that developers will play in their success or failure. Not just successful technology companies – virtually every company today needs a developer strategy. There’s a reason that ESPN and Sears have rolled out API programs, that companies are being bought not for their products but their people. The reason is that developers are the most valuable resource in business.How did we get here? How did developers become the most important constituency in business seemingly overnight? The New Kingmakers explores the rise of the developer class, its implications and provides suggestions for navigating the new developer-centric landscape.

    Reprint. 25,000 first printing.

     Throughout, the emphasis is on common, real-life work situations, including hiring, managing, assessing performance, disciplining, firing, and providing incentives for staff, as well as producing quality products and services, and dealing effectively and fairly with customers, vendors, and other stakeholders. Highlights of the Fourth Edition * Updated information relates content to current events such as the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines for Corporations. * Describes the link between ethical culture and employee engagement. * Covers new research, including the role of emotions in ethical decision making. * Presents new profiles of organizations such as McWane, Enron, Citigroup, and Marsh & McLennan. * International references reflect the realities of the increasingly global business environment.

    This means church leaders need to create no-fail; practical ways to ensure a visitor's first impression is the best impression. Author Mark Waltz shares the strategies that work in his church--and takes "greeting" to a whole new level.When guests feel valued, they will return. And when they do, they'll have the opportunity to experience Jesus' love. Let visitors know "You matter to God, so you matter to us."Adapt these practical ideas to your church's unique setting, and it won't be long before everyone feels welcome: Learn how to create a church that's welcoming to guests with strategies on:— developing senior leadership— traffic flow— the walk to the door— to shake hands or not?— directional signs or people? Address the philosophy, strategy and implementation of a ministry that welcomes first-time and returning guests. Gain sure-fire, practical ways to make the first impression the best impression.

    They face monumental decisions in unpredictable times; their actions have implications far beyond their own organizations; and they are judged mercilessly and incessantly by both their constituents and the media. Professionals, then, would do well to study the leadership traits that made Kennedy one of the most respected, beloved, and influential world leaders in modern history. John F. Kennedy on Leadership analyzes what made Kennedy, both before and during his Presidency, a unique and dominant force who would serve as the standard by which future leaders would be judged. Readers will learn the value of: * Planning and decision making: Consult widely, then act. * Crisis management: Don’t let events manage you. * Building a team: Find your own "Bobby." * Independence: Don’t follow the crowd. * Mistakes: Learn from them and move on. This timely (and timeless) book will be of interest to anyone involved in leadership.

    Most of us habitually carry our mindset and emotional state from one of these activities to the next - and all too often this has negative, occasionally disastrous consequences.For years we've been told it's getting the 'big' stuff right that gives us balance and makes us happy: the holidays, the audacious goals, the pay rises. But in our hearts we know it's really the small stuff: a great result at work, our welcome home, an absorbing conversation, a game with the kids.This book is all about getting the small stuff right - not 'sweating' it, but making it much more rewarding, much more often. It's about using the 'Third Space' (that moment of transition between a first activity and the second that follows it), to mentally 'show up' right for whatever comes next. Gaining control of the Third Space will empower you to do this any time and every time. You will consistently be your best for your work, your family, your friends and yourself - and you will find that the key to balance and happiness was always there waiting for you in the Third Space.Includes a foreword by Stephen Lundin, author of Fish.