One idea to Build your Business, one idea to Scale your life. Every Wednesday.

Welcome to Winformation Weekly. My 13 years’ experience of growing a business from £0-£100m, and the life that goes with it. All wrapped up, in one winning weekly email.

Simon Says

Another Week, Another NEW Feature: Founder Focus

I’m in the middle of another crazy week. November always seems to ramp up the stress levels, doesn’t it? At Carrington West, we’ve had new arrivals - and, sadly, a departure. Balancing one foot in the “finish the year strong” camp and the other in “get crystal clear on next year’s plans” has meant things are coming at me thick and fast.

The launch of my Victory Vault went down well last week, so thank you for all the feedback! (It’s as simple as replying to this email - I respond to every single one!). Rest assured, I’ve got two or three great free resources lined up to add to the vault before Christmas.

I’m mindful that the feedback so far has been a call for “more behind-the-scenes” content and “more human stories” from the world of entrepreneurship. So...I’ve acted on it straight away! I’m introducing a new series that will pop up sporadically in the Business Section: Founder Focus. In this series, I’ll ask one of my successful pals about their journey, hoping you can draw some inspiration or simply compare notes on your own trajectory.

First up is my good friend, former co-host of our podcast, and local legend, Ben Miles. From college “dropout” (his words, not mine) to co-founding one of the UK’s largest and fastest - growing festivals - Victorious Festival - his story is brilliant.

I hope you find value in Founder Focus, and above all, I hope it reassures you that, in our own ways, we’re all winging it a bit...especially in the early days!

Winformation This Week…

Along with Founder Focus in the Business section this week, I was keen to highlight a little tool I’ve been using to great effect - it’s really helped me buy some extra time and focus. Now, I’m not a fan of a traditional to-do list (something I often talk about on socials and in Winformation), but…a Not-to-Do List (check out the Life section below) has been a mini game-changer for me over the past 12 months. Let me know how you get on with it! 

As always, I’m keen to hear your thoughts on the newsletter and how it could be improved. Feel free to DM me anytime or email me by replying to this newsletter - I respond to every DM and every email. 

Business

Founder Focus: Ben Miles, Co-Founder, Victorious Festival

Building Bars and Breaking Barriers: The Victorious Festival Journey 

How did you get started? 

After leaving school I went to college, where I failed. So, not the best start. I ended up working on building sites and bars. It was there, working as a labourer, I would go on to meet my future business partners. The three of us went into the pub business, running a series of bars and learning the nitty gritty about the hospitality industry.   

It was in that environment that the idea for Victorious Festival was born. We’d all grown up in Portsmouth. The city hadn’t had any large-scale events for ages, we felt we could fill that gap. Our first festival started at the city’s Dockyard and since then we haven’t looked back, having booked acts that include the The Prodigy, Noel Gallagher and Fatboy Slim. 

What has been the biggest challenge in the journey so far? 

Without doubt it is other people not believing in the idea or thinking we couldn’t pull it off. No doubt there’s many who have been in the same boat when starting out. In the early days, it was an everyday occurrence for people to put the phone done on us when making calls to try and book acts, mainly because they just didn’t know who we were and weren’t too keen on finding out. At times, it can feel like the whole world is determined that you shall not succeed, but proving people wrong has always been a big driver for me. 

What is your favourite book that keeps you focused to continue working towards your goals? 

There are lots I could choose, but the one I always go back to is Atomic Habits by James Clear. Of course, you need to have a vision and goals, but this book is all about having the right processes in your life to help it happen. Ultimately, the book’s about making small changes to your life in order to make big differences when it comes to productivity and growth. Imagine if you could improve by 1% a day in whatever it is you want to do - this book shows you how to do that, by showing up day in, day out with consistent actions. 

Life

How a Not to Do List Can Make You More Effective

Lists, so many rely on them to guide their lives. Personally, I prefer to schedule my tasks in my calendar as opposed to being a slave to a list on paper or screen. That said, a list to enable you to get the most out of your day can be very beneficial if you turn the concept on its head and create a not to do list. Not only can it focus your energy on what is most important, it can also create positive habits. So here are six pointers to help you create a not to do list to lead you to increased progress. 

1. Catch yourself out. When you catch yourself doing something you know is a total waste of time, and worse, something you don’t really enjoy doing on top...write it down. A to do list is a pre-plan of things you should do. A not to do list is an “in the moment” realisation of things you know you shouldn’t be doing. By committing your time waster to paper each time, you are building your subconscious mistakes into conscious “no-nos”.

2. Do not disturb. According to an Ofcom survey, UK mobile phone users check their smartphone, on average, every 12 minutes. Deep down, we know this kind of activity is detrimental to your progress. So, create time frames when you do read and reply to messages. Outside of those windows, put your phone into do not disturb mode.

3. Quit moaning. Complaining can be commonplace and sometimes it can feel good to get something off of your chest, but as well as being bad for your health and incrementally bad for morale for those around you, it’s important to remember two things – if something is within your control, do something about it. If it isn’t, don’t waste time and energy complaining about it.

4. Allocate time to tasks. Busy people aren’t necessarily making progress. It’s not a good use of time to fill your days with low-value tasks. If your inbox is full and you don’t set allocated time to deal with it, chances you’ll be plodding through it all day. Ensure you schedule time frames in your calendar when you plan to do tasks – it will create more urgency and accountability.

5. Identify distractions. The pointers above are all distractions. The question is, do you have any more of them in your life? Identify them and consider how much time you are dedicating to them each day, then set ways to minimise doing them in future.

6. Meeting your needs. Often, those in meetings drag them out to last the time they were allocated, irrespective if they are giving value. It’s vital that meetings you attend, either in person or online, have a clear purpose. By the same token, think carefully about what you say yes to in the future, is it clear in what it is and is it aligned to your goals.

Until next week! 

Let’s win, together!