The information to Win in Business, the information to Win in Life, all wrapped up in one winning, weekly email. Winformation Weekly.

My 14 years’ experience of growing a business from £0-£100m as well as the life that goes with it.

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Simon Says

Winformation This Week...

If you’ve ever hung out at places like the Ned in London or founder networking events, you will encounter people that seem to be obsessed with their “raise”. How much money they managed to raise in their series A, B or C investment round. These are just words to me, I’ll be honest, I don’t know what they are talking about half the time.

They are a different breed. Doesn't mean they have the wrong, it’s just not the way I have ever done things. Listen to these guys and you will walk away convinced you have to have a slide deck ready for angel investors, finance houses or VC firms.

I also walk away from these encounters, having to remind myself which of us has built a £100m business and who hasn't.

In my own, real-world experience, you don’t need piles of cash to get started, in fact there are ways to get going with almost nothing. Like we did. In Today’s One Idea to Win in Business, we look at 5 ways to start a business with zero cash.

Hopefully by now you have a solid vision and goals for your year ahead. If you don’t, refer back to previous editions of Winformation Weekly here, to get this done. But all of that planning and direction will mean nothing if you haven’t considered the things that could trip you up on the journey. In today’s One Idea to Win in Life, we look at the 4 silent dream killers...the 4P’s!

One Idea to Win in Business

Something to Start Lean

5 Ways to Start a Business with No Money

Honestly, you don’t need piles of cash to start a business. We started in a garage with 2 slow laptops, one beat up 20-year-old car and our personal mobile phones. Was it easy? No. But did we have to present to investors, VC firms and all these other sources of cash you see on other people’s social media? No, we didn't, thank God. With that in mind, here are my top 5 tips for starting a business without any money.

1. Sell time before you sell anything else. The lowest risk way to start a business is to sell your time and your skills. Consulting. Freelancing. Contracting. Coaching. Advising. Call it whatever you like. Solve one person's problem with your time, charge for it. It does not need to be polished or packaged. This does three things immediately. It creates cash flow. It builds confidence. And it gives you proof that someone is actually willing to pay for what you do, not what you think they might want. Don’t forget, your first business doesn't have to be your final one. Money in first, learn, and tweak or change later.

2. Start a service, not a product. Most people fail because they start with a product. They build in isolation and hope demand appears. Services work the other way around. You learn in public while getting paid. Far less cost, far simpler. Again, you can build a version and switch into the expensive, trial, and error world of products later.

3. Piggyback someone else's audience. You don’t always need a huge following, you just need access to other peoples. Partner with someone whose audience would love your service. Offer a good split on the revenue. It’s a win for all 3 parties. Do your research, then reach out with a well-crafted message.

4. Pre-sell before you build. If someone won’t pay up front, they are unlikely to pay later, remember that. You can take deposits like everyone else, or you can sell the whole thing first, then build “the thing” later. Sell the outcome first. Build only once demand is proven. This removes guesswork and protects your time.

5. Start small, fix one tiny problem first. If you have zero cash, you need to ignore the big ideas at the start. Pick one small problem that people find annoying and fix it. These are cheap to solve but inconvenient for others to do themselves. Costs are low, it’s easy to deliver, and traction will build. Before you know it, you are off and running. Start small, and the big ideas can come when the cash is stacked.

One Idea to Win in Life

Something to Avoid

The Four Dream Killers That Stop Most People

Either side of Christmas, I trained our entire team of 100 plus people on setting a vision and goals for 2026. One part of that training stood out so much I had to share it this week.

If 2026 is going to go wrong, where will it break and why?

Your four biggest dream killers show up in the form of four Ps....here we go.

1. People. Not all of them, obviously. But think hard about the people you spend time with, like family, friends, and work colleagues. Does anyone drain you of energy, or only ever bring negativity to the table? If the answer is yes, you need to seriously consider how much time you spend in their company.

2. Places. Your environment has a bearing on your success. If part of your goal requires activity to shut yourself away in a quiet and calm place for an hour, then ensure you make the arrangements to provide that for yourself.

3. Patterns. It is worth being really honest with yourself about how you spend your time each day. Social media scrolling is an obvious factor here. You may have other habits. Remember, the micro decisions we make in doing things not aligned with our goals all add up over the course of a five-year vision.

4. Priorities. If you have your vision and goals set towards achieving it, then you have intention. Anything that doesn’t serve that purpose cannot be a priority. It doesn’t mean you can’t do it, but these activities need to fit around your vision and goals, not vice versa.

Win or Wonder?

Ask Me a Question…

No matter where you are on this mad journey. Starting out, scaling up, or somewhere in the messy middle feel free to ask me anything.

Business, life or mindset, I read and reply to every question. The best ones will get featured in future editions of Winformation, with your permission of course!

To ask, just hit “reply”, type your question and send. That’s it. No forms. No fuss.

Until next week! 

Let’s win, together!