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CHERIE'S BUSINESS COACH IS JOINING US ON THE POD 😍

And so, we want your questions!!

👉 What have you always wanted to ask a business/leadership coach?

👉 What areas of your leadership do you wish you could improve?

👉 Do you have a real world business or leadership scenario that Ami, Cherie and Steph can problem solve live on the pod?

We are handing the reigns over to our Climbers!

💬 Pop your questions in the comments below OR send us a DM if you'd prefer.

We can't bluddy wait to hear from you [🫶].

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TDP TURNS TWELVE TODAY [☀️].

This here agency-that-absolutely-could has not only outlasted the statistics on SMEs getting up and *staying* up... but - as our Account Director, Mel - hilariously put it? It's also outlasted a lot o' marriages [lol].

[according to the latest statistics, ha!].

Our Founder, @cherie_thedigitalpicnic has regularly told our team this year, and the public internet, that this is "the best year I have ever had in business"... so to any fellow SME'ers out there wondering when the "overnight success" era kicks in?

It's x12 years, allegedly.

[hang in there. #lol].

We shared some sweet messages internally to Cherie, but we're relying on ALL OF YOU to *flood* the comments below and tell us how TDP and/or Cherie have positively influenced you over the last x12 years.

Cherie's a "words of affirmation bby", and we reckon she would heart pound over the comments thread here if y'all ab-so-lutely bring it.

So: GO. 🍿

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Recently, on a weekend away, 10 friends and I got stuck in a lift.

A very small lift. 😬

It was funny at first. Until it wasn’t.

It got incredibly hot. We could barely move. And it quickly became a social experiment in what people do under pressure.

Some took charge. Some led communication with the outside world. Some kept the mood up. Some stayed quiet and calm for the majority.

Everyone looked after each other, in their own way.

And I…made everyone origami fans 🤷‍♀️.

One by one, with paper being passed through the tiny gap in the door by our 3 friends on the outside 🤣.

Crisis makes me calm, weirdly enough. Call it resilience, dissociation or pure grit. Apparently my response is to assess the environment, work out what people need… and start making goddamn fans.

We laughed about it afterwards, but it got me thinking.

There’s a strong narrative around putting ourselves first.

Protect your energy.
Look after number one.
Do what works for you.

And sure, there’s wisdom in that.

But what happens when looking after ourselves comes at the expense of connection, community, belonging - something bigger than us and our individual gain?

There’s something deeply cool about looking beyond our own immediate needs and asking:

What does everyone else need right now?

Not because our needs don’t matter, or because we should endlessly give to people who only take.

Maybe the lesson isn’t to care less.

Maybe it’s to become more discerning about where we place our care.

A huge part of my work is helping people become successful without losing their humanity along the way.

Because looking after each other might just be one of our greatest strengths.

Sometimes, we just need to make sure we’re making fans for the right people.

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A loving message to Founders who are struggling to delegate…

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Your brain loves a good business case.

Especially when you’re asking it to let go of a story it’s spent years gathering evidence to support.

A client of ours is stepping into something new at the moment.
Becoming more visible. Finding the courage to put her thoughts and expertise out into the world. And right on cue (as it does for us all) those questions began:

*Who am I to do this?*
*I’m not capable enough for this.*
*There are so many amazing [insert profession] out there - I couldn’t possibly be one of them.*

This is where coaching is helpful.
Because I could tell her she’s brilliant (and I do).
We could work on thinking positively, and send her off with a pep talk.

But that’s not really the path to long-term change. Instead, we could get curious about the story itself.
Because we can tell ourselves some really interesting stories to get what we want sometimes.

The brain loves an efficient pathway.

If you’ve believed something about yourself for long enough, you’ve probably become very good at noticing the evidence that supports it.

You’ve created a path of least resistance.
Sometimes that pathway keeps you feeling safe.
Sometimes it helps you make sense of something that doesn’t sit comfortably.
And sometimes it’s simply familiar. And easier.

So rather than asking this client to magically *feel more confident*, we start gathering evidence.

What has actually happened recently?
What have clients trusted her with?
What have people whose opinions she respects reflected back to her?
What has she already done that the old story says she shouldn’t be capable of doing?

Essentially, we started **building the business case for her brain to think differently.**

And that’s a pretty good example of how we work with our coaching clients - we’re interested in understanding what’s getting in the way, why it’s there, and what we can do to create a different response. Because confidence comes from giving your brain enough evidence to question a story it has believed for a long time.

And then... doing something differently with it.

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Waiting until you’re drowning to figure out how you’ll cope means you’ll work out whether you’ll cope while you are drowning.

Read that again.

One of the conversations we had with a clients team recently was about preparing for their busy period.

And interestingly, the answer wasn’t to hire more people. Go harder.

Instead, we worked backwards. We asked:

🔸What is the sustainable number of jobs each week (to ensure long term, sustainable success)?

🔸Where are the pressure points likely to be?

🔸What can we automate and streamline NOW (before we are busy)?

🔸What work is taking up our time (that shouldn’t be)?

🔸Where do we deliberately leave breathing room (to recharge)?

🔸How will we know if someone on the team needs support?

🔸What conversations and check-ins need to happen regularly (even when we get busy)?

Growth isn’t going to feel successful if the way you achieve it leaves your team exhausted, your life depleted and your systems stretched.

Sometimes the best time to work on your business is when things are a little quieter.

Maybe that’s now.

And maybe it’s time to book in a call with us. ☎️

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Four amazing powerhouse women right here ✨

@craftcoachinganddevelopment @the_skinnook @unna.movement
#morningtonbusiness #thecaperetreat #morningtonpeninsulabusiness #morningtonpeninsulaheadshots Business coach smiling toward the camera

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Stepping away from your business (and all the other day-to-day hats we wear), will profoundly shift you.

For me, on my third Leadership and Development retreat with Ami and @craftcoachinganddevelopment , this looks like

Shifting my perspective
Shifting negative beliefs
Shifting energy
Shifting into my resolve

These shifts don’t happen alone.

It’s the space, the new concepts and of course the inspiring and supportive people.

I’ve said it so many times, but owning a business continues to be the biggest self-development bootcamp you can embark on.

I am so grateful for the new connections made, and the time with already beloved business friends, and most of all for Ami who continues to walk by my side as I grow as a business owner, but more importantly as a person.

#businessdevelopment #leadershipdevelopment #businessowner

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Last week I was lucky enough to attend a Leadership Retreat hosted by my beautiful business coach, Ami from @craftcoachinganddevelopment. To say that I have a newfound energy, determination and courage to level up professionally, is an understatement. The women who attended alongside me are all truly exceptional and not only am I grateful for their shared wisdom and encouragement, but more importantly for their friendship.

Now the real work begins.

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Last week we had our second Leaders Lunch in Manchester🩷

It was so special bringing together such supportive and ambitious women!!

Thank you to @elgatonegrotapas and our brilliant host @ellie_bissett, we’re already looking forward to the next one!🙌

#womeninagencies #leaderslunch #discovernetworking #femalefounders #manchesternetworking

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There is something quietly radical about a group of women sitting down together - sans agenda, and performance.

Today’s Craft Collective Morning Tea was full of the sort of connection I want more of. We talked about the state of the world, what it actually feels like to run a business right now, managing life outside of work, and…artistic rollerskating (still thinking about your hidden talent @theartisanssolutions). ☕

Today was our third one of these, and every single time I leave a little fuller. These women are sharp, creative, and so genuinely generous - with their thinking, their laughter, their love and support of each other.

This is what a business network should feel like.

Thank you for being the kind of humans who make a Thursday morning feel like something worth celebrating.

We even expanded @x_kimberly_x ‘s position description to include bird whispering to keep the local fauna away from the cakes…the joys of a cafe in the middle of a naturopolis!
Loved every minute with you all. 🧡

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