I know I will have talked about this before on a number of occasions, but fear can be such a limiting factor for so may people. What I mean is, that it is the vision of something horrible or bad happening, as consequence of some action you may have taken, which very often stops people from even giving things a go in the first place.

This came back to me very strongly last week when I was taking my son to look at a few universities, to see which he liked most. As a very keen cricketer (and a good one) he was invited by one of the universities to join their training session. As my son knew this would include a few 1st and 2nd XI county players, he was well aware that he would be stretched to the limit. Naturally enough, my son was nervous, and as we got closer to our destination he became quieter and quieter and developed an interesting shade of whitish grey. He also suddenly started complaining of severe neck ache (apparently sustained due to a sneeze the day before) and I realised he was angling for a way out. However I wasn’t prepared to let him off so easily, and told him once he started he would forget the neck pain. And of course he did. Once people start bowling at you at 80-85mph it tends to focus the mind a little, and I’m delighted to say he weathered it well.

The boy who left that university that evening was a different person. More confident, and so excited about the chance of going there. Had he “bottled out,” he would never have known what he can and can’t do, and might have decided it wasn’t the place for him.

So next time you want to do something different or perhaps take a chance at work with a new idea, give it a go. Remember, always focus on the positive that could come from it, not the negatives. And if you can’t get the confidence yourself, get a coach to help you.

As a business coach I am many different things to different people, although of course all my knowledge and services are available to all. The thing is, all my clients have various strengths and weakness, and no one person is generally good at every aspect.

For some people it is getting them to let go. Stop doing all the small, time consuming tasks, and learn to delegate and trust their team, so they can concentrate on the key aspects of strategy and growth. For some it is team issues, not knowing who to employ, or indeed for which role. Having the wrong people in the wrong places, and worse than that, not being good at managing them. And for most of my clients it is the money side of things. Not understanding cash flow or break-even. Not knowing where they are making money, and where they are losing it. What their margins are, and what they need to do to increase their turnover and margins.

But above all these things, I have recently been reminded that it is the motivational aspects and confidence giving which my clients most value in the long run.

No-one can pretend that all businesses always run smoothly. All of us get knocks from time to time and recently it has been harder to get back up. That is where I come in. Every time you get knocked down, I will be there to pick you up, dust you down, and re-enthuse you to strive for greater things once more.

The confidence to do the things that my clients know they should be doing, also comes from my always being there to advise and support. Two comments “Chris you give the confidence to know I am doing the right thing,” and “I just needed to hear you say what I already know,” are recent things I have heard from clients which have made me remember exactly how important my presence as a coach can be.

I have recently had an event in my life which has caused me to take a step back and think more about what is important in life, and what doesn’t really matter so much. After all you never know when misfortune could strike, so it is important to live for the day, and make sure that you don’t miss out.

I like to think that by and large I do live life to the full, but I suppose as I have become older it has become easier and easier not to do things, rather than get out of my comfort zone, and before you know it, you can find yourself drifting quietly along, but not necessarily accomplishing much. My children are now growing up and gradually leading their own lives more and more, and it is so important to grab all the opportunities that you can with your close family before it becomes too late.

So short term we immediately relooked at our year’s budgets to see what we might have to do to allow us an extra holiday with our children. Identifying a destination, and then looking at the costs, and then putting the figures in the cash flow budget, immediately makes it more defined. Now it is a question of working out who to target and how to ensure that we convert enough new business to make it all happen. But at least it is in “tablets of stone” now, and the chances of us achieving this are far higher than just by thinking about it, and wishing it might happen.

At the risk of becoming repetitive, writing things down (goals in all walks of life) is always a good thing. I was sitting next to a lady at a networking meeting this morning, who assured me that she was going to be really pushing for new business in February. I asked her if she had written down her ideal target profile, so she could know where to find them, and she said that it was in her mind who she was looking for. Of course most of us will feel that is sufficient, but I’m prepared to bet that those of us who write things down in terms of actions and targets, are far more likely to achieve them, than those who don’t.

The Kevin Pietersen sacking has recently brought to a head the argument about how best to manage the maverick. Some say you can’t get rid of one so talented, whilst others say he is a disruptive influence, and causes problems all around him. I have to say I tend to be in the latter camp, but the whole issue has made me question is it really the best option to sack your most productive team member.

Essentially I suppose it does come down to management. Allowing a head-strong, self-opinionated, arrogant person total freedom of how he or she conducts themselves around their work colleagues cannot be a good thing. However, to tie them too tightly to the rules and regulations will simply stifle them, and they will probably leave anyway. It is a fine balance. If you allow one person to get away with things that others are not allowed to do, then you will cause ill-feeling and resentment in the team.

So how should you work with such a person? Having thought about it long and hard, it is still vital that everyone (maverick or not) must stick within the general rules, and agree to commit to the culture of the business. However, you should encourage creativity, and autonomy within each role as much as possible, so that you allow your “difficult” staff the chance to do their own thing, within reason. This doesn’t mean that they can set up new systems and go off in their own direction, but it does mean that they can suggest better ways of doing things and challenge the equilibrium, thereby satisfying their need for individual growth, and your need to do things the best way. In other words be strong, and manage these types, rather than just give up and get rid of them.