Practical Inspiration Publishing

Applying big business strategy to my small business… Over the last 6 months I have taken part in a mastermind mentorship with Catherine Erdly of The Resilient Retail Club. In 2023 my business grew 66%, but my own pay had not reflected this rise. We began 2024 on a similar trajectory of growth and I knew it was time to address the numbers behind the scenes. With Catherine’s mentoring and expertise in merchandising for big businesses I was able to implement sophisticated stock management and cash flow systems. The types of systems that big retailers use, but that I could never have created for myself. These systems have completely revolutionised the way I work and have created structure in my year round strategy and marketing plan. The stock planner has enabled me to maximise profits by maintaining a healthy supply of best sellers, sell through slow moving stock, and test new product lines effectively. The cashflow planner has meant that for the first time I am able to see the financial position of the business and am able to manipulate the flow of cash to work cohesively with what else is happening in the business. Most importantly, I have increased my own pay which was the main goal I had set out to achieve. For the first time in nearly 5 years of business, I have finally woken up to the idea that I need focus on profit over growth. Growth needs to happen, but at a manageable rate and not at the forfeit of profit. I am really looking forward to the final half of 2024 with these tools under my belt. I am feeling in control & really optimistic about this business not just working, but working for me. Thank you so much Catherine you are an absolutely genius! I look forward to working together again when I reach my next stage of growth.

I recently attended the Financial Times Women in Business Summit and learned so much from the speakers and presentations. One of the highlights for me was listing to Dr Lucy Ryan talk about the (mostly negative) experiences of professional women in mid-life, based on her own research. If you work in HR, Recruitment, Learning & Development, Talent Management or Employee Wellbeing - or if you simply wish to inform yourself - her book 'Revolting Women' is a must read. In it she describes how and why middle-aged women are quitting their careers, for three main reasons: The language of gendered ageism; when ageism meets sexism the result is corrosive. Midlife collision; menopause, eldercare, divorce, bereavement... these issues are temporary and women wanted to 'pause' not exit. Revolting against a system that doesn't recognise what middle-aged women bring, many are just hitting their stride. It's original, pithy and written with refreshing candour. And it's available here https://lnkd.in/eHuE5YAH #womeninleadership #success #careers #genderbalance

Conscious inclusion is my thing, and I wanted my book to be an example of that. So it’s available in print, ebook and audio to provide for different learning styles and needs. I also worked on typesetting with my publisher Practical Inspiration Publishing to make the content easier to read. Here are some examples: ·     Dyslexia friendly font ·     Friendly font size ·     Text aligned to the left ·     White space to break up blocks of text ·     Information broken down into smaller chunks ·     Visuals to explain concepts ·     Cover design with separated words and graphics You can apply these examples to anything you produce e.g. training materials, social media content, announcements, process documents, webpages etc. For more on accessible communication, flick to decision 22 in my book. Let’s make information more accessible for everyone 💫 ---   Get your copy of Conscious Inclusion: How to 'do' EDI one decision at a time 🧠   Buy here https://amzn.to/3HrcDzT or search 'Conscious Inclusion Catherine Garrod' at your favourite bookstore or audio platform 📖🎧   #ConsciousInclusion #Accessbility #Equity #Inclusion #CompellingCulture

Welcome to the live, virtual launch of Do Sweat the Small Stuff: Harness the power of micro-interactions to transform your leadership, published by Practical Inspiration Publishing. Celebrate publication day with me on Tuesday 9th July, 4pm BST, 11am EST, 8am PST. #sixweekstogo #dosweatthesmallstuff #author #book #leadership #executivecoach

When I first started working in publishing, as a lowly editorial assistant at W&R Chambers in 1992, a copy of The Bookseller would arrive each week and work its way down through the office from the director's in-tray to mine, a long list of initials crossed off one by one until it was finally AJ's turn. By the time I got to sit down with it, it was usually out of date, coffee-stained and slightly foxed, but I devoured it all the same. If you're in the book trade, it's EVERYTHING. I think 1992 me would be delighted and astonished to know that in 2024, The Bookseller's online site would be featuring a brand new series from my own publishing company. (And to know that I'd have my very own copy delivered through my door every week.) I'm very excited about 6-Minute Smarts, a new Practical Inspiration Publishing series of short, snappy, self-coaching books which launches in November. Want to find out more? https://lnkd.in/eD2HzGcg