I can think of many analogies which demonstrate the error in strategy when one tries to solve a problem, but only deals with the symptoms rather than tackle the root cause. Individuals, families, businesses and even governments are known to get it wrong. Why is this? I would be bold enough to suggest that because symptoms present themselves, they need to be dealt with and the strategy is to do just that and inadvertently the real problem never gets a look in. However, just dealing with symptoms will mean that eventually the cause of your problem will come back at some point to haunt you. Is it about time we stop blaming those who don’t want to engage anymore and demonstrate this so clearly with the lack of political engagement that we are experiencing and try to look deeper into what the causes may be?

I could also recant stories which highlight the merits of putting in hard work in the short-term with some suffering, pain and hardship so that in the longer term we can reap the rewards of that hard work. It is unfortunate that sometimes we can’t directly see the results of our hard work but that shouldn’t deter us from grafting now and benefitting later. I am not suggesting that getting to the roots is going to be easy nor that the solutions won’t take hard work, but was anything meaningful ever achieved without hard work?
I have often pondered on the law of reciprocal behaviour or put another way “what goes around comes around”, or “what you sow, so shall you reap.” This serves to remind me that we are not always able to make a direct causal link to what we are doing now and the impact it will have on future generations, but nevertheless, I say, pay it forward!

I am led to write about what I will call responsible citizenship this month. I am talking about being an active citizen, a contributor to society, part of a community and having a social conscience. I am painfully aware that to those that agree with my initial statements what I am about to discuss will be such a no brainer. The concern that I have is that many people will agree but do nothing about it.

I believe that part of the solution lies with business, why, because they can provide opportunities to the disenfranchised and added to that they have no jobs. The term Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) comes to mind. Corporate conscience, corporate citizenship, responsible business, corporate integrity and corporate sustainability *1 are all terms that help to describe it. CSR then can be quite an emotive term. Companies can get quite defensive when the question is posed about what they are doing to fulfil their social “obligations”.

Our objective as business owners, representatives or employees of business is to recognise all the stakeholders in a community and having recognised them, to appreciate that any engagement should be bi-directional, each party impacts and is impacted. Those in power sometimes forget how one-sided these relationships can be. Whether power is demonstrated through your position because of the ballot box or because you run a large business the important thing to remember is the interconnectedness of all the constituents of society. Businesses do not work in isolation and some would argue they are only allowed to trade as a result of a social contract with society. *2

We need to ask ourselves some questions:
• Why don’t people vote, why don’t they get involved?
• How can we get Collective Social Responsibility as opposed to just Corporate Social Responsibility?
• Do we treat all stakeholders with the right levels of respect?
• Informing certain groups so that we can tick the box is not good enough, again what is consultation and does it really make a difference?

A case in point is young people who sometimes feel because of their lack of power and influence they tend to be ignored and end up voiceless in society. Surely it is incumbent on all of us to do whatever it takes to have an educated and healthy workforce and prosperous local communities. This, in my view, is what will make Birmingham the thriving global city that we would like to boast about.

Let’s start with business and its fundamental reason for existing to benefit and serve others thus moving away from the pristine capitalist view of merely profit maximisation. Elkington’s Triple Bottom Line would seem more appropriate in a collectively responsible society. Businesses considering profits, people and planet or taking a look at the economic, social and environmental impact of business practice.

Is it realistic to expect there to be safe and fairly paid jobs, with all of us following the laws of the land not just the legal form but the real substance, dare I mention tax evasion here! I would venture to say that we want a society where just and fair are by-words and philanthropy or trying to improve the lives of others is the norm.

1. Let’s tackle the causes of the apathy, this will mean investment in education not just at school but education as a philosophy to improve our lives spiritually, mentally and physically.
2. This will mean hard work from all of us investing our collective futures by grafting now. All of us working hard to make a change.
3. Finally how do we pay it forward? Well this has to be a baton to businesses large and small. Give someone a chance. If you can’t provide them with a job, give someone some experience so that they will have a chance to get a job. We may not see the results in bottom line straight away but let’s sow into the future of Birmingham.

When I speak to young people or anyone for that matter who has been unemployed for some time, they tell me what they want is a job. They want an opportunity to become a contributor and share their skills. They are not lazy, they just want a chance, they may not have the skills (and all of us were in that position at one point) the experience and sometimes even the right attitude but what they need is a chance.

We talk about our social and environmental footprint putting more back than we take out and trading in the public interest so that we can all live a better life. I really believe now is the time to do it so the next generation can be proud of Birmingham, the global city in the heart of the UK.

Footnotes
*1 Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Brundtland
*2 Social contract position – businesses enjoy a licence to operate and that licence is granted by society as long as the business acts in such a way that is deserving of the licence

As usual, the talks that I have delivered over this period have been wide and diverse. I have spoken to school children motivating them for exams,  discussed strategic thinkers over the last 40 years with master degrees students at university, been a key note speaker at a business conference, launched  a community initiative, undertaken commentary on Radio 4’s PM Programme, filmed for a documentary for ACCA, delivered several governance training sessions the list goes on…

I really believe whether you like speaking in public or not, it is one of those activities that is crucial to the success of any career or business and we will all be faced with having to do so. The ability to communicate, influence, educate or even entertain through the spoken word should be mastered by all. Speaking in public may be to just a handful of people in a meeting or an audience of several hundred. Regardless of this, the principles are exactly the same.

As soon as you open your mouth and start speaking to someone you are engaging in public speaking. The first bit of advice I would give is to try and remember this and treat a conversation with an audience in much the same way as you would a conversation with a group of friends. I do admit that depending on the talk the vocabulary may be slightly different but in essence you want to be yourself when you speak. Going about speaking in this way will help you adopt the right mindset and combat one of the greatest barriers to a good speech- fear. It is not just fear in most circumstances it is the fear of making a fool of yourself that people shy away from. Also treating a talk like a conversation with friends will help you to develop a more natural and conversational tone which will keep your talk authentic.

Here are my three rules for successful public speaking!

Rule One

The tell them, tell them, tell them. In other words you tell the audience what you are about to tell them and what you want from your talk. You then proceed to deliver your talk and conclude by telling then what you told them! This rule helps your listener to put into context what you are going to speak to them about, this will in turn help to keep them engaged and to recall what you have said.

Rule Two

Arrange your talk or presentation into three key themes. Decide on what your message is for the whole talk and try to articulate it into one sentence. This will give you clarity and ultimately the recipients will also receive and understand your message. Having accomplished this, it is now time to get the components parts of the talk into a three key areas. The human brain likes to gather information in chunks and there is something magical about the number three. If you can structure all talks and presentations this will leave a more lasting impression and help your audience to take away the salient points more easily.
Rule Three

The GRC – no this is not governance, risk and compliance for those familiar with my day job! GRC refers to the critical three a Grabber, developing Rapport and then rehearsing your Conclusion.

Every talk should start by grabbing the attention of your audience. This can be compared to the opening of the curtains at performance at the theatre. Your grabber sets the stage for your talk. I sometimes use a joke, a story or even a moment of silence to create the atmosphere that I want to create. You then want to build a rapport with the listener and we have a tendency to want to launch into the presentation. Nerves push you towards trying to just get your information out as quickly as possible and then getting away. To deliver an effective talk the opposite strategy is required; give the listener time to get to know you and an opportunity to get to like you. Use the time in the introduction of your talk to show what you have in common with your audience and take your time to prepare yourself so that when you start you are cool, calm and collected as they say.

At the end of your talk it is important that you leave the audience with a ‘bang’ in much the same way as you start with a ‘bang’! People remember things at the beginning of a talk, things at the end and outstanding things in the middle, so take the time to plan the ending in as much detail as you plan the rest of the talk.

Although I consistently get outstanding feedback for my talks and more importantly I have coached many people to achieve the same don’t just take my word for it. I have been reading recently the ‘Presentation Secrets of Steve Jobs’. Arguably he was one of the greatest presenters and businessmen the world has ever known. This book will share some of those secrets with you endorsing much of what I have been preaching about so make sure you read it if you can!

So, enjoy preparing for the thing many people fear the most but we do every day remembering that all speaking is public speaking!

Would you be surprised to know that 30% of the UK population have no liquid assets at all and less than 1% are millionaires? What if I were to tell you that in my opinion if we were to re-learn what we know about money we could dramatically change our financial fortunes. Dare I say it become millionaires?

Less than 0.7% of the population according to research organisation Tulip Financial Research have a net asset value greater than £665 000 not including their home. So when we speak of millionaires do we mean people that live millionaire lifestyles but do not have assets to match? I can remember paying myself my first six figure salary out of my business some years ago and on that basis it would take just ten years to have accumulated £1 million. It was some years ago that my business hit turnover of £1 million in one year. These measures though pleasant experiences and maybe steps along the way, but they don’t make you a millionaire.

You will have heard me say before, “It is not what you earn but what you invest that makes you rich.” It’s not what passes through your coffer that is going to make you wealthy but what you are able to keep. Sales are vanity, profit is sanity but cash is reality is the mantra for business owners to recount.

Well how do you do it I hear you asking impatiently? How do I make my first £1million? Before I explain let me get rid of some of the myths.

• You don’t have to be frugal and a miser to yourself to be rich.
• You don’t have to earn six figure salaries to be rich
• You don’t have to win the lottery to be rich
• You don’t have to be clever to be rich
• You don’t have to own a large or very successful business to be rich
• You don’t have to fake it until you make it to be rich
• You don’t need to have multiple streams of income to be rich
• You don’t have to dress a particular way, own a particular car, or live in a particular neighbourhood to be rich.
• You don’t have to know the right people, be born to the right family to be rich.

I have worked with and for many millionaires over the last two decades in my accounting practice and the research that I have done is backed up by the experiences that I have had with these clients over that time.

Some of the suggestions above may supercharge your income or accelerate your wealth making strategy but if you get your philosophy around money wrong they can also accelerate your level of debt.

You will all be familiar with get rich quick schemes. They invariably lead to misery and financial ruin. The first thing to understand about accumulating wealth is that it is a get rich slow scheme by and large. By practising certain principles and investing wisely over the long-term then wealth creation becomes a certainty rather than a wish.

I am going to keep it simple and share just two ideas with you. Yes there are just two things you need to do.

1. Spend less than you earn and as you earn more increase the gap between what you earn and what you spend. Use the difference to invest wisely. A common human trait is to spend beyond our means and each salary increase is matched by an increase in monthly expenditures. The first thing we have to re-learn is that we should not spend everything that we earn. The power of compound interest on a regular amount saved over your working life can quite easily accumulate to well over £1 million.
2. The next one is to pay yourself first and make it automatic. This concept is not new but it just isn’t carried out by the vast majority of the population. If you could ensure that before you deal with your every day expenditures that you could took care of the longer –term then your financial future could be secured. There is a way to do this and once set up you don’t have to think about it. All you have to do is work out what you will commit to on a regular basis and get it taken out of your account as soon as you get paid. Do it so that you never see that element of your pay. Before you get your salary allocate through standing orders or direct debits for your pension provisions and other investments for the future.

I conclude by referring back to the research by Tulip Financial Research. It took the average millionaire twenty years to accumulate £1million in assets. Don’t think get rich quick, think what I can do now, today to start that journey.

Like I always say. DO IT NOW.

I will use MINI, MOMO and MAXI to explain the perils of the over indulgence or too much focus on anyone of the past, present or future.

MINI characters focus too much on the past. The problem with this is that you can pay too much attention to the things that you wish you had done and past regrets may hold you back. A common phrase for people with this affliction is, if only I had………then life would be so different. Equally destructive is resting on your laurels, accolades or achievements from the past whether this is 10, 15 even 20 years ago, it is time to step outside your comfort zone again and put a marker down for 2012.

MOMO characters spend too much time and emphasis on the now. If your motto is “life is for living and for living now,” you risk some of the negative traits that this type of thinking produces. “There is no point worrying about the past and the future will take care of itself,” they say. Unfortunately these people don’t learn from past mistakes and life has a habit of giving you the same problem time and time again until you fix it. A  MOMO will not put money away for their pension or even consider it until it is too late, I am fit and healthy now so why exercise or watch my diet they think until it is too late.

MAXI characters focus mainly on the future. They are continually telling you about how it will be for them when they make it but this is always in the future. All the hard work will be worth it in the end, not seeing the kids, the husband or wife is justified because one day in the future it will be alright. At 55 or 60 they are still saying the same things and life has overtaken them they never seem to reach the destination and the journey wasn’t that good.

MINI, MOMO, MAXI are extremes as you will be aware but help us to understand that there needs to be balance.

We need the past to ground us and to help us evaluate where we are coming from. We can establish what we are good at and the behaviours, circumstances even people that we need to avoid by reviewing the past.

We need to enjoy the present and take time to appreciate what we have in life. Life means taking care of what we have been gifted with, money and possessions, our bodies, our minds so that we can enjoy it in later life. Set standards for yourself, write a code of conduct so you can maximise and get the best out of your life.

By planning the future and writing down our vision we can influence the path that we will take avoiding mishaps, challenges and unnecessary heartache. If we don’t plan the journey we may find someone else or something else will plan it for us, we will forever be reacting to the circumstances that life presents never in a position to take control. Plan each day before you enter each day, each month before you enter each month you may encounter unexpected situations or events but having a plan will ensure you are better equipped to deal with them.

I conclude with the words of the clinical psychologist Viktor E. Frankl, “Man’s Search for Meaning” and three tasks for you to carry out.

“Don’t aim at success- the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued; it must ensue, and it only does so as the unintended side-effect of one’s dedication to a cause greater than oneself…”

1. MINI I want you to ensure that you learn from the past. How you have fared in the five pillars for a happy life. Finance, Health (includes spiritual health), Career, Relationships, Contribution. What do you need to work on to ensure that you are happy with your progress in each of these areas? So ensure that you include amongst the three goals and the three standards elements that cover all the five pillars.
2. MOMO. I want you to live and enjoy the present by maximising each moment. What are the standards that you will live by for 2012? What are you not going to accept anymore? Write it down and create your code of conduct.
3. MAXI I want you to write down your top three goals for this year , break them down, set deadlines and milestones and have reminders ever where. Dare to dream as you carry out the exercise ensuring that you can also see how these goals fit in with your longer term goals.

I wish you all the best for 2012 remember Maximise the Moment

Are you fed up with not achieving your goals? You follow everything that I and many other personal development coaches have told you. They encourage you to; dream big, write your goals down, set a deadline, anticipate the barriers and create a plan that you monitor regularly. But for so many people this doesn’t seem to work.

Do you remember the parable of the wise man who built his house on solid foundation and the foolish man who built his on sand? It wasn’t until the storm came, that the benefits of having that strong foundation were fully appreciated. The goal was to build a house and it is true they both achieved their goal but if his focus was slightly different, the outcome would have been different for the foolish man.

Focus on the right thing. In business, for example how much money you make is just the measure of how you have done. What you should focus on is getting customers and the money will take care of itself, providing of course it is the right type of customer. In your personal life the focus should be on your regular daily actions. Instead of focusing on the outputs (goals), we focus on the process. Instead of focusing on what we want, we focus on who we are and what we need to become. Instead of focusing on the destination we focus on the journey.

Sometimes we try to find the big idea, the instant formula, the secret seven steps, and the easy way to what we want. Unfortunately for the vast majority of people this simply doesn’t work. There is no easy way – hard work, persistence and determination is the formula. When you are working towards your goals the little things that you do each day sometimes seem so far removed from the end result that it is difficult to stay motivated but it is the little consistent things that make the difference!

1. ‘The Millionaire Next Door’ by Thomas J. Stanley illustrated the point well. The lifestyle and the perception we have of millionaires is completely wrong. The research the authors carried out demonstrated that to make their millions the vast majority of millionaires had relatively normal vocations and modest living standards but by consistently spending less than they earn and saving and investing the difference over time they became wealthy. They did it a little bit at a time.

2. Healthy people don’t just suddenly, after a crash diet or a short burst at the gym get to where they are. Good health comes from a consistent attitude to healthy eating and a habit of exercise. A habit formed for regular exercise may not give you the result you want in one or two months, but keep it up past that and then review where you are in a year. The results will be astonishing all those sessions accumulate to give you the outcome you want.

3. Great relationships don’t just happen overnight. It is those little bucket fillings actions, a kind word, unexpected gift that accumulate over time to produce the results that can be seen. (Please read ‘How Full is Your Bucket?’ Tom Rath). Each bucket filling experience on its own may not seem significant but they do add up and eventually overflow.

You may not be able to see the results of the little things that you do each day but if you stay with it and just trust in the process you will see the result. I can give you many examples in nature where it seems like nothing is happening but all of a sudden we see massive growth. The tiny mustard seed that creates a wonderful tree with small daily actions, the bamboo tree that shows no sign of growth for years and then in a matter of months grows to incredible dimensions or the water hyacinth that for twenty five days of growth covers a small surface area but in a further five days can cover a whole pond.

The converse is true of course that extra 2 stones of weight that you are carrying wasn’t that one off Chinese meal or the missed gym appointment, it was a small bad habit that has been continued and consistently applied. That credit card debt was accumulated from a long line of specials offers, or the holiday that was going to be paid back or the odd meal. Slowly but surely it adds up.

The message is clear. Until next month keep your focus on the right thing and continue to take those regular actions that take you in the right direction.

If you could react to the unexpected chapters in your life with the benefit of prevision (my word for seeing something before it happens) this would undoubtedly lead you to a more rewarding and peaceful journey. However the sad reality is that one just never knows what’s just around the corner.

Who could have predicted 9/11 or more recently the scale of the global economic crisis that we find ourselves in with the European implications right on our doorstep? In 2011 there have been earthquakes in Japan, floods in Australia, political upheaval in the Middle East and North Africa. All were unexpected and all of them of such magnitude but no-one could have predicted them these events are all examples of Black Swans. In your personal and more intimate world we find sickness in our families, infidelity in relationships, business failure and redundancies ready to greet you without warning.

Taleb defines a Black Swan as “an event with the following three attributes. First, it is an outlier, as it lies outside the realm of regular expectations, because nothing in the past can convincingly point to its possibility. Second, it carries an extreme impact…. Third, in spite of its outlier status, human nature makes us concoct explanations for its occurrence after the fact, making it explainable and predictable.”

I don’t know if you are going through a Black Swan experience right now, or have been for the last few years. Are you in business, do you have children, close friends or maybe a sibling or two –it just takes a bit of catastrophic news from any of these sources outside regular expectations to have an extreme impact on your life. We are all vulnerable to the unexpected. This may all sound very gloomy and if there are events around the corner that can’t be predicted wouldn’t it be better to get on with life and not worry ourselves about them? I firmly believe in being positive and speaking positivity into my life but this doesn’t negate the need to confront what Taleb describes.

As we are about to enter the last 60 days of 2011 we still have an opportunity to end the year with some of those goals that we set at the beginning of the year tucked under our belts. Many of us at the beginning of the year were so enthusiastic about what we could achieve this year but then your Black Swan came to haunt you and just knocked the wind out of your sails.
Our goals are important because they provide a road map and with enough discipline we achieve much more out of life than when we just live aimlessly. If we are to assume that there will be knocks along the way, how we react to the knocks is what is important. Will they take you out or will you bounce straight back? Will you maintain your core disciplines and standards or will you compromise and ultimately accept mediocrity.

In spite of the problems that we all go through, I encourage you to reminisce on life itself and all the good times. We all have so much to be grateful for, life has so much to offer and we should all count our blessings. Even in the most extreme circumstances one can find a positive perspective to take. So is it about time that you moved past your set –back? Life is a journey so let us live it with passion and integrity. Life is precious let’s honour the creator and get in alignment with his purpose for our lives. Your life has meaning so let’s leave legacy and love wherever we go.

Dealing with the unexpected whether in business, socially or in our personal lives will require you to be true to whom you are and take time to consider the big picture. Until next month I pray favour, opportunity and blessings in your life.

Have you ever said something and wished you could take it back?

I was struggling this month to find a topic to write about – not because I have nothing to say but quite the contrary I have too much that I want to say. This conundrum has got me thinking about how I communicate and what things should be said and what should be left unsaid.

Recently I said something at a meeting that didn’t produce the result that I wanted and started a whole catalogue of events. I had thought about the impact my words would have, how the recipients might internalise what I said and then how they would react. This experience really got me thinking and the more I thought about it the more it bothered me because what I said that day just didn’t go the way that I had anticipated. You see one of my beliefs, probably a lot to do with my NLP training, is that whatever response you get from your communication you are responsible for. If you don’t like the response you are getting change the way that you communicate. Perhaps I should have left certain things unsaid.

So how do you know when it is prudent to talk and when it is a good time to keep quiet? You will have heard me quote from the Bible on this point in this past, James said “be slow to anger, slow to speak and swift to listen.” You have also heard that an empty vessel makes the most noise, seemingly pointing to the fact that sometimes there is no substance to certain people who are just making loud noises. In fact just by being silent one can portray an air of wisdom and intelligence; indeed you can create more impact by what you don’t say.

My oldest son is verging on 15 years old but feeling like he is 18 I am sure. He is going through his own rites of passage as he embarks on this confusing period of growing up. He likes to tell me that I don’t listen to him although I would like to think that it is really crucial for him at this stage in his life to be listening to me. Anyway I took the time recently to really try and listen to what he was saying because of the silence and time to reflect that he forced on me. I had to suspend judgement of what he was actually saying because his words weren’t articulating what he wanted to get across.  I could tell him exactly what he said to me to prove that I had listened to him, but this wasn’t enough. He would still say, “DAD you are not listening.”

It was when he decided to just stop talking, after one of my lectures to him that I was forced to take note. In that silence I just observed him for a few days, checked out his actions and listened to what he was trying to get me to understand. The experience taught me a lot, he was communicating to me more eloquently than I had imagined but it just wasn’t with his words. I learned by keeping quiet not talking and just observing.

Why don’t you take some time this month to do less talking, and more listening but not just to the words but also to the other clues that will tell you what people are saying. You can pick up a great deal by paying attention and listening not just with your ears but with all your senses. When you have spent enough time doing this then you may find the appropriate time to speak.

Stephen Covey puts it this way and I quote,” Seek first to understand and then to be understood” Think before you speak the consequences of an idle comment can be disastrous.

These riots were different. It seemed that the country was under siege, and out of control. With hindsight, and after a couple of weeks, it is easy to become complacent, but as the events were unfolding no one was certain of what would happen next. There were proposals for the use of the Armed Forces and other drastic interventions as civil disorder spread.

I observed, as other commentators did, that riot participants hailed from all cultures, all ages and a cross section of society. There did not seem to be any shared values amongst the rioters, there was no identifiable shared issue, neither was there a shared intent. In cities across the country youths purport to have looted Police Stations, as a means of revenge for the perceived injustice they have experienced at the hands of the constabulary. Others have been reported as ‘shopping’ for basic amenities to provide for their impoverished family. However, there were many that merely became intertwined in the unprecedented events, which were been played out on our streets. Of course, there were also a large proportion of participants who were seemingly intent on engaging in criminal behaviour, and satisfying selfish greed. As the details come in it seems the majority of the people arrested and being prosecuted are unemployed, male and between the ages of 18 and 25.

If reference were to be made to the riots of 1981, 1985, 2005, or those that took place in Brixton, Broad water Farm, Oldham or Handsworth, a particular issue and/or a particular locality would be brought to mind. I may even mention Poll Tax and memories would be stirred! However, this was different. Etched in history now, 2011 will record riots in London, Liverpool, Birmingham, Wolverhampton, West Bromwich, Bristol, Nottingham, Manchester, Leicester, Gloucester, Chatham and Gillingham.

The causal factors for the rioting will be discussed and debated in many arenas, and I doubt whether we will ever come to a consensus, given that the issues are so complex. The perhaps tenuous links to civil unrest around the globe and demonstrations against the foreign policies of the British government share the platform with youth wanting to voice their complete lack of hope and feelings of despair. Were the public protesting about the funding cuts to voluntary sector organisations, student tuition fees, economic instability and insecurity, or was it just mindless criminal activity? Has there been a breakdown of family values, culture and respect for one’s community or were unemployed, disenfranchised people trying to even the score? I am sure that the answer will lie in an indefinable amalgamation of much of the above.

There had been many people predicting the potential for civil unrest given the current economic climate but few, if any, would have predicted the random and sporadic spread that occurred. The sequence of events that produced an almost domino effect in some places was unprecedented.

Rather than trying to understand the reasons why hundreds of people across the country rioted as an isolated focus, I would like us to consider ‘the tipping point’. In sociology, a ‘tipping point’ is defined as the event of a previously rare phenomenon becoming rapidly and dramatically more common. In early August 2011, we witnessed disorder in London spread across the country, thus aligning what we saw with such a definition. The phrase was coined in its sociological use by Morton Grodzins, by analogy with the sciences, in physics the act of adding a small amount of weight to a balanced object can cause it to suddenly and completely topple.

The author Malcolm Gladwell in his New York Times best seller entitled ‘^[i]The Tipping Point’ has provided more contemporary examples of tipping points. He analyses fashion trends, smoking, children’s television and a successful high-tech company, amongst other things to provide us with a unique understanding of human behaviour. I have taken the liberty of interpreting his “three rules of epidemics” with my own words and analogies to make them relevant to our recent experiences in the UK. Gladwell speaks about the “Law of the Few”, “The stickiness Factor” and the “Power of context”.  I have my own definitions of these three rules with a slight change of emphasis, in particular, the impact of social media in the context of my first rule entitled connection below. These definitions will give us a framework to understand what I believe to be some of the elements of what we witnessed just a few weeks ago.

Connection “The success of any kind of social epidemic is heavily dependent on the involvement of people or a medium that has the ability to spread the message quickly.”

The ability to spread the message quickly requires a medium with three particular characteristics. There must be the right platform or network for information to spread too, the medium must be able to get information across the network accurately and effectively, and it must have the power to influence people to act.

What we experienced a few weeks ago, exhibited completely different characteristics in its dissemination, formation and execution than that experienced in previous riots. Police Forces across the country were outmanoeuvred and caught off guard, as rioters were able to create diversionary hits, notify each other instantaneously of Police whereabouts and launch attacks, sometimes without interruption for hours. The digital age that we now take for granted has facilitated that medium. It connects, it provides information, it influences at a speed and intensity that we have never experienced before. Take note of the instant 24 hour media coverage, the social media platforms and established networks on Facebook, Twitter, Blackberry Messenger and the like.

The first of the three ingredients was in place.

Message “The specific incident that ignites activity with enough intensity to create the glue.”

A young man named Mark Duggan loses his life in what remain dubious circumstances involving Police Officers from the Metropolitan Police Force. The family search for answers;  Policing strategy is not at its optimal level resulting in misinformed crowds who are left to fester, resulting in a peaceful demonstration escalating into civil unrest. The first ingredient; a sophisticated ability to rapidly spread a message- connection, is in place and ready. Now that the spark, the death of a young man at the hands of a Police weapon, has occurred the information can be spread rapidly. The message had sufficient emotional intensity to create the required momentum. The breaking news style media coverage, the shock of the incident, the continued silence from the Police about the circumstances surrounding the death allows a spark to be created.

The second ingredient that is required is added to the mixture, but before the tipping point can explode it needs the final ingredient…

Environment: “Human behaviour is inextricably linked to the environment.”

We all know how just a change in weather can have a profound impact on how we feel. So when there is a national mood of despair, uncertainty and in some cases hopelessness, we are all affected. No doubt a global financial meltdown and a level of debt never experienced before from government to individual households must have an impact on this mood. Add to that the recent scandals and what some define as being a moral decline in those at the very heart of the fabric of our society, in circumstances such as: MPs expenses, phone hacking and infidelity, and the mood wanes further. To add to this, events that have been, and continue to unfold in the Middle East, with young people contributing to the uprisings and overthrowing of dictators in countries such as Egypt, Tunisia and Libya have no doubt acted as a contributing factor to the environment in which we find ourselves.  The scene was set for this social epidemic; the third ingredient of the recipe was being prepared. It seems that the environment was at the exact temperature for the recipe to be completed. All that was needed was for it to be mixed with the right connectors and a spark.

As the recipe and ingredients that were used to create the tipping point, a solution must involve the same three elements that I have identified; Connection, Message and the Environment. This starts with our Birmingham Citizens platform, social networks of ‘good’ communicating across the same social media platforms to a comparable degree to what we saw during the riots. To outweigh the negative way that the platforms were used the new message needs to be compelling, the intensity and integrity able to motivate. Leadership must be united and messages coherent, a campaign of civil responsibility must be pursued, active citizens developed, and equality and access to opportunity fulfilled. There must be hope for the future for young, and for old. Then there is the environment and how we set the scene. This is where the big and small businesses can play their part, working with the public sector, collaborating with the voluntary sector stimulating employment and then helping to train those to maximise the opportunities. It is time to invest collectively and meaningfully in inner cities with the people and communities from all backgrounds, tackling disadvantage and supporting sustainable and long-term programmes.

Since 1166, when the Lord of the Manor was granted a charter to hold a weekly market and permission to levy tolls on goods and produce sold therein, Birmingham has seen transformational change many times. Birmingham became a centre for free trade and enterprise and throughout the Middle Ages a centre for small-scale metal manufacturing. Business led the way. By the 18^th Century, with the increasing spirit of entrepreneurship and the influence of the Lunar Society the reputation of Birmingham was established as a ‘city of a thousand trades’. The 19^th Century saw transport improvements through the canal and rail networks and a population explosion. The platform was set for the 20^th Century with the major companies operating in a position of prominence within the UK and a focus on car manufacturing. In more recent times we have seen a downturn in traditional manufacturing within the City, another factor of the downward turning economy. In the 1960s a completely different demographic descended upon Birmingham as a result of immigration to address workforce shortages and the 90s saw a complete regeneration of the City centre. The focus inevitably changed.

As the title of this article suggests, ‘why they rioted’ is not the question. My question to you is can we create a tipping point via innovative, transformational change, embracing the impact of the retail and leisure sector, investing in the educational establishments to produce a highly talented and skilled workforce? Can we once again take the lead in high-tech, knowledge based manufacturing and maximise the potential of business and professional services sector to make Birmingham a beacon for education, trade and business in Europe and beyond?

Let’s do something radical! To begin this change, I suggest that every business sponsor a young person(s), not just via the medium of an apprenticeship or internship but by engaging them in a real and meaningful way. I encourage all of those in business to rally their resources across the voluntary and public sectors but believe with conviction that it is time for business to take a lead in rebuilding our society.

Let’s create a positive tipping point in Birmingham. Spread the word. Do it now.

Yes you did read correctly, I have a strategic life plan just like a business would have. Some of you reading will be thinking that this guy is going over the top. Why would someone want to take the time to write a plan for their life? Well I would never advise someone to be running a business without a strategic or corporate plan spanning the horizon for the next three to five years. So why wouldn’t I have a strategy for my life and a plan for achieving it. It doesn’t mean that I can’t be guided by the changing circumstances that life has to offer and I am fully aware that God can intervene at any time, but having a plan is definitely better than not having a plan.

When I review the plan there will be one thing that won’t change that much, if at all and that is my code of conduct. I mention this now because I am sure this is going to come up again as a regular feature in the future having reconnected with a friend of mine Derek Mills aka “ The standards man” You see the strategic plan does have a description of what I see my future looking like with some key objectives. But what’s more important are the tools that I will use as a compass to get me to my destination. These tools are my core values, my principles of engagement and my code of conduct.

If I can stick to my core disciplines and always be the person that I am supposed to be I will be able to navigate my way through life. I have included some of my code as an example and if you want a copy of a strategic life plan pro forma you can register on my website (karlgeorge.com) and download it from member’s resources.

• I put God first in all that I do
• I thank God for all that I have
• I give of myself without seeking return
• I expect more of myself than anyone else could imagine
• I am the best person I can be
• I have a continuous habit of learning
• I take massive action to achieve my goals as though I cannot fail
• I am strong in times of adversity, living with order and discipline.
• I live with balance and harmony in all areas of my life.
• I am honest and trustworthy
• I carry an optimistic and cheerful countenance at all times
• I have respect for other people and I do not judge or criticize
• I am loving and compassionate in my relationships.

Until next month I pray blessings and open heaven for you.

But then something happened to rapidly change that trajectory, little did I know I was about to make a decision that would mean I was going to get left behind for a number of years. I don’t know if age has anything to do with it but when face book came, this new type of social media, I really wasn’t feeling it and I decided to opt out. I reluctantly allowed my wife to set up my profile but I had already decided I didn’t want to play. I reasoned I already get in excess of 30 emails a day and if I don’t deal with them daily my inbox gets unmanageable in a matter of days. Getting involved with something else would just be too much.

Two things have made me reflect on the implications of that decision which meant that I have now become a bit of a techno-phobe.

Firstly I put in my goals that by the second quarter of this year I would update my website, start a blog and research how social media could help my business.

The second reason is a bit longer to explain. It starts with Economic Clouds. Let me explain the scene is set – it is a Tuesday evening at the beginning of May, the venue is the Hyatt Regency in Birmingham and David Smith Economics Editor of the Sunday Times is about to address an audience of mainly accountants on the topic “The Economic Cloud and its Silver Lining” I have four guests/mentees with me where I am introducing them to my business networks, coaching them about networking and also exposing them to good intellectual debate.

It was at this event that I started to feel like those people who said they would never use a mobile phone or those that said this email and internet fad would go away. David Smith was taking questions by twitter whilst the talk was going on. I wanted to tweet but I have to admit I felt completely intimidated because the only way I knew how to ask a question was to put my hand up. What convinced me that I needed to change my paradigm was when two of the mentees that I had taken to the talk, where I was supposed to be teaching them how to network, had tweeted their questions and they were being answered right there in front of me.

So what have I done since then?

I share some of my findings to convince some of you to get with it, remind others of why they are already doing it and let those of you who are gurus know how far the rest of us are behind you.

Twitter Tips

• Sharing links to items of interest to your network – just add a link and the update is instant.

• Discover News and Articles You Otherwise Wouldn’t Have – this is one of my favourites I have found articles and information about key topics of interest to me in seconds that I wouldn’t have known about.

• Get Specific Answers and Advice from a Knowledgeable Pool – just tweet and wait for the response.

Linked In Tips

• Join groups specific to your area of interest – I have found some amazing links to governance networks and individuals in such a short space of time .

• Increase visibility – by updating my profile I have had numerous requests and comments• Improve Google rank page and search engine results.

• Improve connectability.

• Linked in answers – get answers from your network or group rather than an open network.

You can check out my new website at www.karlgeorge.com. Use /blog to get straight to the blog. You can check out my governance blog on www.acgpglobal.com. Use /blog to get straight to the blog. You can follow me on twitter @kggovernance and Facebook me or Link me on LinkedIn using KarlGeorge. Read my regular feature in www.thevinepublication.com Techy or what!!!