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OVERVIEW 6 Fundamental Principles to Help Early Stage Business Owners Prepare The Ground For Steady Growth including 30 day rescue plan In 2008 after a catalog of mistakes Naomi Johnson had to walk away from her coaching business having invested three hard years of blood, sweet and tears. At breaking point she was subletting her bedroom, sleeping on the sofa and eating baked beans for every meal, opening a can with a knife because she couldn’t afford a new tin opener. Her creditors were phoning 7

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times a day and she had no peace. In this book, Naomi deals head on with the ‘Get Rich Quick’ industry and speaks frankly about what it really takes to be successful. She reveals the secret to making the transition from work to full time entrepreneurship, how to find extra money in your monthly budget to invest in your business, and how to work out whether you business model can really meet your financial targets and get you the life you want. Based around the wisdom she learned from her own mistakes, Naomi holds nothing back as she shares first hand from her own journey. By reading this book you will avoid many of the unspoken pitfalls successful business guru’s don’t think to tell you – things that if left unchecked will mean it’s ‘Game Over’ before you know it. This book is perfect for the small business entrepreneurs starting to realise that the entrepreneur revolution may not be quite as easy as the ride it’s been billed as. If you are staring a new business, this book is a must read. What does the Book cover? The Book is split into 5 powerful sections: Section 1: Addresses the alarming trend of people entering self employment as a response to changes in the economy and what this will mean for individuals. It examines the growing ‘Get Rich Quick’ industry and how to look out for con artists. Section 2: Outlines 6 fundamental principles necessary for a successful business. Including how to manage your money, expectations, personal leadership, and business growth. Section 3: The 30 day rescue plan I used to get myself out of poverty and back on my feet. I’ll show you how to handle overwhelming emotions of defeat, how to handle the pile of bills

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that haunts you and exactly what to do with your time now you know there is a problem. Section 4: The New Rules for Engagement. In Section 3 you walk away from being a slave to your business and in this section I show you exactly how to put yourself in the director’s seat and take control. Section 5: Whom should you be working with and who can you trust? I provide you with a list of personal recommendations of quality providers I know will help you get your business on track.

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READ THIS BOOK NOW This book has been placed in your hands because I believe there is wisdom in here that you need to hear. Whether you have been running your own business for a while or just starting out, this book is for you. The Business Principles in Section 2 will help you learn about business and the New Rules in Section 4 will make sure you get started on the right footing. If you’ve been running your business for a while, you may feel you have too much to do and can’t spare the time needed to read this book, you’re probably wrong. Sorry. Continually, I see entrepreneurs everywhere committing these mistakes. Many of them seek my advice, even asking the same question three, four times over, while the answer is in this book i.e. in your hands right now. I recommend getting started right away. If your business is in trouble and you prioritise other things, it is probably because you are suffering from an ‘Exaggerated Sense of Importance’. If you are just starting your business, then you’ll want to make sure that you’re not wasting your time planning incorrectly, by ensuring you set the right foundations. Section 2 has a chilling warning about assessing the true potential of your business. It is worth reading before getting started!

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Prelude

August 2008 I am standing on a street corner with a letter in my hand; a letter that has to be posted today. My housemate has left me in charge of this simple task. Only it’s not simple. I don’t have a stamp, and I don’t have 26p to buy one. It contains her time sheet and if not posted today, she has no money while abroad. The day is hot. I am wearing the only dress I own that will keep me cool and my feet are sweating in my thick leather shoes. My sandals broke 6 weeks ago and I haven’t been able to replace them. My 6-year-old dress barely fits. I’ve gained 15lbs. Last month I ate chocolate brownies at a conference for a week. This week all I’ve eaten is baked beans. I have to open the tin with a knife because I can’t afford a new tin opener. I stand there pondering how simple this task should be; yet it’s not. Everyone in my household, my closest friends have gone away for the summer. They’ve rented out their rooms and left me with strangers, and I’ve followed suit and rented out my bed. I am two months behind on the rent and I’ve no choice but to take up residency in the living room. My phone begins to ring. I look at the number. It’s the third time today they’ve called. I don’t want to go home. I know the phone will be ringing there too. It rings 7x a day and wakes me up at 7am each morning. My whole household are constantly on standby to say, “She’s not at home.” I owe tens of thousands and my creditors won’t relent. Each day fills me with dread. I don’t know what to do. I am broke. Alone. And out of options.

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Section 1: Lemmings in a Whole New World…

There are two obstacles that this book will face. The first one is finding a group of people who will admit that they need to read it or be wise enough in their business dealings to recognise the need to learn from those who have gone before them. The second is getting the people who do buy it to find the time to read it. You may wonder why I should care. After all, if the book is selling well, I am making money and my popularity is rising, I am a winner – right? Well that depends on my purpose for writing it. Furthering my career and stretching my business influence is definitely a reason, but as this book has unfolded, it has become about so much more. Continually I meet people who are heading off a cliff like lemmings. They frequently come to me with the same questions, some concerns, and are about to make the same mistakes. I do my best to give them my insight and help them learn from my experiences as an entrepreneur in the last five years. The problem is I feel as if I am on continual ‘repeat’. The rapid change in the UK economy is creating a whole new era of entrepreneurs. The advance of social media means that a multi-million budget is no longer required to launch a new product. Creating products designed for the mass market are more likely to fail than those that have been specifically designed for a micro-niche. Consistent and ‘safe’ ideas are no longer going to get the market’s attention.

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These changes have meant that anyone, anywhere, has the ability to be the next big business success story. The media is scattered with examples of young billionaires who had a unique idea and have taken over the world. Just look at Google and Facebook. However, what this has created are whole industries built around selling the business dream. Today there are endless business seminars teaching you how to create business success. Some of them are based on solid principles, taught by people with real experience. Others are a bunch of ‘fluff’ taught by people who’ve recognised that people are willing to pay a lot of money to get the ‘magic’ answer. They sell the success dream and in doing so create their own story. What we fail to notice, however, is that the majority of their income is coming from our pocket. They are making millions selling to a hungry market - a market full of people trying to recreate the same success as them. People are leaving secure, full-time work to follow the dream and branch out on their own. They are sold on the idea of determining their own hours, having unlimited income and fame. Many spend redundancy packages on retraining as consultants, coaches or any other new industry that claims you can make a million for very little input. They believe they won’t have to follow instructions and do what they are told. They’ll be free of the J-O-B (just over broke) and no longer have to be part of the ‘rat race’. However, business does not work like that. The truth is that successful businesses are created by following a formula and following it consistently. There are steps and procedures that have to be followed in order to create a sustainable result. For example, in order to bake a great cake we must follow the stages in the recipe. If we miss one out or do them in the wrong order, we won’t get the same cake as the recipe book is promoting.

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Unfortunately, the idea of only doing what you feel like doing, when you feel like doing it, is flawed, and yet this is what the entrepreneurial dream is being built around. There are a lot of aspects of business that are uncomfortable and cannot be avoided. I’ve sat in many business seminars that teach you to focus on what you’re good at, with little emphasis on the foundations of solid business. It can feel good in those moments - inspiring to think that you can start enjoying your life and not be tied to a desk doing something you hate. When we hear stories of people who have successfully made the leap, it gives us hope that we can do the same. It encourages us along our chosen path and persuades us to hang in there when things are tough. But unfortunately, with so many of these stories, we fail to delve deeper in to what they are really telling us. Last year, I attended a business seminar and had the privilege of listening to an entrepreneur talk about how she had made a couple of million. It was all very exciting and inspiring. Everyone in the room was looking on with glee. They wanted to create the same results for themselves. I could see awe in their faces and excitement. They were practically jumping off their seats. They wanted to learn from this person and copy her results. However, there was just one thing that the speaker failed to do, and it’s something I’ve started to realise is very common. The entrepreneur was telling how, after an unexpected divorce, she had moved back to her hometown leaving behind her well-paid, highflying job. After a while she tired of her new mundane job and craved to get back to her old life in London. She decided it was time to start a business. She recognised a gap in the market, had some products made and sold them to a high street chain. This basically summed up her rags to riches story, and she then delved into the business lessons that she used to go from a now established brand to a multimillion- pound

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household name. Excellent. I really enjoyed everything she had to say. It was enthralling. Only one problem! We were business start-ups. The clue was in the name of the show, but she seemed to have missed this. All the information she shared with us was roughly 3 years in advance of where we were. Everyone wrote in depth notes and asked great questions. Only at that point in each of our business lives, the questions were irrelevant. We weren’t facing these issues. What we needed to know were answers to questions such as: How did you raise the money to make product prototype? How did you get in front of the high street chain that bought from you? This entrepreneur was now well in advance of these questions and thus didn’t recognise just how necessary these lessons would be to her audience. What most successful business speakers are failing to do is show their eager and enthusiastic audience how to go from nothing to their first business contract. They are failing to teach them how to avoid the early day mistakes that could quickly mean ‘game over’ for the entrepreneur. Instead they teach how to run, before the baby has begun to crawl. Skipping over this content shields the listener from really understanding what it takes to achieve that first successful step. How many sales pitches they personally went to? How many times they fouled up? How they managed their balance sheet in the early days? How many times they had to fight their fear or undertake tasks in their business they absolutely hated doing. When I started my business in 2006, I had been sold on a lot of big success stories, but it wasn’t until some time later I learnt to pull them apart and discover what they really cost the entrepreneur. For example, for the first few months of business, I was very inspired by a businessman I was working with who had made

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£30k in a week! His story inspired me that anything was possible - if he could do it, well so could I. However, after some time of not getting a result, I decided to phone him up and ask him what he did to make this money. I knew some of the story but what did he really do? The answer shocked me. Firstly, he hadn’t made £30k and become rich. No, he owed £30k and had one week to pay. Twenty-one days before, he’d bought a license for a digital product that had a resell price of £5000 per unit. His payment of £30k was due in 7 days and he hadn’t even begun selling. He now had a lot of work to do in a very short period of time. Up against his deadline, he made thousands of phone calls in one week and eventually his labour paid off. He achieved the six sales he needed and he recouped his investment. On hearing the real story, I was struck by a couple of things: a) that when you really put your mind to it you can do something incredible, b) he had not continued to sell this product after making the £30k. He had worked tirelessly for a week to pay for something that had he not invested into in the first place, he wouldn’t have had to pay for. His work and his result were therefore in vain, c) the result was achieved by doing hard-core sells i.e. cold calling. And cold calling was something I did not want to do. The truth is, there are no businesses that don’t have to focus on selling either to groups or to individuals. Without sales there is no money, without money there is no business. It’s a sad truth that, and one I committed for years, many entrepreneurs simply don’t want to get selling and avoid this part entirely, and then wonder why their business is failing. In business, there will be plenty of things you have to do that you just don’t want to, either because it is too much effort or because it scares you to death.

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When we hear inspirational stories we often do not stop to pull them apart and really understand them. As we use them to inspire us and spur us on to overcome hardships, we do little, if anything, to glean lessons from them and allow them to provide us with the valuable insight into business they can provide. The story my business associate shared with me told me clearly – if you want to copy my success you’ll have to copy my methods i.e. make 1000 cold calls in a week and withstand 994 'no’s until you get the 6 ‘yes’s you need. In the ignorance of my early days in business, I simply turned my back on this story and went out to find a new one - one that had a method I did like. However, in all my years in business, I have yet to find one that completely avoids making sales presentations. Sales presentations are a vital ingredient, the backbone to any successful business. You either ‘get over it and get good at it’, or you get out of the business.

“Building your business means following a step-by-step plan to the letter!”

You see, in business, there is a formula that cannot be avoided. The entrepreneurial dream is sold on this idea of choosing your hours, doing what you want, when you want, and only doing what you like doing. Friend, I am telling you now, this is a pure ignorance. More often than not, building your business means following a step-by-step plan to the letter! It requires us to follow a procedure. Today there is a whole movement that teaches that if you believe, pray and visualise well enough and hard enough, anything can be yours. This simply isn’t true. Belief, prayer and vision go a very long way, they direct your steps, but they will not eliminate the need for your footsteps. You still have to take action and follow pre-described instructions. Several years’ back, I created a process called ‘Dream Architecture’, which is a fabulous combination of various

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coaching techniques that, when combined together, create a powerful result for clients. It challenges the coachee to not only create a long term and short-term vision for their future but also to evaluate how each goal contradicts another, and how they can work them to best complement each other. The results were phenomenal. However, I noticed one very interesting thing. After completing around 30 sessions, I began noticing there was a stark difference between those that left the session and went on to create amazing results and those who did not. Those that took responsibility for their dream and took definitive action, created it and achieved their goals. Those that did not achieve their dream, were those who did not take action. They tended instead to stay stuck in their issues and look for excuses. When I would call back for a follow up session, I found they had changed the goal and decided to do something else – more often than not because taking that action required them to step up to a level they weren’t prepared for or willing to step up to. They seemed to be looking for something magical to happen to them that would suddenly propel them to the level of influence and income that they wanted. Now I am not being critical here. I can recognise this in people because I too was the same for a long time. I remember one very successful business colleague, who I respected greatly, turning around to me one day and saying, ‘Naomi, how many business presentations have you made this week?’ What flew out of my mouth were a pile of excuses that centred round not wanting to and that I shouldn’t have to. Somehow, I believed that making sales presentations for my business was not my role, it wasn’t what I was ‘called to do’. It is no surprise then, that after three years I was forced out of the market because I ran out of money, or should I say sources to borrow from. At the time, my business reputation was at an all time high. I was being dubbed as one of the best coaches in the

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market and I had industry leaders wanting to buy my coaching process from me. However, I wasn’t converting this into paying clients. By the time I faced up to the need to follow procedures and do the work that was out of my comfort zone, I was burnt out emotionally, financially, physically, spiritually and mentally. There was no way out for me. I had to return to full time work. I had learnt that there were no short cuts. You either get with the programme or get out. Today, people are turning towards the entrepreneurial dream in droves. They are leaving full time, secure jobs to do something they love. Or they are turning to it as a solution for unemployment. As the entrepreneur revolution takes off, there has never been a greater need for this message. Success stories told without the critical details explained, mixed with modern age, fanciful business philosophy that preaches ‘Ask and you shall receive’ or ‘Visualise it and you’ll manifest it’, are not helping entrepreneurs do what it takes to create the results they need. In the last five years, the business world has changed beyond recognition. Graduates leaving University will now be arriving in a world for which their lecturers will be unable to prepare them for. They don’t understand it nor have they ever experienced it for themselves. In fact, it is still evolving at such a pace that even top business leaders are struggling to keep up with it. For the graduate to succeed in business, it is going to require the individual to lead their own career, find their own opportunities and manage an unpredictable income. The student world has taught undergraduates to borrow money as a means to progress. They promote student loans over getting part time work and many will ambitiously borrow money in the hope that they will be the next Richard Reed, Richard Branson, Sergey Brin or Larry Page. Some may be successful; they may just have the idea that is going to take over the world, but for the majority this isn’t going to be the case.

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Unless we act now to counteract the current messages being promoted in the market place, we’re going to have a serious problem on our hands. Nine years ago, I was a graduate leaving university. I was keen to make my mark on the world and began my first business three years after graduating. I ignored the advice of the wise bank manager, believing that I knew something he didn’t know. I had been sold an idea that a new world was emerging, that the old principles were no longer relevant and didn’t apply anymore. I smiled politely (and sometimes not) at those who tried to tell me to get a job and build slowly. I’d heard the success stories and seen what was possible and I was going after it myself. I failed to recognise that each of these success stories came directly after some harrowing and awful experience, and thus, I was about to walk right into my own self-made disaster. When the bank turned my business loan application down, I took this to mean they didn’t understand my industry. I found alternative sources to borrow money from, such as a graduate loan and credit cards. I began well. Within nine months, I had 10 individual clients paying me £70+ per hour, two corporate gigs and an exclusive contract with a company within my niche. I was bucking the trend for my industry. I was also making sales presentations and cold calls! However, with my ambitious spirit, business ignorance and a lot of business seminars that taught me to run before I could walk and only do what I was good at or wanted to do, I soon fell foul of the entrepreneurial dream. I stopped following procedure and started looking for ways to leverage my business and make things easier. All good principles, but way ahead of where I was. In 2008, my catalogue of mistakes caught up with me and I had to walk away from my business having invested three hard years

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of blood, sweat and tears. It was a devastating blow. It took me a full 18 months to recover from and I am still paying off the debt I accumulated, an amount greater than I have ever earned in a year up to that point. At my breaking point, I was subletting my bedroom, sleeping on the sofa and eating baked beans for every meal, opening the can with a knife because I couldn’t afford a new tin opener. My creditors were phoning me seven times a day. I had no peace and I was suicidal. Today I am a highly sought after Business Consultant in London with clients around the world. My company, AchieveTODAY, provides one-on-one consultancy, marketing advise for service based businesses and outsourcing solutions for small businesses. My story is a successful one. I am lucky. I found my way out. However, so many don’t. The entrepreneur dream is no playground. It’s serious. The money involved is often the difference between having a roof over our heads and a safe place to sleep. Often the amounts being gambled in the success stories we hear are huge amounts, but more often than not, it is never the rent cheque. This is already taken care of through other means or a consistent sales process that they have proven works. Without this in place, we are not in a position to be following their example. We must learn the basics that often go untalked about. Why? Because people don’t want to pay money to hear the words ‘Follow the instructions’.

“The money involved is often the difference between having a roof over our heads and a safe place sleep.”

In 2009, I logged into Facebook to see the words ‘RIP Ivor Williams’. In shock, I phoned his brother – what could this mean? Ivor and I had spent hours talking about business. I had

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been concerned with the number of projects he was involving himself in, and how many of them were actually financially viable. He brushed off my advice continually. I knew his redundancy pay out was all but gone. What was he doing for money now? Ivor was accumulating a huge amount of debt daily. Eventually, it got the better of him. He knew no other way out. He hung himself on the 19th of March 2009, or we believe it was that date. It was three days before his body was found. Ivor was someone who just wanted to help other people. He was a good man with a loving spirit. He had believed the ‘hype’ being preached from the stage that says ‘Ask and you will receive’, ‘Givers gain’ - a message that fails to tell you the rest of the story. Well, now I am going to tell you the rest of the story. I survived. I turned it around. This is what I learnt. Whether you’ve come to this book because you’ve created your own disaster, or want to propel yourself miraculously into the world of success, or you are brand new to business, this book is for you. In this book, I reveal the truths I learned on my journey. They are not secrets, as they are readily available to anyone wise enough to listen to the right source. They say that success leaves clues; well, so does failure. The principles and rules detailed in this book I believe are the foundations of a solid business that should not be compromised on. They are a mix of age-old wisdom plus insights into the incredible new world we find ourselves living in. This book is divided into five sections. The first one, this one, paints the picture of the reality of the situation and hopefully sells you on the importance of reading on and recommending this book to other entrepreneurs that are heading down this path.

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Section 2 delves into the key principles required to build a successful service based business. Section 3 is a 30-day rescue plan for anyone who is in a situation that is far from ideal. Whatever your current position, make sure you read it and pick up the key principles and apply them NOW before it is too late. Hidden in there is also a wealth of wisdom not to be missed. So even if this isn’t your situation – read it. Section 4 outlines the new rules for setting yourself up in business. These rules must be followed and adhered to if you want your business to be a success. Section 5 contains resource suggestions that I believe provide value solutions to new businesses, especially businesses based around the professional services. So let’s jump in and get started!

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Section 2

PRINCIPLE 1:

Is the business scalable? Before you invest your life and soul into your business, you need to be clear what you are building and whether the structure you are putting in place has the potential to deliver the result you are looking for. For example, in the coaching business my income was limited for as long as I was selling my time by the hour. I may have been charging £100 an hour but how many hours was I really selling? And if everyone had been demanding my services, how much of my time could I have really sold? In many industries, we are continually sold on the idea that we can make big money. While this may be true, there is a formula involved that most people don’t find until their business has been operating for a long time. There is a saying that goes ‘It takes 7 years to create an overnight success’. Considering this is true and you’re just starting out in your business, you need to be realistic about your current position and your potential for growth. At the end of my first year in business, I phoned my accountant and asked for a summary of my status. The lady that answered replied ‘Well, honestly, there are losses everywhere’. My reaction was to be annoyed at her. She was a bookkeeper not an entrepreneur, how could she possibly understand?! I considered my money to be an investment in my business not a loss. She told me I was -£14,000. Instead of being upset about this I just took it as a matter of fact. Every decision I had made spending

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that money was with the understanding that the investment would pay off and I would get my money back plus a return. I was confident that my actions would translate into earning that money back, but I was missing one critical point. My earning potential was capped as I was selling my time for money. Let me illustrate this for you. If I am charging £100 per hour, in one year my maximum earning potential is £44,000, based on the following assumptions:

• I work a 35 hour week marketing and managing my business

• I work 44 weeks of the year • I spend 8 weeks either training, bank holidays or having

a holiday • I achieve 10 hours of paid coaching per week • I sell all 10 hours at the £100 price tag or above • Each appointment is on the phone or less than 30

minutes travelling time away Earning £44,000 might seem like a nice salary for some, however, this figure is not my salary, it is the business’ revenue. This means that out of this figure I need to deduct all of the business’ expenditure, then what I am left with is my salary. Expenditure includes:

• Website hosting and development • Rent for my workspace • Travel expenses • Printing, stationary • Phone calls and line rental • Advertising • Memberships and Networking groups • Training and development

Once these costs have been deducted, I may be left with around £30,000. Still you might think that this is a nice annual salary. Plenty of people can and do live on it, so yes it is.

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However, remember that I said it was the potential maximum that I could earn. For most people starting out they don’t have a ready customer base waiting for them. They have to fill it and continually work at keeping it full. Therefore, while my overheads remain the same, my income is subject to heavy change. If my income dips below a certain point I will be making a loss. If my personal living expenses are £25,000 per annum (£2k per month including tax) this is the salary I must draw from my business each year just for my living costs. This does not include the business expenses, which I must earn on top of this sum. For example's sake, let’s say that the overheads are £7000pa (£583 per month). Therefore, the business must earn £32,000 per year to cover all costs. As I only earn 44 weeks of my year, I am therefore required to earn £3200 per month (£32k divided by 10 months). Charging £100 per hour, this requires me to sell 32 hours per month to breakeven. This is a tall order for anyone who isn’t established as an expert in their market yet. Truthfully, there are only two things I can do:

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What are people saying about this book: “What Naomi has done with this book is remarkable. She has managed to spell out in laymen's terms what it takes to start and grow a business successfully. She is speaking directly to the 'newbie' starting out and struggling to get traction (we have all been there), and shows how you can bridge the gap to success. If you've ever wondered what makes the difference, read this book. It gives insights few others are talking about. It is honest, funny and down to earth. A must read for anyone getting started in business (or those who've been going a while and keep wondering what they're missing!)." Mike Harris, Founder of First Direct, Egg Bank and T-Mobile “There's a big problem, most business leaders write their books long after they have become successful. This means they take a lot for granted and tend to forget how a person new to business wants to know the detailed story of the first 12-24 months in the Director's seat. I think Naomi's book is a great read for people who are getting into business, who have entrepreneur heroes that they admire but aren't sure how to emulate. I think the book is great for covering the gaps and the details that people need to know in those first 2 years of business.” Daniel Priestley, Founder of Triumphant Events “After building 14 multi million dollar companies I know what it takes to build a business. What Naomi has written in this book demonstrates her keen knowledge and understanding of business. If you apply what is written here you’ll do well for yourself. Naomi has taken her personal experiences and successfully extracted the right learning which she has articulated in a fun and down to earth manner. This book is a must read.”

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Patrick White, Serial Entrepreneur and consultant. Part of the founding team of Virgin Blue and Nissan UK. His last company sold to Shell with a turnover of USD $2billion. “Tough, practical and down-to-earth. Naomi tells it like it is and doesn’t pretend that being an entrepreneur is one big bowl of cherries. “Thank goodness someone has the guts to remind us all about REALITY. This book is an inspiring tale and a practical guide that will help the reader build a structure for a successful business. Thank you for having the courage to let us all benefit from your mistakes.” Mica May, Business Play Specialist UK “Grass Roots to Green Shoots is honest from the get-go. The reader is made fully aware of the cost of their journey into business, as well as the potential rewards. It's refreshing to read this frankness, particularly when we are often bombarded with success stories of those who have made vast fortunes. Naomi has a unique style of writing. It feels as if she is there with you sharing your journey. The book travels through the various emotions associated with owning a business, as well as the strategies that are required to deal with it head-on. I especially found the 30-day rescue plan helpful - it's action-orientated and packed with tangible steps to take. I highly recommend this book.” Avni Trivedi “Easy to read and packed with a powerful message for those looking to start their own companies, this book is an invaluable tool in showing you the mistakes you can make, the financial cost to you, and the implications if you give up before the green roots turn to green shoots. It shows you how to effectively buy the time needed to get your business off the ground and then make it

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work for you without you being there. A 5* must read for all wanabee business men and women of the future who want to succeed.” Oni Bhattacharya, Dublcheck Cleaning Franchisee and Business Owner “This is an essential read for anybody considering setting up a coaching business. Naomi's book is a reality check which gets behind the hype and the flaws in the entrepreneurial dream and helps give a more balanced and realistic perspective to what is really involved in setting up a business and how quickly you are likely to see the benefits of your hard work and investment. “What struck me most about this book is the author's generosity in sharing her experience of personal downfall and how she recovered to become the successful businesswoman that she is today. She is honest in admitting the mistakes she made through enthusiasm and naivety and drums into the reader that whilst it is wonderful to have the qualities of energy, optimism, passion and determination, these alone are just not enough to create a sustainable business. To many budding coaches, excited by the opportunity of using their skills and creating a wonderful lifestyle, developing the business side can seem too mundane and difficult - there is often a vague sense that somehow everything will all fall into place without them having to do too much. Naomi emphasises the absolute necessity of having a formula and following practical steps to create a sustainable business. “Her 30 day rescue plan is full of practical advice and sensible solutions, she forces you to look at your situation with honesty and to face the reality as it is. She does this using a tough-love stance which comes from the heart and her gift and intention is to help prevent your fall (or if you already have fallen, to pick yourself up and go forward with a renewed confidence and strength). Her book is split into easy to read sections and if you are in trouble you can go to the 30 day rescue plan first. She goes on to give clear guidelines and outlines the new rules and she genuinely wants to help others to avoid making the same

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mistakes. For any new coach coming into the world of business Naomi tells it how it really is. This is an important no-nonsense, realistic book but is also an uplifting book and Naomi's warmth, humanity, strength and courage shines through.” Lesley Stopford, Coach “I took a few hours out of my day to read this book as I felt it was exactly what I needed - and I was right. Naomi really "hits the spot" when she talks about what it really takes to make a business successful - no glossing over the issues as many people do. She outlines strategies and insights into running a business - what to do and also what NOT to do. If you are running a business and feeling physically, mentally and emotionally stressed by it all (as many people I meet often are) then this book is a MUST read. It has really answered a lot of questions for me and has been the best few hours I have spent lately. I now know which direction is right for me and how to move forward without the current emotional and mental stress I am currently carrying around with me. Thank you Naomi for being so honest and open in this book.” Eileen Bowley “This is a very useful book with some great tools, advice and calls to action. Naomi is frank and honest and in her 30 day action plan focuses on removing the foot off the accelerator to stop you digging a deeper hole and resurface with some sanity. She also gets you to think about some very simple yet paradigm shifting ideas if you want to pursue coaching as a career. Thank you Naomi for telling your story, highlighting the pitfalls and explaining why and how even great ones fall, and what to do about it.” HE, UK “Wow, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Naomi's book! What an open and honest assessment of making the dream of entrepreneurship a reality. It is through her personal story that she has given me

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the courage, and the wisdom, to evaluate my life, my new coaching practice and my "dream" - allowing it to become more real, tangible, and honest. She's helped me to see things as they are and given me the permission to step back and do it right, instead of doing it fast... “This isn't just a book about coaching, though. As I read it I saw many parallels to my "day job" as an independent sales representative - another entrepreneurial endeavor. “With all the hype, overblown promises and pie in the sky "you can do it" books on the market, it's easy to get lost in the "dream" until reality slams you in the face! I recommend this book to anyone who is looking to step out on their own - it can help you start out RIGHT even if right isn't super fast.” Marianne S, USA

Go to: http://www.GrassrootstoGreenShoots.com

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About Naomi Johnson

Naomi Johnson wrote Grassroots to Green Shoots in 2010 two years after losing her first business and the time frame this book is written about. Today Naomi is the founder of TheProfile.Company and has authored her second book ‘What to Put on Your

LinkedIn Profile’. She actively puts into action the wisdom and truths shared in this book helping clients create LinkedIn profiles that shine of their brilliance and open doors of opportunities. Naomi believes LinkedIn is the perfect opportunity for new companies who have plenty to offer but perhaps not a fully formed brand image or message. To read helpful blog posts about beginning your business on LinkedIn and keep informed of new teaching on this topic, then please:

Follow our LinkedIn page Visit our Website

Connect on LinkedIn

Follow on Twitter

Or reach out direct: E: Naomi@TheProfile.Company T: 07723 602353

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Acknowledgements

There are so many people to thank for the journey I have been on. Number 1 is my God in Heaven, whose faithful hand has never let me go. My new friend, Selene in Florida, who, by allowing me into her life, helped shape this book. Simon Borland, for giving me the space I needed to breathe and giving me back my confidence again. AnnaLena Nordin, for loving and supporting such an ambitious friend through thick and thin. Olafemi for being the creative spark and loyal friend. Anders Lindgreen, without whose generosity I would have been homeless a few times!

For Ivor; For whom this book comes too late

For the Entrepreneur Whose Spirit is an unfading light

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Published by AchieveTODAY Innovation Space, Halpern House, 1 Hampshire Terrace, Portsmouth, PO1 2QF Telephone: 07723 602353 © Copyright 2015 - Naomi Johnson Book designed by Naomi Johnson The right of Naomi Johnson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patent Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission from the publisher. This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, re-sold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publishers consent in any form of binding or cover other than in which it is published and without a similar condition including the condition being imposed upon the subsequent publisher. No responsibility for loss occasioned to any person acting or refraining from action as a result of any material in this publication can be accepted by the author or publisher. ISBN 978-0-9568055-0-8