This week marks four years since I, along with my co-founder Gary, decided to leave the relative comfort of a full-time job and salary to make a go of it as a business owner.
There are plenty of things I’ve learnt about running an agency along the way, but as we’re celebrating another big milestone in the history of No Brainer, it made sense to try and condense them down to fit the theme of the week!
There have been some wonderful highlights already and I couldn’t be prouder of everything No Brainer has achieved in such a short timeframe. But we’ve also taken a few knocks along the way, and I think those are the experiences that really make you stronger.
From those very early days of working on an old dining room table-come desk, to becoming a team of brilliant Account Managers and Executives along with our wonderful Office Manager, working from what has been widely (I use that term loosely) described as Warrington’s coolest office, we’ve definitely come a long way since April 2015.
So, if I had to distil everything I’ve learnt along the way down into just four things, it would be these:
- Focus on your team and the company culture
Working as a two-man team was great and I have some brilliant memories when I look back. But we always wanted to be surrounded by a talented team of people and really establish No Brainer as a brand, not just two individuals.
I’m a really big believer in the power of company culture. I think a strong team ethic rooted in core company values is one the keys to business success and it’s especially crucial when you work in a service-based business like ours.
It’s super important to have the right blend of personalities and skills too. Alongside a strong work-ethic, one of the biggest attributes we look for in people is emotional intelligence. We’re fortunate to have some amazing people at No Brainer and there’s no doubt that our team is our biggest asset.
- Never forget the clients that put their faith in you
It goes without saying that we wouldn’t have a business if people hadn’t put their faith in us in the early days and continued to do so ever since. The fear of doing them a disservice is what drives us on every day to keep on being proactive and achieving results that really matter to them.
As we’re marking our birthday this week, we’ve also made a point of including our clients in the celebrations and we’ve arranged for small presents to be delivered to all of them. It’s only a small gesture, but it’s the little things that count.