Business coach on how to succeed in recession

SONIA Saxton is the founder of Harrogate-based business coaching firm Saxton Partners. In this week’s The Interview she reveals why positivism is vital for recession survival. 

What aspects of your job/profession do you enjoy the most?

As I met and dealt with people after starting in business, it became clear that many of them had real struggles, maybe, in some cases they were even in the wrong jobs. Making a difference to people’s lives and seeing the benefits play out into their business and family life is what gives me a buzz.

What key challenges do you anticipate will affect your sector/profession over the next six months?

The present climate means that some of our colleagues will not survive because they are too insular. The new currency for success is strategic networking. Survival and then thriving is based on who you know, and not as much on what you know. Capitalising on the strengths of all your connections and learning as a collective to offer a unique proposition of talent to the market is what makes organisations work and thrive these days.

What key skills do you think every entrepreneur should have?

Belief in themselves, and not to take themselves too seriously.

Why do you think Yorkshire is a good place to start up/operate a business?

The culture of openness and plain speaking is a fantastic environment for getting to know very quickly what will work or not work.

If you could improve anything in the region what would it be?

Opportunities for more young entrepreneurs to have free advice and support.

Your views on the recession……

The recession is a state of mind. As soon as people start believing in themselves, then others will believe in a future with them. Businesses should beware of things that are not fact but which create paranoia. The one thing that people shouldn’t do is get depressed by all the bad news about the economy in the press. They then attribute the first thing which happens, such as a rent or rate rise, to the recession and that is one small step from believing everything is going wrong. If they then communicate that to other people then the belief just grows and all the generalisations create a horror movie in people’s minds. But it is possible to help yourself through the recession by focusing much more on the positives.

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?

Never give up and surround yourself with positively minded people because together you can achieve anything. My mother was ill when I was a child and I was orphaned at 11 but that, out of necessity, taught me very early on in life how to survive and succeed. I was once called into the boardroom by one of the directors and questioned as to how I got such incredible results. I said I studied at the University of Life from the age of five and I feel incredibly lucky to have had such an early start! There is always a way, it’s just a matter of how. You simply have to find that way.

And the worst?

From an old ex-boyfriend – “Sonia, life is meant to be boring, if anything good happens it’s a bonus.”

What barriers have you had to overcome in growing your business/developing your career, and if any, can you explain how you overcame them.

Letting go of doing everything myself and gaining everything from developing others to do it.

What was your first job and what did you spend your first wage packet on?

My first job was working for the British Decorators Association as a PA with very little typing and a lot of hiding from the office letch. I spent my first wage packet on a deposit for my first flat away from home. It was a studio flat at the top of seven flights of stairs with no en-suite! That was two flights down and my bath slot was at 5.30am!

If you could choose to start your career over again would you do anything different and if so what?

I am truly passionate about what I do. I simply can’t imagine anything more exciting or more fulfilling. There is nothing to beat changing lives in my book.

Name one item/hobby/gadget you couldn’t give up

My love of food and creating it, which I think I get from my dad who was a chef at the Grand Hotel, an impressive 1930s building overlooking Harrogate. I make all my own bread which is the best in Yorkshire (!) and I think without fantastic home cooking I would be totally distraught and so would my man.