Summary
For this episode, Steff is acting as the host and we have our director Michael as our podcast guest to spin things up a bit. He gives insights on his background prior to creating Woodville Accountancy.
Episode Notes
Michael Godsmark is the Managing Director of Woodville Accountancy, an accountancy business in Chorley.
Topics for today’s episode include:
- [00:01:21] Michael’s brief overview of his history, including his experience as a superstar DJ and working at nightclubs, and what he has learned from this stint
- [00:10:30] Working at Woodville Accountancy and what our focus is
- [00:12:08] The start of Michael’s entrepreneurial journey
- [00:16:33] How Michael realised he needed a bit more “help”
- [00:18:45]
Moving into an office, the rebranding process, and growing Woodville
Accountancy’s team
- [00:19:51] Working with Woodville Accountancy’s customers
- [00:20:52] How no one teaches a person how to be a leader/manager and why having a set of values in creating a work culture is important
- [00:22:26] Advice he would give to someone who has not yet made the step to employ someone
- [00:24:49] Having procedures for everything and setting up values
- [00:25:58] Lee Houghton’s podcast interviewing Damian Hughes
- [00:27:04] Difficult situations Michael’s had to overcome throughout his entrepreneurial journey – working with customers (and all the problems they bring)
- [00:32:08] Why you should review stuff and change something that is not working
- [00:33:21] Advice Michael would give to a smart college student starting out in the real world – getting as much experience as you can
- [00:39:30] Pricing structure to make a business work
- [00:45:37] Why being frugal is crucial to workflow
- [00:46:52] Advice Michael would give to someone changing their business’ pricing structure
- [00:49:47] Boosting your team’s morale drives everything forward
- [00:50:57] What Michael would do differently if he could start over again
- [00:53:27] Advertising and referrals
- [00:56:42] Looking at what the big boys are doing
- [00:57:37] Trialling new tech (cloud bookkeeping software, QuickBooks)
- [01:05:33] What Michael’s plans for the future are
- [01:05:45] Celia Gaze’s talk at the Entrepreneurs Circle
- [01:09:58] “The Barcelona Way”
- [01:11:28]
Michael’s personal goals
- [01:14:48] Being careful about setting goals
- [01:18:36] What separates the entrepreneurs
- [01:19:27] Tim Ferriss’ TED Talk on defining your fears