Mark Daniels: Going for Growth (Part 2)

Yawning, I looked about me and wondered, not for the first time that morning, just what the hell I was doing. Sitting there in stationary traffic on the A14 at 8:30 in the morning, I cursed. I thought I'd given up on the commute when I bought in to the pub; 8:30 only appears on the clock once a day these days (if I'm lucky and don't have to be the one to get the kids to the school bus).

Inwardly, I groaned. The day stretched ahead of me and all I could think about was what was going to be for lunch. These types of events always served up fish and cheese - two foodstuffs I can't abide. Anything from a deep salty background or with a long white and stringy texture should not be served as a meal, as far as I'm concerned.

Watching the traffic grind its way on to the A1302, listening to the gearbox cronk and grind on my ailing Jeep, I laid the blame for my early start squarely on the shoulders of David Elliott, Managing Director of Greene King's Pub Partners. After all, it was he who - in a conversation towards the end of 2008 - had suggested to me that licensees aren't trying hard enough to better themselves, and that he felt I, along with many others, would do well to attend some training, refresher or otherwise.

I wasn't inclined to agree; moaned about it just a teensy bit. Even the comment from GB to one of my postings stating that after 18 years in the trade he'd found the Going for Growth course useful wasn't enough to persuade me otherwise. But, as '08 became '09, I woke up to the fact that I was going to have to change some of the way I was thinking. I relented and agreed to attend the course. And that was why I was sitting in traffic, bleary eyed, wending my way through Bury St. Edmunds one morning last week.

I'm sure one or two of you are now inclined to hit the comments link and scream at me that if the smoking ban was repealed we wouldn't all need to be looking at training courses, but don't. As Hamish Champ, and one or two others, have rightly said recently: the ban has been with us for nearly two years and, right now, it doesn't show any signs of buggering off. None of us are too old to learn new tricks, and if we want our businesses to survive the current difficulties they face (and they amount to more than just the smoking ban) then we need to step back from the emotions we embroil ourselves in and look at them objectively. Reviewing our business plans, talking - as a trade - with one voice and, yes, looking at new ways and learning new skills are all part of the parcel we're going to have to face in order to move forward.

The Going for Growth course I attended was aimed at Greene King tenants, admittedly, but it's run by a third-party company who provide courses for more than just my pubco: Exemplar Training. It was presented by a man with the greatest name ever, Clinton Horn, who was engaging, entertaining and empathic to the difficulties all licensees face. He was also quick-witted and much faster than me when it came to knocking back negative comments.

Not all the components of the course might be relevant to the exact needs of your business but, like all training courses, if you can take something out of it it's been a positive day. There were elements that I knew I couldn't implement, there were suggestions that I had heard before and then forgotten all about (refresher courses can sometimes be just as valuable) and there were bits that were just downright perfect for what I need. For me, however, the half-hour before lunch opened my eyes wide to something I've been struggling with since day one, almost four years ago. Had I been taught that back then I might have done some things very differently and, by itself, made the whole day worthwhile.

Many of us still have businesses capable of thriving, if we're just brave enough to grasp some new ideas - and there are plenty of people out there willing to help us, if we're strong enough to ask for it. I'm not a proponent of the smoking ban - even as a life-long non-smoker I dislike everything it stands for - but sitting around waiting for it to be repealed is business suicide; that's unlikely to happen unless we all vote in the Monster Raving Loony Party next May.

Whether you're tied or free, look in to what training courses are available to you. Talk to other licensees - ideas from colleagues can be just as, if not more, valuable. What are busy pubs around you doing that work? Attend the Going for Growth course.

I don't do New Year's Resolutions (last year I promised to tidy up my sock drawer so promptly threw all my old socks out and bought twelve pairs of matching black socks; job done) but this year I did make a promise to myself that I was going to change my attitude and embrace new ways to make my business work. And so far it's working. Trade is getting better, control of finances is getting tighter. I have no idea whether I'll survive 2009 at this stage, but it's looking good.

Sitting in the A14 traffic on the way home I groaned again, but I was glad I'd done it in the morning. And I'd even managed to avoid the cheese at lunch time.