We asked co-owner of Orchard PR and Chamber board member, Brooke Kenyon, to share the top 5 practices that help her flourish as a leader.
At a lunch meeting last week (typical PR, it’s all long lunches right?!) across our chicken salads came a question: “I’m a working mum too, but you run an agency, that’s next level busy, how do you do it?”
I’ve been asked this many times in the years since Chris Chilton and I took Orchard over and I have developed a stock answer: “Orchard’s my third baby – I love the work so much it doesn’t feel like a job, I couldn’t do it without Chris and I have an amazing support team in my family”.
This is all true, but when I reflect more closely there are practical things I actively do to help me find my place as an entrepreneur, grow my resilience, enable me to flourish as a leader and to keep our business thriving:
Time and space to learn – when you are a business owner any investment is a big decision, and on day one of setting up it’s unlikely there’s a lot of cash in the bank. But like everything there is a sliding scale, and if ‘investment in yourself’ is making time for a walk or a sea swim then that’s a start.
But what I really mean is finding a coaching or mentoring relationship which gives you space to grow, share and dedicate time to getting better at your job. You don’t get taught how to run a business and the decisions you take can be make or break, so make time to learn. I run full force into my job every day and a coaching appointment allows me to slow down, take time to prepare for the next big thing or reflect on how I will handle challenges next time. I’ve laughed, sat in silence (hard for me) and cried (many times); it is so worth it.
Staying quiet – I run a PR agency, everything I do is about communicating, I’m an extrovert and a people pleaser; all excellent qualities for my job but learning that it does not serve me well to share everything with everyone has been crucial. Of course I don’t mean broadcasting how many pennies you have in your business bank account, but I do I wear my heart on my sleeve, so if asked, and people do ask, every day, ‘how’s business?’ I would often share my latest high or low. This was really draining my energy. So I stopped, a stock statement works instead and I save the detail for my inner circle. I can count on one hand the (lucky?) people who get my whole story; there is something very graceful about quiet success.
Boast…to yourself – the phrase ‘it’s lonely at the top’ is very true and if you are one-person band you’ve got this ten-fold. If you run or are even considering running your own business then you’ve obviously got some self-belief but…. you won’t believe in yourself every day, there are pivots and challenges and you will need a tool to rely on, to remind you that you can do it.
So keep a list of the wins (big and, importantly, small) on your phone or in a beautiful notebook – get it out regularly but especially when you need that extra push or before the next big step. Everything on that list is proof you can achieve hard things, believe it.
Mark the moments – when you hit the goals it is important to celebrate them. My postie will confirm I’ve no issue with self-gifting… but it’s important to know when to pause and recognise that you have achieved what you set out to. I still don’t do this enough. This is meant to be the fun bit, so buy the cake, a bunch of supermarket flowers, a pair of awesome trainers, or book a well-earned massage and associate it with your success!
Don’t do what you can’t do – being in charge means increased responsibility, a lot of it won’t be your specialism. I’ve often thought (Orchard clients look away now!) I really don’t know how to play this entrepreneur game. But I’ve trained myself to play by being honest, reflective, and finding solutions – a shrewd business partner, a brilliant second-in-command, the right technology, and outsourced resources where we need them. The one caveat is that you absolutely must understand the numbers – I’d recommend finding a lovely accountant. I like to think of everyone as having superpowers, the things you are brilliant at, probably enjoy the most, and are therefore probably where you add the most monetary value to your business – do more of those.
My superpower? Driving the vision and growth of our business, coming up with endless ideas for client campaigns, and shouting about Orchard from the rooftops – which led me to switch off those emails for an hour to write this. Find your superpower.
Under Brooke’s leadership Orchard has won multiple industry awards, cemented the agency’s market-leading position, and maintained an impressive portfolio of clients and team of talented staff. Find out more here
