Balancing Business and Solo Parenting - A Chat with Claire Sofield

That’s a wrap on Taking Care of Business Series 11! In this episode, host Paul Cheetham-Karcz looks back at the variety of guests we’ve had on this series, discusses what he’s learnt and reflects on his own year in business.Featured in this series: Roger Martin-FaggBehavioural economist and author.MontirexLiverpool-based sportswear brand.Robbie HughesCosmetic dentist and owner of Dental Excellence.Kirk Miller High-performance coach.Claire SofieldManaging Director at Four Recruitment.Danny De BrabanderTerminal cancer, Sepsis survivor.Make sure to check out all the episodes from this series.  Taking Care of Business will return in 2023 with Series 12, so be sure to subscribe, share and tune in on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

On this week's episode of Taking Care of Business, Paul Cheetham-Karcz sits down with a man who has been told on 3 separate occasions that he has terminal bowel cancer with potentially just months to live.  However, Danny De Brabander continues to defy statistics over 3 years later and is still fighting against his diagnosis.  Currently, Danny shows no visible signs of cancer.They discuss facing adversity at different stages of life, how it feels to be told you're going to die, and how adjusting your mindset can improve your outlook on life, whatever your circumstance.Danny goes on to mention the Wirral-based charity he has set up called TEAMDDB.  Inspired by Danny’s journey, #TEAMDDB was set up to fundraise for other local charities, and to support the local community.  Please see their website linked below for more information:www.teamddb.co.uk

In this week's episode of Taking Care of Business, Claire Sofield joins Paul Cheetham-Karcz to discuss how she runs her business Four Recruitment, whilst also solo parenting her 3-and-a-half-year-old daughter.They discuss how Claire started her recruitment business, her determination to have a child of her own, fertility issues, IVF and the ups and downs of solo parenting.Whilst there is still some stigma in the workplace regarding fertility and pregnancy, Claire speaks openly about how women should be able to celebrate pregnancy and not dread telling their employer like so many do.

In this episode of Taking Care of Business, Paul Cheetham-Karzc discusses how to make meaningful and lasting changes in life with high-performance coach Kirk Miller.  They discuss how Kirk works with high-performance business leaders to increase their health and fitness while also improving their mindset when it comes to other aspects of life such as business and mental well-being.They mention how Kirk started off with a childhood passion for football, featuring on the front page of Men’s Health magazine, to starting his online community Built To Last.In this episode:02:39 - Kirk’s childhood dream of becoming a professional footballer11:50 - Finding your own identity17:00 - What makes you unique: Identifying your superpowers17:50 - The reality behind Kirk's feature on the front page of Men’s Health24:00 - Recognising your flaws and taking the correct action28:50 - Kirk’s first steps into business30:20 - The principles behind his Built To Last community36:30 - Managing unrealistic expectations43:35 - Don’t be a hero, be consistent53:20 - What does the future hold for Kirk?

How a young dentist from Liverpool dared to be different in an otherwise very traditional and stagnant industry.  In this episode of Taking Care of Business, Paul Cheetham-Karcz catches up with Dr Robbie Hughes, owner of Dental Excellence.  They sit down to discuss what drove Robbie to change the way things are done in dentistry, from his use of social media to the physical location of his dental practice.Robbie also mentions how he’s viewed by the rest of his industry and some of his most famous clients, such as Liverpool FC manager, Jurgen Klopp.In this episode:02:20 - Marketing on Instagram07:05 - How Robbie got into dentistry10:33 - Building a client base17:09 - Motivations to make change22:55 - How does the rest of the industry view Dental Excellence?32:15 - How did Robbie get involved with celebrities like Jurgen Klopp?38:20 - Goals and future plans for Dental Excellence43:30 - What does downtime look like for Robbie?

How two young lads from Liverpool started the multi-million-pound sportswear brand Montirex, in under three years.  In this episode of Taking Care of Business, Paul Cheetham-Karcz sits down with the founders of Montirex: Daniel Yuen and Kieran Riddell-Austin.  They discuss where the idea for Montirex came from, and how they've built the business from the ground up.They mention how the business began while they were both in full-time employment, why they both ultimately wanted to work for themselves and what challenges they had to overcome.In this episode:05:30 - How the idea of Montirex was born09:45 - When did they know they were on to something?12:50 - Increasing the product range14:10 - Getting into Footasylum16:32 - Asking for a loan19:03 - Leaving full-time employment to be self-employed19:53 - Bringing on their first employee23:16 - How did they accelerate going into their 2nd year?25:38 - Is influencer marketing still worth it?28:27 - Going into their 3rd year of business29:53 - Dealing with the challenges and stresses of running a business36:05 - How the business is structured today40:25 - Leading a team in business43:50 - Looking to the future and selling internationally46:50 - Breaking into America47:24 - Advice for starting a business: "Do it and don't look back."

On this episode of Taking Care of Business, Paul Cheetham-Karcz sits down with leading behavioural economist Roger Martin-Fagg to discuss the current economic climate in the UK.  They talk through the current political situation regarding the Tory government's leadership, and how this may affect the economy with regard to recessions, house prices and interest rates.They also go on further to consider the cost of living crisis we are currently facing, and what the short to medium-term economical future may look like for the UK.In this episode:00:02:25 - Who is Roger Martin-Fagg00:08:55 - The effects of Brexit 00:14:35 - Is a recession due?00:16:37 - The definition of a recession00:18:57 - Impacts of the pandemic00:31:41 - How Putin’s war is affecting our energy supplies?00:35:25 - A lack of government leadership 00:37:03 - Liz Truss and the mini-budget00:46:10 - The current state of the economy and where it's heading00:50:30 - Tory or Labour?00:55:30 - What’s happening to interest rates00:58:05 - Will house prices crash?01:00:48 - Exchange rates and the markets01:04:30 - Roger’s take on the looming recessionDisclaimer-This episode was filmed on the 19th of October 2022

Series 11 of Taking Care of Business has arrived!In this preview episode, host Paul Cheetham-Karcz discusses his upcoming guests for this series:Daniel Yuen & Kieran Riddell-AustinCo-Founders of the sportswear brand Montirex.Roger Martin-FaggLeading behavioural economist and keynote speaker.Danny De BrabanderStage 4 (terminal) bowel cancer and sepsis survivor.Kirk MillerInternational life and body coach.Robbie HughesCosmetic dentist and owner of Dental Excellence UK.Further guests are to be announced in the coming weeks. A new episode will drop every Wednesday from 19th October onwards, so subscribe, share and tune in on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and more.

That’s a wrap on Taking Care of Business Series 10! In this episode, host Paul Cheetham-Karcz looks back at the variety of guests we’ve had on this series, discusses what he’s learnt and his favourite moments. Featured on this series: Alastair CampbellBritish journalist, author, strategist, broadcaster and activist known for his roles during Tony Blair’s leadership of the Labour Party. Tracey NevilleFormer England netball international and Commonwealth Games gold medalist as England head coach.Mike BatesThe Atlantic Grappler and former Royal Marines CommandoLily ShippenFounder of Lily Shippen RecruitmentAbbie Day Brand owner at GypsabellaChris Brindley MBE, Former MD of Metro Bank and elite sports business mentor to the likes of Heineken, Sport England, the PFA and Man Utd.Kevin StewartProfessional footballer for the likes of Blackpool and Liverpool, as well as host of the Money Game Podcast.  Make sure to check out all the episodes from this series.  Taking Care of Business will return in October with Series 11, so be sure to subscribe, share and tune in on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and more.

Why is it so crucial for highly paid athletes to understand their finances early in their careers?Kevin Stewart joins us on Taking Care of Business this week with Paul Cheetham-Karcz as they discuss how footballers often struggle to cope with their finances once their professional careers come to an end. Kevin speaks on why he decided early on in his career that he had to think about his future and how he didn't want to move on to coaching as many other athletes do.They go on to discuss what it was like for Kevin to play with some of his childhood heroes, such as Steven Gerrard, starting his own podcast, and what motivates him to make sure he will be financially secure for the future.In this episode:2:15 - Realising how unprepared athletes are for life post-career6:30 - Changing the culture within football7:47 - The start of Kevin's career - Importance of support from parents10:00 - Competitiveness at an early age13:38 - Playing at Tottenham14:03 - Release from Tottenham and move to Liverpool16:45 - Initiations into 1st teams17:43 - The mindset of playing with Steven Gerrard22:24 - Leaving Liverpool to join Hull City24:00 - The difference between being in academies to being a regular 1st team player25:40 - Dealing with abuse from football fans29:17 - The discipline of a businessman versus an athlete36:43 - The difference in finances of an athlete compared to the average person39:40 - Kevin's mindset behind understanding his finances and making good decisions early42:15 - Learning about tax led to a passion for property44:20 - Why Kevin started his own podcast 50:43 - Are there many similarities between the mindset of a business owner and athletes?53:00 - Are you best suited to a team sport or an individual sport?54:38 - A winning mindset - Having belief in your team58:42 - Seeing players around you excel1:00:52 - Does behaviour drive results, or do results drive behaviour?1:03:04 - What does the future look like for Kevin?