Celebrating – Directive Training is FOUR!

We are 4 years old on 25/10/2020 and wanted to say a huge thank you to our partners and customers for your continued support and the contributions you have made in helping to the success of Directive Training.

I’m not one to be overly emotional about business, but it is with a little ripple of pride that I’m writing this post.

Always learning

Starting out as a PA in the early 1980s, my career quickly submerged into the world of teaching and training in the IT industry within the private and public sectors. For those of you who were around at that time, you will remember MS-DOS, which had no graphical interface and required users to type in commands in order to open a program.

Some of the most innovative software of the 1980s which ran on MS-DOS included WordPerfect, Multiplan, Lotus 1-2-3, VisiCalc, DisplayWrite, all of which I recall delivering to a range of clients within oil & gas, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, nuclear power, water/sewerage treatment works, building merchants, MAFF & manufacturing, just to name a few sectors.

Providing businesses with education and training solutions has been my focus to maximise their potential and growth. We secure the best out of the staff by helping them learn and develop their expertise.

Today, we take for granted the software we use to type documents, calculate spreadsheets and present slides to an audience. But nearly 40 years ago, this was some of the most advanced software around. I’ve worked hard to keep abreast of the advancements in technology, achieving Microsoft Master accreditation, Cert Ed, QTLS, MBSc, IQA & EPA.

So, over the years, I’ve had to learn a huge amount, both technically and commercially, widening our training portfolio and working with trusted partners to help us provide the best education and development programs. The thing with starting your own business is that you literally don’t know what you don’t know. It’s easy to head off, all gung-ho, into the entrepreneurial world but sticking at it through good times and tough ones takes strength (I now know!).

The technicalities and trends of the ways that we deliver training have changed almost unrecognisably over the last 10 years, but the support of my clients has been unwaivering. I think there is something about small businesses supporting other small businesses that helps us stick together. Each understands the challenges the other might be facing.

Celebrating the good stuff

As busy people, we often forget to stop and celebrate the good stuff that happens every day. Think of all the motivational memes you see on social media about self-belief and the importance of acknowledging your successes.

Yet, it’s rare that we actually sit back and give ourselves that much deserved pat on the back.

There is no doubt that running a small business requires grit and determination, inparticular with the challenges we have faced since lockdown on 23 March 2020! Statistically, 44% of small businesses fail before their 4th year of trading. So, whilst this 4-year anniversary is a personal milestone for me, I think it’s also a huge “Thank You” for every single client I’ve worked with. We are navigating the highs and lows of small business life together.

With time comes wisdom

I don’t for one minute claim to be an expert on all things business, but I have learnt some useful pearls of wisdom along the way. Here are a few little gems that I’d like to share….

• Good business is about good relationships.
• Worrying about it won’t get the job done.
• It takes a community to raise a small business – get a network you can count on.
• Fresh air helps with creative thinking.
• Coffee really does fuel small business.
• Taking a leap of faith and trying something different can lead to great things.

So, to those of you that I’ve already worked with – thank you.

And to those I have yet to work with – let’s stick with it, as great things might be just around the next corner!

Melisa