The Start Up To Grown Up Podcast

Heather Townsend
  • 0.0 (0)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Weekly

Running a small business can feel overwhelming - too much to do, not enough time, and growth that never quite takes off. This podcast is for small business owners who want to scale their business but feel stuck. No fluff, no vague advice - just clear, short, practical insights to help you build a business that works. Whether you’re struggling with sales, marketing, pricing, or just managing the daily chaos, you’ll get straight-talking strategies to move forward. If you’re tired of spinning your wheels and ready for real progress, this is for you. startuptogrownup.substack.com

  1. Sep 6

    How to get your team to step up even when you've no time to manage them

    Do you wonder why your team can't just step up and take initiative? Does every problem, every decision and every stuck point still land back on your desk? And when you do trust them to get on with it, do you end up disappointed, or worse, in a conversation you never wanted to have? I share the disciplinary meeting where a former team member told me I had never made it clear what I expected of them, and the micro second where I doubted myself. In this episode I talk about why "trust your people" is not a management system, and what actually needs to be in place before your team will step up. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - Why the advice to trust your people lets you off the hook for proper people management, and how that belief is often behind a revolving door of employees - Why leaving an expensive senior hire to sink or swim is the worst gamble you can take with your money - The "ask, don't tell" principle I picked up at Tesco - The power of systemising your firm - How I handle mistakes so my team keep taking initiative Related reading Everything you need to manage a small team, in three processes https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/everything-you-need-to-manage-a-small?r=l8khy How to eliminate your emotional baggage when managing people https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-eliminate-your-emotional-baggage?r=l8khy 5 subtle (and not so subtle) signs that you have a performance problem with a staff member https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/5-subtle-and-not-so-subtle-signs?r=l8khy The day I found out that my team were b*tching about me on a private Whatsapp group https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-day-i-found-out-that-my-team?r=l8khy How to finally have the conversation you’ve been too scared to have https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/4-things-to-do-before-the-conversation?r=l8khy They sent me an email apologising for “breaking my business” (and this I show I recovered) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/they-sent-me-an-email-apologising?r=l8khy The real reason you keep hiring the wrong people https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-real-reason-you-keep-hiring-the?r=l8khy What to do when your team wouldn’t step up https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/what-to-do-when-your-team-wouldnt?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    How to get your team to step up even when you've no time to manage them

  2. Aug 30

    What to do when everything on your list feels urgent

    Do you know that moment when your chest tightens, your breathing gets shorter and the list of things you are supposed to be doing feels like it is about to swallow you? Are you carrying so much right now, the business, the family commitments, the promises you made to yourself, that you are in danger of doing nothing well? If overwhelm has become your default setting rather than the occasional bad week, this episode is for you. I share what happened to me this week when overwhelm caught up with me, and the practical things I did to get myself back out of it. In this episode, I talk about how overwhelm shows up in your body before you consciously admit to it, and why so much of the pressure we carry as business owners is pressure we have put on ourselves. You'll hear how I worked out what genuinely had to happen this week, what I switched off, and why I refused to cancel my self-care even on the days I felt terrible. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - Why separating the must dos from the nice to dos is the fastest way to take the pressure off a difficult week. - How to switch off the stressors feeding your overwhelm - Why concentrating only on what you can actually influence is the way forward - Why cancelling your self-care when you are overwhelmed is the worst decision you can make. Related episodes 10 tactics to reduce your stress levels that you wouldn’t find in a text book https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/10-tactics-to-reduce-your-stress?r=l8khy Where did the week go? (And why it keeps happening) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/where-did-the-week-go-and-why-it?r=l8khy The 7 habits that keep me standing when most business owners quit https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-seven-habits-that-keep-me-standing?r=l8khy Why we feel the compulsion to overwork (and how to stop) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/7-reasons-you-are-overworking-and?r=l8khy 4 micro habits to stop burnout (before it starts) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/4-micro-habits-to-stop-burnout-before?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    What to do when everything on your list feels urgent

  3. Aug 23

    The £20k trade show mistake I won't repeat

    Are you about to write another cheque for a trade show stand because it's what your firm does every year? Have you come back from an exhibition with a lanyard full of business cards and almost no new clients? Do you suspect the money would work harder somewhere else, but you don't want to be the only firm in your sector missing from the floor? Last year we spent £20k exhibiting at a trade show that brought in barely any new clients and nearly took the business under as a result. We'd had several good years at that same show, so in this episode I talk about what changed, what I got wrong, and what I would do differently if I exhibited again. I share the pre-show, on-the-day and post-show work that decides whether exhibiting pays for itself or just gives you sore feet and an empty pipeline. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - Why a trade show only works as one part of a wider marketing campaign - How to check that your ideal clients will actually be at the show, and why the organisers' attendance figures aren't enough to go on. - The pre-show work that separates a profitable show from an expensive one - What to give away on stand so your brand stays on a prospect's desk rather than in a bin on the way home. - Why getting a speaking slot can be the cheapest way to drive qualified visitors to your stand. The follow up process that turns leads from the show into fee income Related reading The £20k trade show lesson I won’t forget https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-20k-trade-show-lesson-i-wont AI and linkedin broke my marketing (this is what I did next) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/ai-and-linkedin-broke-my-marketing?r=l8khy How to win clients without feeling like you’ve turned into a salesperson https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-win-clients-without-feeling?r=l8khy You are showing up. So why aren’t you the leads coming? https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/8-ways-you-are-killing-your-personal?r=l8khy The lead generator sitting in plain sight (that most firms ignore) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/you-know-your-website-needs-updating?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    The £20k trade show mistake I won't repeat

  4. Aug 16

    Everything you need to manage a small team, in three processes

    Does sitting down for a formal performance review with someone you talk to every single day feel like pointless box ticking? Did you swear that when you left corporate life you would never do meaningless HR admin again? And are you now carrying emotional baggage from team members who underperformed, walked out or turned on you, wondering how on earth it got to that point? In this podcast episode I share what I have learned, mostly the hard way, about why good people management is not overkill when there are only a handful of you.  I talk about the real reasons we avoid the formal people management stuff, which are rarely about time, and what avoiding it has cost me. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - Why the "we are all in this together" mindset will cost you dearly in your business - The real reasons you are avoiding formal people management, and why not having enough time is rarely the one that is genuinely stopping you - How hiring on trust, particularly with freelancers and experts for hire, is often an expensive mistake - Why quarterly reviews work better than annual appraisals  - How to work out the right frequency of 1:2:1s for each person, and the performance problems you will miss if you are not having them Related posts The 5.5 processes your business needs to scale without breaking https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-55-processes-your-business-needs 4 signs that an employee’s performance has dropped (and what to do about it) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/4-signs-that-an-employees-performance How to eliminate your emotional baggage when managing people https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-eliminate-your-emotional-baggage?r=l8khy They sent me an email apologising for “breaking my business” (and this is how I recovered) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/they-sent-me-an-email-apologising?r=l8khy Are you being gaslit by clients or staff? How to spot and stop it https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/are-you-being-gaslit-by-clients-or Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    Everything you need to manage a small team, in three processes

  5. Aug 9

    How to stop waking at 2am worrying about your numbers

    Do you wake at 2am with your mind churning over whether your business is actually OK? Are you either tracking a long list of numbers that nobody ever acts on, or nothing at all beyond keeping your P&L up to date? And if one of those numbers moved next week, would anything in your firm actually change? In this episode I go back to basics on how to choose the KPIs for your firm. I share why the financials your accountant talks to you about only tell you how your past decisions worked out, and what you need to measure alongside them to stay focused on what matters most. I also talk through how we set our own KPIs after losing 25% of our monthly recurring revenue, and what those numbers made us change. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - Why revenue, profit and cash survival time are the right place to start but a terrible place to stop. - How to work top down from your 3-year growth plan and your big bets before you decide on a single KPI. - Why your firm needs a ONE BIG FOCUS for the next 90 days, and how to pick it when everything feels urgent. - The difference between the lagging indicators you measure at firm level and the leading indicators your team should be measuring. - How I broke a £6k new monthly recurring revenue target down into KPIs and an action plan for my relationship manager. - The one question to ask before any number goes on your dashboard. Related reading/episodes The 5 specific moves that made me redundant from my own business https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-5-specific-moves-that-made-me?r=l8khy You’re not running a business, you’re running an expensive job https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/youre-not-running-a-business-youre?r=l8khy AI and LinkedIn broke my marketing (this is what I did next) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/ai-and-linkedin-broke-my-marketing 6 emotions that drive real business growth (if you listen to them) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/6-emotions-that-drive-real-business?r=l8khy The beginner’s guide to know if your marketing is working https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-beginners-guide-to-knowing-if?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    How to stop waking at 2am worrying about your numbers

  6. Aug 2

    Your revenue has dried up. Here's how to fill your pipeline fast

    Has your revenue suddenly dropped off a cliff with no warning? Are you watching your cash reserves prop up a business that badly needs new clients? Do you know what to do first when the work dries up, or are you about to start rushing around with a face that says 'desperate for work'? In the space of four to six weeks we lost 25% of the monthly revenue in one of our businesses. In this episode I talk you through exactly what I am doing about it, and the same advice I have given clients time and time again when their pipeline empties. You will hear the diagnostic work to do before you panic, and the specific activity that reignites new business fastest. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - The importance of learning how seasonality impacts your business - The three types of cost you should never cut when money gets tight, however tempting it looks. - Why warm relationships come before anything else, and the questions that turn a catch-up call into paid work. - How to manufacture a reason for a call when picking up the phone feels a bit icky. - What to say to prospects who went quiet and to the people who already told you no. - How the 60 in 60 days approach works - Why discounting to win work is almost always the wrong move, and the one exception. Related episodes How to turn meetings with existing clients into invoiceable business https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-real-reason-your-clients-dont?r=l8khy How to get clients to say yes (without chasing or discounting) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/why-clients-say-let-me-think-about?r=l8khy Why your marketing isn’t working and how one simple document can fix it https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/why-your-marketing-isnt-working-and?r=l8khy How to build your marketing function: person by person https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-build-your-marketing-function?r=l8khy AI and LinkedIn broke my marketing (this is what we did next) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/ai-and-linkedin-broke-my-marketing?r=l8khyThe £20k trade show lesson I won’t forget https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-20k-trade-show-lesson-i-wont?r=l8khy3 decisions that turned my empty pipeline into a waiting list for clients https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/3-decisions-that-turned-my-empty?r=l8khy You’re showing up. So why aren’t the leads coming? https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/8-ways-you-are-killing-your-personal?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    Your revenue has dried up. Here's how to fill your pipeline fast

  7. Jul 26

    How to build your marketing function: person by person

    Have you outsourced or hired marketing help and watched it deliver very little? Could you explain, in granular detail, how your firm actually wins work?  If you are thinking about handing your marketing over to someone else, this episode is for you. I built a marketing function that did not properly understand how we won work, and that was part of the reason our marketing stopped working. Add in the changes to search and LinkedIn and our marketing was dead in the water.  In this episode, I talk through what I got wrong and the order I would now follow to build a marketing function that brings high quality leads into the business. What you'll learn in the podcast episode: - Why documenting your whole business development process comes before any decision to outsource or hire. - How missing KPIs left me unable to see whether the marketing was working until it had already cost me. - Why your new marketing hire needs to report directly to you rather than to someone else in your team. - What to measure in your account management before you spend money on winning new clients. - Why testing what AI can already do for you should come before hiring a person to do it. - How to work out what to outsource, and the point at which permanent help becomes more cost effective. - What a marketing "do-er" should be responsible for, and when to add a manager above them. Link to Riverside.fm (affiliate link) https://riverside.sjv.io/e1MXvg Related reading/episodes AI and LinkedIn broke my marketing (this is what I did next) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/ai-and-linkedin-broke-my-marketing The lead generator sitting in plain sight (that most firms ignore) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/you-know-your-website-needs-updating?r=l8khy You’re showing up. So why aren’t you the leads coming? https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/8-ways-you-are-killing-your-personal?r=l8khy How to put your marketing on autopilot https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-put-your-marketing-on-autopilot?r=l8khy The beginner’s guide to know if your marketing is working https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-beginners-guide-to-knowing-if?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    How to build your marketing function: person by person

  8. Jul 19

    How to create high-quality content when your mind has gone blank

    Are you staring at a blank page with a deadline coming and no idea what to write? Do you find that the weeks you most need to publish something are the weeks your head is completely empty? Are you churning out content at the last minute and knowing, as you press publish, that it isn’t your best work? I created the narrative for this podcast epsiode while sitting on a train with no idea what my podcast episode for the week was going to be. I’ve been creating content for over 17 years, six books, thousands of articles and more than 100 podcast episodes, and I still get stuck.  In this episode, I talk about what causes writer’s block for me, and the four things that make it far less likely to catch you out. What you’ll learn in the podcast episode: The two things most likely to give you writer’s block. What gets my writing going again How a content plan stops you from churning out poor quality content What to keep in a swipe file, and where to find ideas beyond social media. How to use AI to support you to overcome writers block without it writing or creating for you Related episodes AI and LinkedIn broke my marketing (this is what I did next) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/ai-and-linkedin-broke-my-marketing?r=l8khy The £20k trade show lesson I wouldn’t forget https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-20k-trade-show-lesson-i-wont?r=l8khy How to restart your business development activities when you’ve gone quiet https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-restart-your-business-development?r=l8khy The lead generator sitting in plain sight (that most firms ignore) https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/you-know-your-website-needs-updating?r=l8khy How to put your marketing on autopilot https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/how-to-put-your-marketing-on-autopilot?r=l8khy The 5Ps to make sure that business development always happens https://startuptogrownup.substack.com/p/the-5ps-to-make-sure-that-business?r=l8khy Useful links: - sign up as a paid subscriber and use this link to get 20% off an annual membership of Start Up To Grown Up Each episode of the Start Up To Growth Up Podcast is based on my weekly Substack Article on the same topic. Head over to my substack to subscribe https://substack.com/@startuptogrownup so you never miss an article or episode again. About Heather Townsend Heather is the leading business coach for accountants (and other professionals) who want to grow their business. She is the founder of The Accountants Growth Club, who specialise in helping accounting firm owners grow their accounting business profitably and sustainably. She is also the founder of How To Make Partner, the global experts in helping professionals in practice make it to partner, and when they get there, stay that. Get the confidence, the skills AND the time to focus on the right things and move your career forward with Progress to Partner Academy. Get full access to Start Up To Grown Up at startuptogrownup.substack.com/subscribe

    How to create high-quality content when your mind has gone blank
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About

Running a small business can feel overwhelming - too much to do, not enough time, and growth that never quite takes off. This podcast is for small business owners who want to scale their business but feel stuck. No fluff, no vague advice - just clear, short, practical insights to help you build a business that works. Whether you’re struggling with sales, marketing, pricing, or just managing the daily chaos, you’ll get straight-talking strategies to move forward. If you’re tired of spinning your wheels and ready for real progress, this is for you. startuptogrownup.substack.com

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