1d ago

3 ways to measure the progress you can't see

If you've been showing up, doing the work, having the conversations, and it still feels like nothing is moving, this episode might change what you're looking at. The problem when you're in the marvellous middle isn't the work but how to know whether it's working. Most founders are tracking the wrong things, and it's making the silence feel worse than it needs to. In this episode, you'll hear: The context that changes everything about how you measure progress, and why it has nothing to do with platforms or content and everything to do with peopleThree practical shifts that will help you see the progress that's actually there, even when it feels invisibleWhy more conversations will always move you forward faster than more content, especially if you're newer in businessThe simple way to tell whether you're in the marvellous middle or whether something genuinely needs to changeAnd a line about the speed of trust that I think will stay with youThe big takeaway? If you've been measuring likes, reach, and followers and wondering why it feels like nothing is happening, you've been looking in the wrong place. The progress is in the people. Until next time, stay Quietly Disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

3d ago

The marvellous middle: why the silence isn't what you think it is

There's a part of building a business that nobody wants to talk about. Not the starting, that gets all the limelight, but the middle bit, the part where you've done the work, been consistent, and it feels like nothing is happening. Most founders call it the messy middle. I call it the marvellous middle, and I think understanding why might change how you experience everything that comes after. In this episode, you'll hear: Why the silence in the middle feels like failure but is actually evidence of something else entirelyA story from my own business about a founder who disappeared for seven months and then came back, and what that taught me about invisible progressThe seed metaphor that sounds like a cliché until you hear what it actually means for your business right nowAnd the question to sit with before you plan anything for autumn, because I think the answer will surprise youThe big takeaway? The things you've planted this year haven't disappeared but instead they're growing underneath the surface, putting down roots, building something you can't see yet. That's progress, even when it doesn't feel like it. Until next time, stay Quietly Disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

Sep 3

How to find the small things that matter in your business

Knowing the small things matter is one thing. Knowing where to actually find them, and use them, in your business is another. That's what today's episode is all about. I walk you through 5 specific places to look and use the small things to help create a business that creates a feeling and experience, not just looks great. In this episode, you'll hear: The five touchpoints where the small things live in your business, with examples for each oneA test you can run on your entire business this week that will show you exactly where the small things are missingThe one question that unlocks the touchpoint that can never be taught, copied, or replicatedAnd why the founders people talk about and refer without being asked are always the ones who got the small things rightThe big takeaway? If you removed your name and your logo from every touchpoint in your business, would someone still know it was you? If not, that's where the opportunity is. Until next time, stay quietly disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

Sep 1

The small things are the disruption

Before diving into the big autumn plans and the Q4 energy that September always brings, I want to start somewhere smaller. I think the things that actually make the biggest difference in your business are rarely the big visible things, but instead are the small, almost invisible ones that nobody asked you to do but that people absolutely feel when they are there. Those tiny moments are where trust starts to form, and then leads to everything else. In this episode, you'll hear: Why the small things reveal who you actually are in a way that can never be faked, and why that's exactly what makes them the disruptionThe examples from my own business that show what this looks like in practice, from how I use LinkedIn to why my weekly letter isn't called a newsletterWhy adding more to your plate is not the point, and the difference between borrowing someone else's details and finding your ownAnd the question to sit with before you plan anything big this autumnThe big takeaway? Almost nobody bothers with the small things. That's exactly why they matter more than anything else. Until next time, stay quietly disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

Aug 25

Proudly absurd: a conversation with Maddy and Iain at Bewilderbeest

What happens when a skiing accident, a drawing of a wildebeest, and a pair of floppy antlers all collide? You get one of the most joyful, proudly absurd businesses I've ever had on this podcast. Maddy and Iain are the husband-and-wife team behind Bewilderbeest, a greeting card and gift brand stocked in National Trust, Waterstones, and Fortnum & Mason. Built from a kitchen table with no industry experience or business plan, it's a business with a tagline that gives them full licence to be themselves in every email, every trade show, and every interaction they have. In this episode, you'll hear: How a skiing accident led to a drawing, that led to a gallery, that led to a business neither of them ever planned to buildWhy being "unprofessional" turned out to be more professional than professional, and the miniature earthquake detection kits and tiny spades that prove itThe moment Iain spotted one of his cards framed on a stranger's kitchen wall while doing his day job as a loss adjusterWhat it's actually like running a business as a married couple, and why the answer isn't what most people expectAnd the one piece of advice they'd give any founder that has nothing to do with strategy and everything to do with stoppingThe big takeaway? If you're brave enough to build your business around who you actually are rather than who you think you should be, the right people don't just find you, they come looking for you — and sometimes they stop at your trade show stand because they feel sorry for your droopy antlers, and that's how you end up stocked in National Trust. Be inspired to be proudly absurd and follow Bewilderbeest's journey: Website: https://www.bewilderbeest.co.uk Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bewilderbeestart Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bewilderbeest/ Maddy's Substack: https://thoughtsbymaddyhamilton.substack.com/ Until next time, stay quietly disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

Aug 20

How to figure out what's actually standing in your way

Giving yourself permission sounds simple. Knowing what to do with it afterwards is where most founders get stuck, because the moment you say "I'm doing it," that's exactly when everything you've been avoiding decides to show up at once. That's what today's episode is about, and it's more practical than you might expect. In this episode, you'll hear: What's actually driving the wait, and why getting curious about the root cause reveals things you didn't know were running the showThree examples that show exactly how fear disguises itself as logic, caution, and common senseA simple exercise that will show you whether the things standing in your way are walls or doors, and why most of them aren't what you think they areAnd the question that turns every excuse on its headThe big takeaway? The permission is always yours to give. The only question after that is what you decide to do with it, and most of what you think is in the way will turn out to be a door, not a wall. Until next time, stay quietly disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

Aug 18

If you're waiting for permission to do the thing, this is what you need to hear

If you've got an idea tucked away in a notebook, a website sitting in drafts, or a version of your business that you've been carrying around for months or even years but haven't done anything with yet, this episode is going to ask you a question you might not be ready for. There's a reason you haven't done it yet, and it's probably not the one you think. In this episode, you'll hear: Why the thing that's been holding you back isn't time, money, experience, or readinessThe image that perfectly captures what happens to most founders between starting out and where they are nowA reframe that sounds so simple you might dismiss it, but once you hear it, you won't be able to unhear itAnd a question at the end that will sit with you long after this episode finishesThe big takeaway? You've been looking for something in all the wrong places. You've had it the entire time. Until next time, stay quietly disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

Aug 11

Changing the world one bottle at a time: a conversation with Louis Watkins

What happens when a 19-year-old sitting at his dining room table during lockdown, struggling with anxiety he didn't yet have a name for, decides to turn his own mental health journey into a skincare brand that is changing how men think about taking care of themselves? That's Louis Watkins' story, and it's one of those conversations that will make you rethink what it takes to build something meaningful from absolutely nothing. In this episode, you'll hear: How Clear for Men went from a dining room table idea to a real product in 18 months, with no industry experience, no budget, and a logo that cost £300The personal story behind the brand that most founders would never have the courage to share publiclyWhy Louis measures success by how many lives he's positively impacted in a day rather than how many orders came inThe moment he stopped comparing his journey to everyone else's and what changed when he didThe big takeaway? You don't need expertise, a budget, or all the answers before you start. You need a reason that matters, the willingness to figure it out as you go, and the patience to build it one small step at a time. Follow Louis' journey and get involved: Website: https://clearformen.co.uk LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louis-watkins-29637126a Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/weareclear1 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/weareclear_ and https://www.instagram.com/louiswxtkins/ Until next time, stay quietly disruptive. ### Ready to go further? Sign the pact and join the Quietly Disruptive movement. It's free and takes seconds. Sign the Pact and every week you'll receive Field Notes, my weekly letter where I share what the Quietly Disruptive path really looks like behind-the-scenes. You'll also receive exclusive invitations to workshops, in-person meetups, and experiences you won't find anywhere else. Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com/signthepact Read my story of how I became a Quietly Disruptive business coach, which involves over twenty-five years of building businesses and model horses (#notatypo). Link: https://www.beckybenfieldhumberstone.com

The Quietly Disruptive Business

3 ways to measure the progress you can't see

The marvellous middle: why the silence isn't what you think it is

How to find the small things that matter in your business

The small things are the disruption

Proudly absurd: a conversation with Maddy and Iain at Bewilderbeest

How to figure out what's actually standing in your way

If you're waiting for permission to do the thing, this is what you need to hear

Changing the world one bottle at a time: a conversation with Louis Watkins

Trailer

The Quietly Disruptive Business Trailer

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The Quietly Disruptive Business

Episodes

3 ways to measure the progress you can't see

The marvellous middle: why the silence isn't what you think it is

How to find the small things that matter in your business

The small things are the disruption

Proudly absurd: a conversation with Maddy and Iain at Bewilderbeest

How to figure out what's actually standing in your way

If you're waiting for permission to do the thing, this is what you need to hear

Changing the world one bottle at a time: a conversation with Louis Watkins

Trailer

About

Information