How to build a business community in your city with Paul Lancaster & Jyoti Kishnani

Well, hello and welcome to the super Connector Show, where I'm delighted to be joined by Joti Kishnani. And in a change to normal proceedings, We're going to turn the tables and I'm going to be interviewed this time instead of me interviewing the guest. So Jody, thank you very much for joining me today and for asking me to do this as well. So over to you.

Thank you so much. Paul, you know, happy to be here. And as I've always told you, you know, I'm always curious to know about your journey. I have been atturning Platform events only for like past like three or four times, and I found it very interesting.

Trust me when I tell you that I have attended a lot of networking events, you know, given my I'm a research student, so I actually go to a lot of networking events hoping that some you know, startup will agree to participate in mess steady and Platform is one event, you know, one of the few events where I come back again and again, because every time I attend an event, there's something new. And the last Platform conference event that happened in April was amazing, you know, the speakers that were there, the weight was organized, the weight was structured and the key takeaways.

And you know, most of the time when people come they have an agenda. But I feel people who come to the platform events and the conference they have networking and learning agenda. I like the feel of the community. And I was so happy and glad that you agreed to be you know, interviewing it interviewed on your own platforms.

So thank you a lot for doing this. So this so the for the people who are online on who are listening later, you know, this this is more of conversational. It's not an interview. It is a conversation between me and Paul and about his journey, how it started, what he accomplished, you know, what were the key lesson learned and lessons for others.

So Paul tell me, you know, I went through your LinkedIn profile and I see that you have worked across you know, different industries like music, marketing, startups and not building the community, you know. So so what what were you thinking and what drove what drove you to do this? Yeah, so I think, well, through all of the things that you do. Let you say, I've worked in marketing, I've had I've worked for corporates, I've worked for third sect organizations, work with the public sector, and then have my own business for just over ten years now.

But everything, everything I've done, it's it's all about it's connection. Basically, it's connection. It's all about connecting people. Even when I think about the music.

So I was a semi professional DJ and producer and club promoter and have my own record label. But the thing for me, I was always really inspired by the DJs who weren't the superstar DJs where they like the focus is on them. There were more the behind the scenes DJs who were the focus is on the the club, the clubs and making sure that they were having a good time and setting the scene, and and the music that they played would take people on a journey and stuff like that. Even now, I think that whole ethosive house music and acid house and its continued that I was like, really when I was a teenager, I was just so excited by that in the late eighties early nineties, and I just carried try to carry that spirit into what I'm doing now.

I think absolutely. So when how about platform or you know this event board, you know you have been doing this last ten years. If anderstand correctly. I'm sure did you wake up one morning and decid that you want to do this or did it evolve over the period of time.

Yeh, it's evolved over the time. So Platform has only been around since January twenty twenty four, right, so it used to I used to do an e ban called Founders Friday, which used to take every month in your castle, so it was like Platform, but longer. It would be from nine till maybe three o'clock in the afternoon. But then Platform is more condensed.

It's a morning session. It's usually nine till twelve or nine till half twelve. But the whole point of these events is to provide like an informal, relaxed, inclusive networking opportunity for people inimed at business owners and leaders or entrepreneurs, people who want to know how to start a business or want to know how to grow a business, mostly in the northeast of England. So bringing people together who wouldn't normally get a chance to come together business owners, business leaders, funders, investors, service providers who want to learn how to grow a business, but they want to give back as well.

I think we do tend to attract people who are generous for their time and generous with their connections, want to learn as well to share, and I think I think that's some of them. I'm really happy about that I've managed to so I think I set the scene. I think my vibe. Yes, absolutely absolutely, I see that.

I myself have attended you know a lot of conference events, like a lot of platform events, and I have seen the energy the new people coming in. So so for the person who wants to come and connect and you know, be part of the platform network and show it, you know, how does it work for the person? Yeah? Sure, so.

I mean the people go to the website which is Platform Events dot ai. On the homepage, it's got all our upcoming events listed on this that's probably the easiest way to find the events in one place, but we promote them all through event right and different social media channels as well. At the moment, we're doing them every month in Newcastle. It's usually I mean it does vary on which which which day of the sorry, which week of the month, but it's always on a Friday.

It's always on a Friday morning. The next one's the twenty second of May, and then we're doing one on the twenty sixth of June. I'm going to take July off. I'm going to take a break and take a holiday and then we'll be back again every month, so in new Castle every month.

We do do Sunderland and Middlesbrough once a quarter and we do Edinburgh as well. But we're looking at doing some different locations like Durham, Northumberland, maybe Leeds, maybe London. We're open to suggestions on different locations, but mostly the north of England, North Northeast and Teesside and a little bit of Scotland. But for anyone who's never been before, it's nine till twelve or nine till half twelve.

The first half an hours really relaxed, you say, really relaxed, inclusive networking. May and others make a point of making sure if people are talking and if anyone's on their own, will make an effort to bring them into the conversation and introduce them. Two good people. First half hours networking, then with teasing coffees.

Then we have what I call it insights briefing, so it's usually me and maybe one or two other people who talk about what's going on in the region, maybe what other events are happening, or the business support initiatives that are going on in the region, or funding is available, what investment opportunities there are, so like wider interests, and also what we're working on as a business, and some things that we think people might be interested in. Then there's a show and tell, so a literal platform for businesses to get up and talk about the products or services that they offer.

And they're usually businesses in the first two years of trading, although we do have businesses that are a bit older who maybe have a new product or service to share. But it's usually a good opportunity and often a first opportunity for someone to get up and talk about what they're doing and get feedback on what they're offering. It's not necessarily a pitch, but it's a it's like, this is who we are, this is what we do, this is what we offer. Lots and lots of times, people pick up work, pick up clients, form new collaboration, get some advice, sometimes get some funding, sometimes make an investment.

Through that session, then we have a little break and then we come back and do a fireside chat where it's usually me interviewing a successful launcher, but a business business leader talking about how they got started, key milestones, challenges, overcome lessons, learned advice for others, and that that's really inspiring here and from those people. And so really I think the event has got something for everyone, no matter what stage they're at in the business, and it's set diagnostic.

Anyone of any sector can come and everyone's welcome to come as well. I myself have attended the events and I have seen it work. You know, when I initially started before my research, I attended Platform events couple of times and I my network group. You know, I have met a lot of new people.

I have connected with them. I got a job. I was amazing. So yeah, so you you listened to one of the fire side chats and you just you're just connected because obviously he's got an office over in India where you're from.

Is that right now you're working with him? So amazing. Yeah, that's why I said that. You know, I am like giving you a worked thing.

You know that it works. You know the platform is successful. You know it does connect people and it just helped the community as well. So I suppoke to someone yesterday who came to the Platform conference.

Yes last week, you said, I just wanted to thank you because I came to the event and as I was getting a coffee, she said, literally, within the first half an hour, I got torn to someone in the coffee queue. That's what I did. I told him what I did, and we set up a demo of her software and he's now signed up for the software. It's amazing.

That's that's that makes me really happy when I hear stuff like that. Absolutely, as I said, I also went to a couple of other events and they're like, oh, yes, totally. I went to a Northeast expo and I went to a booth and that guy's like, you were at the Platform conference very all right, you because I was doing the video editing over them, Like, yeah, right, I was there. You know, I think you know that, I feel that community is building.

You know, I see same faces and it feels good, you know, being part of the community. And I and I also see that you know, Platform is one and then you have UK startup and scale up week. How does that connect? Yeah?

So, yeah, you asked that question before, so and I didn't give you a full answer. So, so basically, ten years ago, just over ten years ago, I was working for a government organization called Tech North, which had been set up to promote the North of England there's a great place to start grow tech business, so Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield Hall, Sundland, Newcastle. That was like the area. So I was the Community Engagement and Partnerships manager for the whole of the North of England.

Right there was me and one other person doing a similar role and that's like too big an area like the whole of the North of England is ridiculous. But it was an amazing, amazing role that I had, and prior to that, I'd spent about fifteen years working in different jobs where I was helping people start and grow businesses but paid a salary to do that. My job is sharing knowledge, signpost and matchmaking, doing introductions, sometimes distributing funding as well, So I can talk a bit about that if you like.

But the Tech North role was all about promoting the whole of the North of England is a great place to start and row tech tech business, trying to encourage more collaboration within cities, in between cities and shiner light and all the good stuff going on. Right great, But what I could say then was that the North well, Manchester in particular was starting to become like the London of the North. There was a lot of a lot of momentum, a lot of money, a lot of just lot. It was just heading that direction.

So even though we were trying to promote the whole of the North equally, you could see that Manchester was getting a lot more attention. And some of that was because the political leadership locally, the Greater Manchester leadership was really getting behind the idea of devolution, and even though it was a labor led authority, they were working very closely with a Conservative National government, unlike other yeah Northern councils, which tend to be very like combatitive and always arguing and falling out.

But the Manchester in particular really could see the benefit and working close and they have the benefited as a result of doing that. So I left that because the funding ran out. This is the problem with a lot of initiatives, government initiatives. The money runs out and what you set out to do you can't do it anymore.

So it had been building up inside me for years that I wanted to do my own thing at some point, but I didn't know quite what that was going to be and I was. I felt like I was adding a lot of value in the roles I was doing. But when this money ran out, I hadn't had a choice of either taking another role, similar role but less it was a bit more London focused, which I didn't want to do right, or I could store my own business finally, with a focus on the Northeast, which is what I said I would do so ten years ago.

I was right. I'm going to do everything I've done up until now, but independently, not relying on grants and funding, and I'm going to do focused on the Northeast of England. I'm going to do everything I possibly can to try and promote and support and champion businesses in the Northeast of England. And that's what I've been doing ever since in different different ways.

Some of that has been consultancy, coaching, mentoring, a bit of advisory work. But I came up with the idea of doing I thought what the Northeast really needs or needed. I thought was really a big event that was going to grab people's attention and bring everything together in one place, all the best help and advice and support and knowledge in one week. And that was going to be called Newcastle's Startup Week, so that was the original name.

So started my business in twenty sixteen, in about six months doing consultancy and advisor and mentor and whatever, and then came up with the idea of right, I'm going to do this big event. So I just basically picked a week okay, which was like nine months ahead, and I was just like, right, this week, I'm going to do a five day, multi venue, city wide event called your Castle Start a Week. Put it out there, yeah, created a survey. This is this is what I did.

I created a survey just say do you think this is a good idea? Would you like to be involved? How would you like to be involved, what do you need? Blah blah blah.

I've got about two hundred people filling the survey and that gave me confidence that there was some sort of appetite for this, and then that then I could go to some sponsors and say, look, I've got two hundred people who want this thing to happen. Can you can you get involved? And that, and then it just I just committed to doing this thing, and I it was a brave, stroke, stupid thing to do. And then I was just like I stopped doing any other work.

I was just like, I'm just going to do this thing. I'm just going to be one hundred percent focused on doing this big event because it was such a big undertake and to do it. Yeah, and it worked. You know, we had just over six hundred people came to this the first event.

Amazing, lots of positives about that. And then and then that was in the May twenty seventeen, and then in the September I did a one day Newcastle's Scale Up Summit, which is a bit like Platform that you went to last week, but it was just a one day and then focused on scaling up with a great event for one hundred and seventy five people. And then and then I did another Newcastle Started a week following me, and yeah, it just carried on there. So I did three Newcastle Started Week events.

It's two for six hundred people, just over six hundred, the third one for just over eight hundred people. I started starting the Founders Friday events every month, start doing consultancy for Newcastle City Council and the North of Time Combined Authority and various other things, and then COVID happened. I couldn't do events. Anymore, and yeah, yeah, yeah, so any plans to any plans to resume any of those apart from the platform events.

So when COVID happened, I couldn't do any in person events, so I moved them online. I did two more Newcastle Started Week events for three hundred people each, which was which was great even though I was online, but really good, not as good as in person, and couldn't make any money from online because no sponsors wanted you know, think back COVID lockdown, no one marketing budgets stopped, no one was spending money. But I didn't want to stop. I wanted to keep doing what I was doing.

I started doing online coaching and mentoring, which I really really enjoyed doing and I've continued doing that since and then, but I basically went back into employment. I got offered a job working in tech recruitment, which is not something I ever thought I would do. So I put my business, kept it going in the background, but didn't run anymore. Then.

So from the end of twenty when was it, I don't remember, end of twenty one, twenty two, twenty three, yeah, twenty twenty two and twenty twenty three, I spent two years doing tech recruitment, for which I liked a lot. I didn't love, but I liked a lot. And actually it was exactly what I needed because I needed a bit of stability, I needed some money. It was nice to be part of the team again.

I learned some new things. It was a way I could still make you of my network, but in a different way, and I can help businesses grow. And I learned a lot, and I probably needed a bit more of a commercial edge, a bit more commercial experience, because I was running my business more like an offer profit up until that point, which I wanted to do, but that meant I was vulnerable when COVID came along because I didn't have enough cash reserves and I didn't want to be in that situation again.

So two years of doing the tech recruitment and then it was building back up inside me that I wanted to get back to what I was doing, and I was getting more and more people asking me to do you know, fancy doing those events again? They were really good. I was like, yeah, So where I left recruitment dead on two years and January twenty twenty four, I just picked up where I left off and started doing the platform events again. So I've done them pretty much every month since then along with I Busy just picked up where I left off and last June I renamed it instead of Newcastle Startup Week, I mean named the UK Startup and scale Up Week Flight five day multi venue city wide event in Sunderland, this time for four hundred and twenty people.

Awesome. Yes, so yeah, it's being busy. You've done and done a lot of a lot of things. But but UK Startup in Scaleup Week now is just it's a purely online thing.

I've decided to just keep that going, but as a purely online weekly blogs, videos, podcasts, so like this will go out as a blog in a podcast, in a video on a YouTube channel and podcasts. But platform is is the brand that has the more momentum, so we're going to keep focused on doing the platform events instead. Wow, you know you're long answer. Sorry, but there was a lot in there.

It's actually what I wanted in the journey, you know, That's what I wanted to learn about, you know, the journey that COVID came, and COVID actually changed the course for everybody. I think it's not everything was like shut down. People studied from you know, doing work and studying and everything took online. You know, so sustaining was definitely not easy.

So if you were to go back and define one of the key moments, you know, what would that be, you know, a key moment that pushed you in this direction? Oh, I mean well, obviously COVID was a big one. But like so going back in so I think, right, So my first job after university, so I my university degree had nothing to do with this, right, So I did geography at the university as the University of Leeds, which I love doing, right, But I just did it because that was my favorite subject.

I had no idea what I wanted to do other than music. Like I really thought I was going to be international superstar, DJ, producer, club promoter. That's what I wanted to do, right, And I did DJ around the world an amazing time, but I like critically acclaimed commercially not that successful, but like an amazing time. Right.

But but yeah, when I was doing so, I was at university. And then my first job after the university was working for stage big futty one hundred software company in yourcastle. But I was there for two years doing tech support. Liked it a lot, learned a lot.

Really good company, really good training, good experience, good company to work for. And that was where I learned that I like fixing problems, I like helping people, because that's what it was. It was tech support. But I could see that I didn't just want to do that forever.

I could say, yes, you could get promoted, but I was a bit limited what I could do in that company. So I started teaching myself basic web design in my spare time, and so yeah, so I started doing basic web design, and then I got a job working for British Airways as a graduate trainee web developer. Really good again, great company in yourcastle, great experience. But I realized quite quickly I could do it, but I wasn't a very good developer.

I was there, but I know I wasn't a great developer, and so I moved more into website management and content creation. That was the beginning of the marketing experience, I suppose. And then another big tragedy happened in the nine to eleven happened after almost the air of being there, and which was just obviously horrific. What happened there.

But basically the airline industry just stopped. So basically the Mantra cash is king, you know the the a lot of big businesses. What they do is they just get rid of staff because they're losing so much money. All the aircraft was grounded.

That yeah, when I think about it, they made there's a series of mistakes, but they didn't know that at the time, and that they they decided there was no future in low cost airline. Okay, so British Airs used to have a low cost airline called Go which is a bit like easy Jet or Ryanair, and decided, no, there's no future in low cost airline. We're just going to go for premium travel and business class travel. Well all of that stopped, right.

They overspent and overborrowed money to buy a whole new fleet of aircraft. They repainted all the tail fins. I don't know if you know, but like British Airs, they have the like Union jack tail fins and they changed them. They be flags around the world and no one liked them apparently, so I had to repaint all of the tail fins again.

The Uni jacks. Concorde to remember Concorde, So Concorde stopped flying, but then they relaunched Concorde and that crashed so they couldn't. It was just that whole Yeah, it was just so many Anyway, nine to eleven happened horrific. But then I just realized, this is the downside of being in a big court, where you are just a tiny cog in a big machine and you are very disposable.

And I'd felt that when I was at Sage. Even then, I was just no matter how hard I tried, I was just like a very junior didn't feel particularly valued what I was doing. Even though I thought I was doing a really good job for the customer, it wasn't necessarily recognized with my managers or whatever. And then British Airways, Yeah, disposable.

So I just thought, right, I'm never going to work for corporate again. But at the time I'd had my first record signed to a record label. I decided again. I decided then, right, I'm not even going to look for another job.

I'm just going to spend the next twelve months just making music. Another interview only to listen to your music. Now it's all on SoundCloud if people want to find it, if they search for Lord Lancaster. Okay, it's all on there.

But yeah, I basically decided I'm not going to look for another job. I'm just going to commit to making music. And I had two very tolerant parents who allowed me to do that and had an amazing year of just making music and DJing and traveling. And then I went back into work, but the nature of the work was much more.

I worked spent a long time working in the not for profit social enterprise, spent nine years working in more community focused, third sector organizations that were all about helping others and trying to help people bring ideas to life and fulfill their potential. So yeah, that was a big shift. It looks like you always knew that you're calling is community. I think so, yeah, I don't know, Like, yeah, even.

More because I spoke about the college, you know, building the community, keeping people together. Music Again, I strongly believe music is one. Yeah, It's so so powerful for connecting people. It doesn't matter who you are and what age or where you're from.

Yeah, no location, nothing, Music just connected. It doesn't matter whether it's in English or any other language. Music is music exactly. Yeah.

So yeah, so yeah, it's interesting looking back I mean, I'm getting all I say, I'm getting I'm forty nine now, you know, Johny. So I'm trying to remember how I used to think when I was a kid. Is I think all I always felt like I wanted to do something different and I wanted to give. I wanted to help others, and I wanted to I've always been really proud of the Northeast of England and wanted felt frustrated that the Northeast wasn't as successful as it could be compared to other regions, and that there was certain things holding it back.

And some of that is external forces, some of it is mindset of people from the region as well, and I wanted to do what I could to try and overcome that personally and helping others. Right, No, I think I have been in Northeast only since September twenty four and I myself feel the connection. You know, there's something about it that calls you that is definitely a connection to Northeast and you know, to see its successful, you know, to see it grow, to see it happy. And you know you're talking about music and your parents are very tall.

Is the world that you used? How about your kids? You know, tell me how what Paul is like in personal life and he's not working on platform or that the events has any of your kids, you know inherited that musical gene. Well, my son is just about turn seventeen and he's decided he wants to be in a band, So I mean he's really into music.

Well, my sister is, sorry, my daughter is as well. So I've I've got a sixteen almost seventeen year old son, Jake, and I've got a thirteen almost fourteen year old daughter Amber. They're both very into music. He's he's really really into music and movies and very similar to ours when I was his age, but both of them, like, I've always played lots of music, every type of music.

I've always talked about music. I've always talked about art and culture and movies and encouraged them to pursue those interests. And what's nice definitely my son in particular, he's always educating me. He's always introducing me to new music, just like I'll say, oh, that song reminds me of this song and we like we yes.

I like that that he's shown me new things that get me interested in excited, and I'm showing him things as well, but classic, I'm not cool. I'm my dad, so I'm not cool at all. I thought it is, you know, fifteen going with sixteen, and she does exactly the same thing. She thinks mama's music choice is too old, so she'll come and introduce me new music.

Sometimes it does music. Sometimes it's nice for me, but yeah. Definitely music and movies is a way that we made my son in particular, connect over that. And then my partner live.

She's got two daughters. She's got a fourteen year old daughter and of your daughter, and so yes, so there's four kids between us and a cat and a dog. So it's a busy household. There's a typical day, look like you when you're not working.

So so well, I used to be married, so this is I am divorced. Right, So me and my ex wife or good friends now. And you know, we're obviously not not nice to any divorce. But we've known each other since we're school and we were together for thirteen years and anyway, we split up six years ago, so just before COVID and anyway, we we've remained friends.

So my kids live with her full time, but they usually stay with they used to stay with me every weekend. Now I have them with me every other weekend, but I see them every Wednesday. Ok. Yeah, So so I live with my partner Katie and her two daughters, and I'm originally from Gated but I now live in Sunderland and yeah, but I don't know, so work from home, Katie works from home.

I'm out about all the time, ausy mornings with the cat and the dog and the kids, getting them ready for school. Lots of backwards and forwards, but I'm very family is really important to me, like it's it always has been really important to me. So that's something I'm I'm really proud of that We've got four amazing kids and even though me and Max wife are not together anymore, the kids have always been the priority for both of us and we're I'm really proud that we've managed to do that because some it's it's difficult.

A lot of people aren't able to do that. They do fall out over the kids and it's a it's a problem. But yeah, no, well, I think it's good to know that, you know, priorities are right, you know, at the end of the days about kids, and I feel the new generation given that my study itself involves young generation in startup organization, I have learned a lot about the Gen zs, Gen alfas and Gen Beta that's just still going to be there, so I understand the challenges that they face as in the corporate or in the personal life.

You know, if you see the mental health suddenly, you know, in the last one decade it has picked up. Yeah, a lot of. I think it's hard. You know, it is obviously hard, right because when I like the thing, I'm well my partner as well.

But wait, because I'm so well connected, right, and I know about a lot of things, and I've had lots of different roles, and i think I've got a really good understanding of the region and where the opportunities are and what where the growth opportunities are, you know that sort of stuff. And I've spent time in recruitment. And it's like sometimes you just want to like download everything you know into your kids heads so that they know, but like they have to find out for themselves, and they don't like it.

They obviously don't like it when may or Katie or or my kid's mother tells them things because of like, well, what do you know and you're not me, and but like, yeah, that that's that's something I have to learn that. It's like they have to learn at their own pace. And you can give them information, but you can't. You can't be careful not to be seen to be dictating or lecturing.

You cannot control. That's true. I see a comment from Ouzo when we were talking about music. She's saying that, you know, Michael Jackson is changing that.

Yeah. I don't know what. I don't know what that's referring to. But we were talking about connecting the kids to the music, our music and their music that is different.

So I think that she's saying that Michael movie is changing that. Ah right, you know interesting, Yeah, because I know that's interesting because when I was I mean, I'm sure my age, but when I was a kid, he was the king of pop. You know, he was everywhere and amazing music. But obviously some challenges and some not nice things allegations whether I don't know whether it's about it's personal, like, but yeah, it's throughout history, you have troubled artists who the output of the work is amazing, but as people that they have real problems.

Yeah, and Michael Jackson what I hear is still going has gone back to the top, you know, even after Yeah, it's gonna go back. For a long time, the radio stations wouldn't play his music and he was just banned from. But but yeah, in the movie, in the movie, they have covered that, the nineteen eighty three More Towns you know episode, they have showed that in the movie. I took my daughter just for her to know.

Yeah, yeah, cool. Yeah, So coming back to the community part, you know, what are the what is what goes in the background, you know, in the front when I see I feel Paul has built lovely community, you know, but there's a lot of hard work and challenges that you would be you would have faced or you are still continuing to face that. Yeah. Yeah, Well so I told about a little bit before and the because I because I set out to create a business where I wasn't relying on grants and funding, right because I don't want to be in that position where the funding stops and you can't do what you what you set out to do, and often the really valuable stuff is intangible, and it's also hard to get someone to pay for, right.

So so I definitely feel a bit like no, no, not robin Hood, but like often sometimes feel like you have to take money from bigger businesses to support the grassroots smaller businesses. Right, So I figured out, definitely figured out a way where I create opportunities that everybody can benefit. Right, So people who have no money or they're just starting own business can benefit from the events and the knowledge and the insights that that's on offer for free. Right.

But the businesses that we have sponsors who pay for our events, and like you know, we are very selective with who we work with. We don't we don't just take money from anybody that the people that we work with, you know, we we do genuinely think that they are good supporters of small businesses and have good products and services that can help people start and grow. So and they and they're also the right, they get what we're all about, so they're not they don't interfere obviously.

The one what they're what they're sponsoring for is they want to raise their profile. They want the opportunity to speak, want the visibility, they want the logos, they want their banners, you know, they want the opportunities potentially get some new customers or clients. But it's it's very soft touch. It's very light, light touch, which is great.

Now, the challenge with that is it's still not easy making money that way because like everybody, no matter how good your events or how good you how many people you come to the events, there's always somebody saying, well, what's the return on investment? And and especially if you have new people coming in, you look at the budget and say, oh, we're changing things and we need to make more money out there, so keeping sponsors, get finding good sponsors, keeping good sponsors, you know, making sure that they're happy, but at the same time not spoiling what we've got.

Also, you know, trying to get people who come to the events to make the most events. Like obviously come to the events, you know, constantly having to promote and remind people and encourage people. And and then ideally you want people to make the next step. Ideally you want people come to the event and learn something.

You want someone to connect with someone. You want someone to find a collaborator, a partner, a client, a customer, or get some benefit from it. Right, But I can't control that. I'm just setting the scene.

I'm creating the opportunities for people. But then there's all I would say. Everybody who comes to the platform event does need a bit more. Now there's only so many hours in the days that this is a constant change.

For like, I would like to help everybody, but I can't help everybody, and I can't do it for free all the time. I do do a lot for free, and I do have free meetings and calls and a point. But then beyond that, people are going to have to pay something to somebody, whether it's me or someone else too. And and that's just business, you know.

I think there's a people need to get get into the habit of being buyers as well as I mean, and the nicest possible way that I think the Northeast, and I can say this because I've lived here whole, I think the Northeast is still too reliant on grandsom funding and still too too expectant of getting things for free. And it used to be I'm really in a history and I'm really an economics. Used to be the UK of Britain used to be called a nation of shopkeepers. But I think we need to become a nation of buyers as well.

We need to actually buy off each other, ye expect the counsel or the government to with everything we need. To makes sense. Yeah, So I think that is what people get wrong about networking, you know, because when they come to the networking that expectations are different or they always meet the expectations. I think, well, I think most people who come to events get what the event's all about, and we do.

I haven't seen any real examples of this or not many. I can think of where I've been to events in the past where someone will come in and they've got an objective that they're going to make a sale, and they just go around the room and they're just pushing and trying to sell to everybody they talk to. They're putting business cards in everyone's hands. They're like trying to sell or you're not gonna buy?

Okay, are you gonna buy? You know? Yeah, Sometimes that is desperation. Sometimes they might have a boss on their back saying they've got to hit target or whatever.

So I understand why that might be happening, right, but they where this isn't too star evants. This is just networking in general. People are just pushing their products or services on other people. That's the wrong approach and the best salespeople listen more that they talk.

Absolutely, they show an interest, they ask questions, they find out about the other people, and then if there's an opportunity to sell or you've got a product or service that can help that person out, then you can tell them. But if you if you can't, then you can still be a value and you can still build a relationship by introducing to someone else ap pointing them in another director and they will remember that and they're more likely to refer to someone to you if you help them than if you've just tried to sell to them as soon as you meet them.

Exactly. You know, the building connection doesn't happen instantly. I think there's a foundation that you build upon before you actually and cash it. You know, it's not one day I give you the card and it will work and I get the business.

It's it's a process, yeah, exactly, And it might take two three more meeting events before you but you know, you found it's only that you go to events or you went to the event yesterday, people recognize you and then the more willing to talk you the next time and then when the time is right. Absolutely, I have seen that, like from my first event to platform, and now when I go to other events, I see similar faces. So and then when we see similar faces, we go and talk, we kind of how is it going?

And you know it just then it working happens, you know, and then people are more helpful that, oh I know somebody who's working in startup, I'll connect you. You know it snowball effect, Yeah, it's it's I mean, business is human, I know, I know obviously more and more using technology and AI, and but you can't. You can't get rid of the human touch and the like. There's some there is an energy to it, you know, like you can you can pick up energy from people.

Everything's energy, I think, and building a rapport, building a relation. You're much more likely to want to work with someone if you actually like them, and if you've got some sort of if you're comfortable around them, then if they're like and. The connection is not only for that purpose, you know, the people with whom I'm meeting, that's not only for my research anymore. That is like, and we will be in touch, you know, if something new comes.

We talk with each other, we chat with each other, we help each other, you know, so not only for one reason, also it is just that you're growing your network for expanding it. So you know this, this talk will not be complete unless I talk about your ward that you got during the conference. I've got it here actually, desk. Oh, it's beautiful.

You know, I know I was present there and it was awarded to you, and you know it was It is recognized for by high sheriff a or meritorist community service. Right yeah, so it's now it was a lovely, lovely thing that happened, because what are you expecting it? No? Well, so am On is so who's got a CBE.

So he's a commander of the British Empire, right, so, great guy. I've known him for about ten years. So when I first started my business, or maybe just before, that's when I first met ammor So. I think that's important for people to know that, like Amor you gave me that award, I've known him for ten years.

Neil Stevenson, my business martner, I've known him for about ten years. All of the people I work with now i've known for many years, built up relationships for a long time, and it's only more recently that we've actually started working together. So good relationships are worth investing in the time. And it's not like you do it because you want necessarily something in a financial benefit, but you do because there's some connection there and some kindred spirit or some sort of rapport that you've gotten further down the line.

Something. I come for it, but but he did. I invited Amor to the event. I wanted him at the event, and then he said, oh, I'd love to come, but can I also give you an award?

And I was like, well, I for it. And I didn't really know what it was going to be. I just knew he was going to be then he was going to get up and see something. But I was really quite humbled and quite touched by it because he's the high sheriff of time and we are.

I mean, it's it's an old I think it's like thousands of years old. Once it's a ceremonial thing. But once upon a time they were like you had the king and then you had the high sheriffs who were responsible for law and enforcement and collecting taxes, and they had a lot of power and influence. And they've continued the tradition.

But these high sheriffs now they present awards the your appointed high show for for a year, so has just become the high show for the for the next twelve months. And they can they can present awards to people who they think of being have contributed a lot to the local community, and that can be for charitable work, it can be community work. On this case, it's for supporting the business community. So yeah, it was.

It was. It was a lovely and that was his first award that he's handed out, so it was it was just a very very I was a little bit lost lost for words, which is unusual for me. It was great because we all were there and we saw it, you know, your expressions and you know, I think everybody in the conference was you know, excited, you know, and sharing you know, that moment with you. It was.

It was lovely for me as well, it was a. Lovely Well, my sister was there as well, and my partner Katie was there as well, so it was so so lovely that them as well as say it. I was very very. Proud, and I remember, you know, I'm going to ask you the same question that I asked you during after the conference, and I said that if you know, Paul of twenty twenty six had to give any advice to Paul twenty sixteen that what would that be?

Oh, that's a good that's a good one, isn't it? Say so? Ten ten years ago? Yeah, I don't know.

Probably just stick at it like you're on the right track and like believe in, like, keep doing what you're doing. It's it's important and it's valuable what you're doing, and you're gonna you're going to help a lot of people and you're going to enjoy it along the way as well. But I really believe like the importance of picking yourself. So that's definitely what I did.

Ten years ago. I was like, nobody asked me to do what I'm doing, you know. I just thought there's a need for this, and I was looking around and thinking, well, no one else is going to do this, so and I feel like I'm in the position to do it, and I have the the knowledge and the insights and the passion to do it, so why not me just believing in myself to do it. And I genuinely believe that once if it's humanly possible, you can do anything.

If you really believe in it and you and you're back yourself, you can make it happen. And then there's something there's talk about energy before. There's definitely something about that when you're really believe in what you do and people are drawn to that. Yeah, people are drawn to that energy and that that passion and that belief that you've got, people want to be part of it.

Yes, So yeah, that's. Your accommodation is believe in yourself and go for it. Yeah. But and it's not it's not going to be plain saling.

There's gonna be problems along the way, but it's I think the it's an overused word often, but the purpose, you know, definitely will keep you going through every anything if you really really believe in what you're doing in your often us this quote you have you heard what's called Have you read the book The Alchemist? Yes, long Parallel. Yeah, that's a great book. But there's a there's a there's a line in that way says something like like caravans in the desert.

We make a lot of details, but we're still heading in the same direction. I love that because it's like, yeah, things things will come along, but you'll you'll get there eventually. And and your intents a lot. Yeah, lovely, And I don't know how much time you have.

We still have maybe three or four minutes, few minutes. Yeah, yeah, I've got through a lot of questions, but didn't have any more. Had a little brought a lot of questions. But I have two questions that I'll choose one.

What would be your advice to the young founders and entrepreneurs you know coming and given that you have so much of expertise and knowledge that you have built up over the years, and the new people who are coming in, what are the things that you would ask them to be careful about or to consider like advice? Right? Yeah, good good. I'm bound to say this.

I am going to talk about the benefit of community in your network, right because I think not just young founders, old business owners as a leaders as well. Come across a lot of people who've been so focused on what they're doing that they haven't spent any time to or not enough time nurturing relationships and networks. And if that business fails or they lose their job or whatever, they have no network that they're vulnerable and they find it difficult to move into another direction.

I've found it easy, relatively easy, and or easier to move directions and the pivot into different roles because I've got that network and I've built up that trust and that that good will, I suppose because I have helped a lot of people, and I've supported a lot of people, and I've given back and I've contributed, and it's just meant that I've been able to have a very interest in career and I've been able to move in a lot of different roles. But that network's followed me everywhere.

And there's actually another good book by Read Hoffman called is It the net Is it the Network of You? Or something? I think it's called the Network of You? But it's basically how it doesn't matter what job you do or what business have you work for, the network will follow you.

So it's the value of having that network around you. The people aspect, like you do not you know, you always make that connection with the people, the human connection. No matter I would have you know, if you had time, you would have discussed more about the AI and how does it impact the networking and the community, because definitely AI is coming into picture, but I strongly believe still human connection is very important. Yeah, you know, I'm not against AI at all, Like I do use some AI tools and we'll probably well, we're looking at how we can use AI more to create more of a like AI powered connection tools or software to supplement what happens at the events, because that's that is a constant frustration for me that I can't do more, or that I can't Like I'm very good when I'm in front of people and I'm like, okay, Jody, you need to speak to this person, like Jody, you need to speak the Chris.

Right. I'm good at that, right, But I can't do that with everyone, and I can't do it at scale. So that if there's a way that we can do a better job of matching people up and giving people pointing people to exactly what they need when they need it, because it's so it's all there, it's just people. Create a repository.

That's the That's what I'd like to do over the coming months. But but definitely, I think this is something tech tech founders in particular or guilty of, is believing that the technology will just sell itself, or that it's that it's just so amazing that you can just run your whole life using technology. But life is better with people in it and with connections, and you'll have more phone, you'll enjoy it more and it will be more valuable to the world. Absolutely, thank you so much Paul for sharing you know, your experience.

I know not it is not enough to cover everything that you have done in last ten or twelve years. Maybe we'll have part two sometimes, but really, thank you for doing this. Thank you, And I enjoyed doing that and I do really appreciate you coming to the events and all the all the feedback that you give because you're always very very encouraging and you get it. You get what it's all about.

And I think, yeah, hope to get it even more now after having that conversation. As I said, I have been in the industry for a very long time, and I always as a manager and you know, as a head and all, I've always felt that people are your true assets. Invest in people everything else. Do you we'll put some links under the theater, But is this something do you want to say a little bit about what you're working on at the moment?

And yeah, sure. So I am a doctoral student. I am doing a DBA and my research topic is about young generations and startup organizations. I'm just trying to understand that is there any changes in the management practice that is needed to accommodate or welcome this new generation, because this new generation is different than what we were and that's how it is going to be.

And gen Z soon is going to be like more than thirty or forty percent of the workforce across. So that is my topic. And if you know anybody or if you are a startup who want to join my study, please drop me a message. And I also work with Resolved Group as an organizational advisor.

They are based in Hartleypool and we actually built new apps or we fix your apps in case if your app is broken then you don't know what to do, we can fix that as well. Amazing. No, well, definitely it's a big, big topic because I mean, yeah, there's a lot of money, not just. Gen nineteen ninety seven to twenty twelve.

Yeah that makes me feel old. But actually always just listening to a little podcast there is it's a good, good podcast called The Rest is Politics which I listened to, which is good about like global politics and UK politics with the Rory Stewart and Alistair Campbell who are opposite sides of the political spectrum, but like sort of centrists. One is like conservative. One is labor but that's a really really good The rest is politics.

But they've got a little mini series that they've just done which is all about jen z And I was listening to a bit the other day and it was very interesting about the challenges of whether you go to university or not, you know, the costs of that and whether the cost has gone up, but arguably the value of a degree has gone down, and all these issues and stuff that people are the content to content with. But people want. People want to hire the new people that experience, but the people who are coming out of the college, they are not able to find the job because there's no.

Problem. Yeah, and I think employers definitely should be more willing to take people on with no experience and training them all correct. So onboarding, I always feel that onboarding is one of the key areas in the organization. You know, having a clear onboarding plan, having a person moving from one another, succession planning, all those small small things which if you pay proper attention, it does unders to the organization.

Yeah. Yeah, And there's definitely not enough managers and leaders spend time on their own training and education to become a better manager. Unfortunately, yes, unfortunately. Yeah, but it will have an impact any day if you are having a person who is not ready for that role, if you put that person in that role, you will sooner or later realize that.

Yeah. Yeah, very good. Okay, well yeah so much. Sounds really interesting what you do.

And I'm I'm yeah, serve there's people who watching this or listen to this who can want to contribute to get in touch with you. Absolutely, Thank you so much, and let's do it again and I'll meet you in the next platform. Amazing. Okay, thank you very much.

Okay, thanks Joddye Bye bye MHM.