032:The Start Up Journey - with Alastair Roberts

<p align="justify">On today's episode, we’re speaking to Alastair Roberts. Alastair is the Director of Alastair James Insurance Brokers and is talking with us today about those brave enough to be thinking about ‘going it alone’. Alastair has his own story to tell and will be sharing with us his great advice and tips which he was able to take from his own journey when he set up his business a few years ago.</p> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">LEARNING OBJECTIVES:</p> <ul><li> <p align="justify">A piece of advice Alastair wishes he could give himself if he knew then what he knew now would be to understand that you’ve got to work hard for it – no-one is going to hand you anything on a plate.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">Marketing is a massive area to explore in business so it’s important to have a plan whilst continuously learning especially when it comes to attracting new clients.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">Every year, Alastair focuses on his figures so he can ascertain where business has come from and where he should focus his efforts to either continue or improve. He also sets himself monthly targets and objectives.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">Reviewing your business plan frequently is important because the markets are forever changing and with unpredicted happenings such as COVID, it’s good to be aware and adaptable.</p> </li> <li> <p align="justify">Alastair’s top three tips are: stay positive, have faith in yourself and don’t be afraid of trying something different.</p> </li> </ul> <p align="justify"> </p> <p align="justify">BEST MOMENTS:</p> <p align="justify">‘’I think that it's a real motivation for you, because it's quite scary, really. So that's a real big motivation to know that you've got no leads and you know, it's down to you to bring the business in.’’</p> <p align="justify">‘’I was always confident that we were speaking to clients and that I was giving them good information and I was giving a good service, but when you set up as your own and you set up y