Feeling Thankful?

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As my American friends get ready for their Thanksgiving celebrations tomorrow, it does seem like a good moment to, well, do nothing for a minute.

You see, this time of year is a crazy, busy, exciting and ever so slightly manic season. Clients getting ready for the new year, me getting ready to take a few weeks off over the holiday period, children in concerts, plays and sports matches, Christmas shopping, visiting family, hosting friends and let's not forget all the everyday stuff that still needs doing.

No wonder the days fly by and the weeks whiz past in a technicolour blur that borders on the downright scary.

So, this quote, sent to me by a friend in the US today, has really hit home. At a time when we're all pushing ourselves to get more done than is humanly possible in the waking/working hours we have, there are things that get missed.

Whilst I know I'm at risk of disappearing in a smog of schmaltz right now, it never does any harm to just stop for a moment and count the good things rather than always dwelling on the less than perfect. I know I'm not one to lecture righteously here as I'm as guilty as the next person for sometimes forgetting how bloomin' lucky I am but it is our ability to recognise the good things, to note the achievements and to give ourselves a pat on the back for the things we've done that keep us moving forward. If we can take heart from what we've already done, we can energise ourselves for the future and be more content with the present. Who wouldn't want that?

I'm off the put the kettle on, take five with a cuppa, give the dog a cuddle and eat a biscuit. It'll be good for me and I'm grateful for everything I have right now.

Especially the biscuit.

A Chunk Of Change...

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 When I get an e-mail from the amazing Emma Woodhouse of The Wedding Reporter with just the word...

"THIS!!"

... followed by a blog post, then I know this is something I want to read. And Emma wasn't wrong to recommend this great post by Seth Godin.

 I absolutely love the sentiment in this post and agree wholeheartedly with the idea that something we should all be doing is giving others confidence to change - whether it's inspiring them to follow their passions or just helping them to try a little new thing. The unknown can be scary and the untried can be terrifying but with someone on your side, someone to emulate or someone to take heart from, anything is possible.

Over the last few weeks, and at the risk of sounding like a complete lovey, I've been changed, inspired and spurred on by others who overflow with passion and encouraged by their confidence. Those huge things I thought I wouldn't do or couldn't do suddenly become smaller things I'm keen to try when a fraction of their confidence finds its way to me. Conversely, I've had conversation with clients and potential clients in the last week where I hope some of my certainty has been transferred to them and given them the belief and conviction to move ahead with plans or to take a chance on ideas.

Nothing is supposed to stay the same, change is necessary, inevitable and nothing to be scared of. Change should be embraced.

And if you've got someone at your side to give you a little hug and to deliver that injection of support to get you through it, so much the better. Who knows how we might all be able to help each other?

Decisions, decisions...

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Something I never fail to appreciate about working for yourself, and working with people who more often than not work for themselves, is relative simplicity of making decisions.

Yes, yes, I know that sometimes we are all crippled with indecision, we slump helplessly over our laptops, not sure what to do or how to do it and sometimes we can keep ourselves awake into the wee small hours biting our nails and tearing our hair out trying to decide what to do.

But, all of those (minor) inconveniences aside, once we'd made the decision, we're able to get things going and my goodness, this is something to thank your lucky stars about every day.

This ability to make a decision and just get on with it is, in my humble opinion, one of the things that makes the wedding industry so special. It allows us to be creative, to get things moving, to strike up the band and dance to our own tune. We can set the pace and set the agenda. It's a huge privilege and it allows us to get things moving in a light-on-our-feet, speedy-minded way that is really rather special.

This was bought home to me so many times last week. Firstly, I had a lovely trip down to Bristol for the launch of Little Wedding Space. This pop-up, powered by Kirsten of Little Wedding Helper and photographer Ruth Garner is the perfect illustration of my point. Kirsten & Ruth had the idea for a wedding pop-up to showcase the work of a fabulous group of wedding suppliers and they just got on with it. From first tiny thought to opening night in the blink of an eye. No papers to present to the board, no endless e-mail trails between endless departments with everyone adding their two penceworth whether or not they understand what they're talking about and no interminable meetings full of bluster and other things beginning with b.

Maybe this is why some traditional businesses feel threatened by us agile little up-starts, maybe its something to do with the fact that we can speak our minds or that we don't have the 'rules' of big business to work around. Yes, sometimes being the accounts department, the marketing department, the receptionist, the officer manager and the cleaner can be tough but flipping heck, the benefits of being able to call the shots are huge and please please please never forget them.

We make the decisions, we get things moving, we can work with people we want to work with in ways that suit us. We get to hang out with wonderful people, we get to try new things and turn seemingly impossible plans into real things in the blink of an eye. We are professional but human at the same time. We haven't lost ourselves behind corporate facades and we can be silly, funny, kind and caring whilst still knocking out top-notch, amazing work.

The hours can be long, the annual leave allowance can be non-existent, there are no dress-down Fridays or bake-sales in reception. There's no safe salary or Christmas bonus but we have something far more valuable.

We have the ability to make our own decisions and go in our own direction. And my goodness, you can't put a price on that.

Goals & Your Fingertips...

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So yesterday, I spent the morning at my son's prospective senior school. He loved it, I loved it, it was such a hit even my step-daughter is now considering moving there for 'A' levels.

Aside from the location, the staff, the students and all the quirky fabulousness of this school by the river with more than a hint of Hogwarts about it, the Headmaster just rocks.

I know, I know, an odd thing to say about a head of school but his speech that opened the morning was really rather good. So good in fact that I found myself nodding along like a groupie at a cult meeting.

But, frankly, if you're going to worship at the altar of thoughts and ideas, you might as well make them good ones and these were gold. So gleamingly, gorgeously gold that I'm going to re-hash them here...

The first thing that really struck home was this Head's comment of "if you didn't feel a buzz about the place when you drove up the drive, then we're probably not for you." A bit of a ballsy comment but I loved it and the same is true of true of wedding businesses and clients. Like over-protective parents who visit endless numbers of schools in the hope of finding the perfect place for their dear darling off-spring, brides and grooms spend substantial amounts of time visiting venues, meeting suppliers and hunting for that perfect partnership. We know what this head knows - sometimes, you just don't click and do you know what? That's fine. We're not supposed to get on with everyone, we're not supposed to change ourselves, our pricing our offering or our style just to fit in with every client. If they don't 'get' us, that's ok.

Secondly, this Head doesn't just want to do a job, he wants to make a difference. He shared a story of a high achiever who got great grades in his GCSEs but was more than a little miffed not to be offered a place for 'A' levels. Why not I hear you cry? Because the school had tried to connect with him, tried to engage with him and nothing. So they didn't feel they were making a difference to this pupil and sent him off into the world to find another place that might. And we want this from our wedding clients too. We want to leave at the end of the day having made a difference. Who wants to slide through an average life adding nothing but average value? No, we want to make a difference and if we don't think we are or if we don't think we can, we should step away.

There was also talk of pushing yourself, of trying new things, of embracing new ideas and keeping your eye on the end game. Do you want to make more money, attract more clients, attract different clients, be more creative, diversify, expand or grow and sell? What is it that you want and does what you do help you take steps to get there?

But the thing that stuck in my head, the words that made my ears prick up in happiness and my soul sing a little with the beauty of the expression was the phrase...

"Your goals should be the ones you can just get hold of with the very tips of your fingers."

The visions in my head instantly had me reaching upwards to the shelf that's always just out of reach. You know, the shelf where the treats and the good stuff are always hidden. My fingertips can just touch something and I know it's great, I know I want it but it's just out of reach. All I have to do is figure out how to get there and what I need to do to just lever myself up that little bit more, to rise up and take it. No, I can't grab it straight away, I need to work a bit, strive a bit, try a bit and push myself more than a little bit. And then I'm there.

Because when you know what you're working for is worth it, and it's something you want above the average stuff on the shelf below, then reach up as far as you can and just get your fingertips on something wonderful.

Then don't let go.

You Know What? You've Changed...

This week has been rather revealing.

When I was a teenager, I wasn't the girlie girl. When everyone else was learning how to apply their make-up and paint their nails, I was watching Formula 1 and stomping about in boots and camouflage gear at my local Air Cadet squadron. In my early twenties, I ditched the boots, went to work, dressed up, loved it and found my feminine side (it wasn't a total transformation - the hair was still super short!). I had a few failed and very splodgy attempts at painting my nails which all ended badly, messily and with my nails remaining plain and embarrassingly naked. So, for over a decade (yes, I'm that old), I've limited my varnishing efforts to my toes where any blobs and blemishes aren't so noticeable.

However, over the last few weeks, I've been gazing covetously at a parade of perfectly painted fingernails at meetings and photo-shoots and was inspired to pick up my little pot of 'Double Decker Red' and face down my fingernail nemesis.

And, do you know something? I managed a very acceptable manicure. I got carried away. I bought more colours and am now altering the hue of my fingers every couple of days. I love it - it's some me time, it makes me smile and I'm getting a bit better with every swish of the brush.

Because, I'm not the same person I was in my twenties and earlier. I still love Formula 1 but I can now walk in high heels, be trusted with a set of keys, cook a roast dinner, book my car into a garage and manage hundreds of little things I couldn't back in my youth.

So it's odd that a few of those "I can't do that..." limiting beliefs stick with us and continue to cripple us for a long time past their sell by date. Now, my life wouldn't have stalled seriously if I hasn't managed to coat my nail in a gorgeous coat of 'Coralicious' last night but the thing is, these limiting beliefs aren't often as innocent.

How many of us say to ourselves "I can't do that..." about things relating to our businesses? How many opportunities have we let slip by because we "can't do that"? I bet it's a lot of us.

But, the thing is, we're telling ourselves the wrong thing. Instead of "I can't do that...", we should be saying "I've not been able to do that before". Then we should absolutely get up and give it another try. Don't simply turn things away or shake your head sadly because "you can't do that" without seeing if you can. Try doing the thing you think is beyond you. Give it a go, give it your best shot. But, it's that voice in your head isn't it? The one that shouts so loudly at you not to bother because you've never done this before so surely it's pointless to even try now, right? Right?

Wrong. So wrong, it's almost off the scale of wrongness. Because do you know what? You've changed...

The Papergirls PR Masterclass - I'm Still Buzzing!

Welcome to The Papergirls PR Masterclass!

Just before I went on holiday, my phone rang and the really rather fabulous Abigail Warner was on the line, asking if I'd like to co-host The Papergirls PR Masterclass that was held at Cockpit Arts, London, on Thursday 5th September.

Now, I never need asking twice to try something new, work with great people and get out and about so of course, my answer to Abigail was "oh yes please!"

So, last Thursday found me playing commuter and heading to London in the sunshine for the workshop, clutching goodies, handouts, notes and more. And, it was a brilliant day with Abigail and fellow Papergirl, Lucy Ledger, gathering a great group of women together.

Firstly, Cockpit Arts is a great venue. Just walking to the light, cool room we'd be in for the day, you walk past all these amazing little workshops, full of designers, artists, craftspeople and creative geniuses. Frankly, I could have spent all day peeping through windows and seeing what was going on.

However, let's get down to the business at hand because we covered lots of ground. We talked PR basics, practicalities, ideas, case studies and peppered the conversation with tips, examples and lots of insider information. We discussed strategy, media outlets, hooks, research, social media, business stakeholders, events, new releases, pitches, toolkits, images and One Direction (yes, really!). It was great and, as someone who only got a D in GCSE Art, I was totally inspired (and slightly frustrated at my own inability to even draw a tree) by being around the wonderful designers and creatives that attended the day.

Abigail & Lucy had also invited some brilliant guest speakers for the afternoon session including Charley from London Bride and Helen from Cutture to give their take on business. So much to take in and so much to take away - I'm absolutely in awe of the things people achieve, the risks they take that pay off and the deep love that others have for their businesses. How can you not be fired up after such a great big injection of passion?

And do you know why workshops and sessions like this are, I think, quite essential sometimes? Well, aside from topping you up with ideas, getting you out from your own little business bubble and opening you up to different ideas and possibilities, you should never stop learning. Imagining that you know everything there is to know and you are perfect, infallible and so flipping wonderful that you can't possibly pick up anything new from anyone, is fatal.

But, happily, my Thursday was full of learning and brain-opening revelations and, judging by some of the messages I've received from those who were there since, I think everyone who attended took lots away from this wonderful day...

"Thank you so much for your time, knowledge and kindness. I learned so much!" 

Suzanne from Pretty Wild Design

"Thank you for today Tamryn. You were so inspiring and informative." 

Tamsin from Studio Seed

"Lovely to meet you today. Feeling very inspired... you've galvanised me into action!" 

Jo from Lovehair

Thanks so much to Abigail & Lucy for inviting me to be part of the day. I loved every minute of it. Can't wait to be a Papergirl again xx

A Candid Newsflash!

Well, I'm back from holiday and have returned to my desk to the lovely news that I've been granted Member status of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations - whoop whoop and a big hurrah! Just call me Tamryn Lawrence MCIPR from now on...

The CIPR has various grades of membership and, should you wish, you can find out more about the experience required for the different levels here.

Anyway, we're very proud and really rather chuffed that Candid Apple is going from strength to strength - look out for lots of more fabulous newsflashes over the coming months because there's plenty of wonderful news to come...

Trouble? What Trouble?

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Today is the 101st anniversary of the birth of the legendary, fabulous and butter-loving cooking heroine that is Julia Child. If you're not familiar with her story, I literally go down on my hands and knees to implore you to read her wonderful My Life In France. Even if you're not a foodie, Julia's love of life, her tenacity and her passion ooze out of the pages like cream from an eclair - as a book, it's a treat beyond compare.

So it seems appropriate to use a quote from the great Ms Child to illustrate today's point and my goodness, this is a corker of a quote.

Because, in the style of her incredible Boeuf Bourguignon recipe, this is absolutely spot on and she's right - nothing is too much trouble if it turns out the way it should.

This is why countless numbers of brides spend hours planning, crafting and arranging their wedding day. Yes, it might be easy to scoff at the seemingly excessive and obsessive effort but when it turns out well, really, what's to regret?

So, unsurprisingly, the same is true of our business endeavours. We can spend hours crafting plans, designing details, checking actions off lists and arranging (and attending) meetings, catch-ups and get-togethers. We can work long, odd or downright crazy hours. But, it's worth it in the end. It's worth it because we're heading in our own direction, we're steering our own ship towards our destination and my goodness, we're doing it our way.

Over the last few weeks, I have got in touch or met up with and fallen a little bit in love with some really amazing women. They're smart, strong, savvy people putting in effort beyond imagining and it's been flipping wonderful to spend time with them all. They all have projects on the go, ideas in mind and plans afoot that make them work harder and drive them forwards. Because, as Julia said and as we all know, nothing's too much trouble when it's going to be worth it.

And perhaps that's the lesson here. We can drive ourselves on and achieve amazing things when what we're aiming for is something we know to be right and wonderful. Like a bride planning her wedding to the man she loves, we need to check that our goals are the ones that really inspire us, that they're the ones that fire us up with belief and light us up in a way that can't be ignored.

Because, as the great Julia also said... "Life itself is the proper binge" so ditch half measures, restraint and moderation and just go for it. It'll be worth it in the end.

Be A Bit Brave...

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A short post for a Sunday evening (who wants to concentrate too much tonight?) but I wanted to just share this little story and the quote on this image seems so appropriate.

When I started my wedding planning business a whole decade ago, I guess I was a little bit brave. I took that leap, I plunged on in and I didn't sink. Yes, sometimes the water was a bit choppy but I met marvellous people, I went to fabulous places and I got to do things I never thought I would do. Did I think I'd end up on TV? No. Did I think I'd win awards, publish books and be asked to be godparent to one of my bride's children? No. But I went with it, tried new things, pushed myself and it all paid off.

Sometimes, you just have to be brave.

But last night, I met up with a truly fabulous wedding professional. I've wanted to meet her for ages, I love her style, her personality and I was so excited to finally get together. And I wasn't disappointed - she was amazing, everything I thought she would be and more.

We were talking, chatting, about weddings, business and everything else and then, from her bag, she produces a copy of one of my old company brochures from 2007.

And this, she said, was what gave her the courage to believe in her business idea. If I was doing it, she could too.

I cannot begin to describe how this made me feel. Honoured, humble, happy and proud. So flipping proud that I'd given someone else a little boost of bravery that set them off on the road to something amazing. It's a remarkable feeling, something so incredibly special, something I want to bottle and keep forever.

So be brave. You'll never regret it.

How Many Sides have You Got?

One of my 'sides' - fundraiser for Hounds For Heroes

One of the things I enjoy most about my job is finding out more about the people I work with and the people that I come into contact with. Yes, we all usually have weddings as a large part of our make-up but there's more to us all than that.

Hobbies, interests, passions, likes - they all come together to make us, well, us and it's always really interesting to see these wonderful wedding professionals as multi-dimensional, multi-faceted people that have so much more experience and knowledge than is often seen and we bring all of this to our work life too. We don't switch off between places - what we learn in one part of our life comes with us to another. All experiences, good and bad stay with us. So it's important to get a grip of this. How can you hope to get the best out of people when you only know a tiny part of what makes them tick?

It's quite often the things that sit behind the work facade that provide the depth to the person. Yes, we love our jobs and we're passionate about them but they're not 'the whole us'. There's more to be seen, there's more to find out and there's more to understand.

So, have a think - what do you bring to your work party? What comes with you to work from the rest of your life? What experiences have you had that might be holding you back? What are your private 'best bits' that could be used to get your professional life moving? What do you have that sets you apart from everyone else?

Because ultimately, that's what we're looking for - those oh-so special bits of you that no-one else has. You're always going to have competitors (and imitators too if you're unlucky/so good that people can't help but copy) but what no-one else can ever have is your unique mix of life experiences and your approach to your life. And I mean your whole life, not just work, not just your non-work life, the whole crazy, special mix. This is why 'behind the scenes' tweets are so popular and why personal snapshots and insights into our wider lives work so well with clients - because we show ourselves as real people, not simply as wedding automatons.

In an industry where clients buy into people, into personalities they trust, don't you think it's really important to know who you are? Because until you know who you are, how can you even begin to standout?

My New Favourite Word...

Last Friday, my son's school held its annual Speech Day. I love Speech Day as it's a wonderful opportunity to see all the work the children have put in through the year, there are performances from the choirs and orchestras, the parents all dress up (ooo, get me!) and there's tea and cakes in the quad. But, undoubtedly, the main purpose of Speech Day is, well, the speeches.

Aside from children being given prizes, the Headmaster giving the highlights of the year and some of the 13 year old Leavers giving speeches, there's always a guest speaker, a head from another school and this year, the guest of honour was Thomas Garnier from Pangbourne College.

And his speech was fifteen minutes of fantastic.

Encouraging the children to 'live life like a Labrador puppy', he talked about the three qualities that make Labradors so great - they're curious, they spread joy and they're wholehearted.

Now, you might know I have a Labrador myself so this was bound to connect with me but it was that last word, wholehearted, that really struck a cord and is indeed, my new favourite word.

I am so happy to work with a group of fabulous wedding professionals, all of whom are completely wholehearted about what they do. They love their work and they are utterly committed to doing something special, something different, something amazing and they all do it wholeheartedly.

You see, we all want to see passion in others. We are enthused, motivated and inspired when we are in the company of people who love what they do and who throw themselves completely into their work, their hobbies or their projects.

By being wholehearted, not only do we act like lovely little radiators to others, warming them up and sharing our dedication and enjoyment with them but we allow ourselves to be happy. If you're secretly (or not so secretly) resenting what you're doing, it's pretty impossible to be happy with your lot. Yes, we've all got those ever-present things on the to-do list that we don't enjoy but it's important to keep an eye on the bigger picture and getting those tiny tasks off the list frees us to get on with the things that really push our buttons.

Look at the dictionary definition above. Aren't those all the things you'd want to see in your colleagues and aren't they also the things your clients want to see in you? Being wholehearted seems like a bit of a business imperative doesn't it?

We all need a little reminder every now and again of the things that are really important, the things that make us stand out and the things that make us us. And we need to remember, in the middle of wedding crazy season when the days are long and the working day seems longer, why we love what we do and why we're all really rather lucky to be able to do it. Let's throw ourselves into the opportunities of every day rather than dancing around on the sidelines, hoping to be picked for the team.

So perhaps wholehearted might be a word to remember for us all...

16th June 2013 - The Week That Was

Firstly, happy Father's Day to all the Dads out there - hope you've all been suitably treated all day. Secondly, I am sure that days are no longer 24 hours long because there is no way that we can be at Sunday again.

But then, it's been a packed out week, a real tale of two halves - flat out work or out and about fun. And it's been a great week, lots has been achieved and lots of things that have been on my list for a while have been happily (and in some cases, smugly) ticked off. So, here's a little run-down of what's been going on here...

• A 'happy anniversary' for Mr Apple & I - a day out with a little bit of history and, last night, a dinner for two at the rather beautiful Sir Charles Napier in Oxfordshire which might be my new favourite place.
• Son's school Summer picnic - a day of fun, games, food & ice cream.
• Trying to shake the grey weather with some summer weather clothes shopping whilst looking forward to our sunny summer getaway.
• Talking to some lovely journalists about some great projects & features.
• Writing writing writing. Lots.
• Realising I probably enjoy filing and organising a little more than is good for me. Nothing like a well ordered client file to make me happy.
• An invitation to a rather great summer party. Obviously said invitation came with an obligatory wardrobe crisis.
• Having a bit of a re-invigoration of my office space. A tidy and a few nice new bits on order should all help - just need some better weather so my workroom is less fridge-esque and more warm & welcoming.
• Indulging with some 'me' time - thanks to the Clarins Spa girls at John Lewis Reading.
• Starting work with a beautiful new client.

9th June 2013 - The Week That Was

My goodness me, here I am on a Sunday again. It's been a while since I wrote one of these posts and I've missed them but everything has been so busy busy busy here, it's unbelievable. I am loving my life at the moment - refreshed after a holiday, wonderful clients who make me smile every day and lots of other brilliant bits all combine to make me very very grateful. Plus, it's even been a bit warm and a bit sunny. The words 'falling into place' and 'everything' spring to mind.

So, without further ado, here's the week that was...

• A brilliant day with my son at England v New Zealand cricket. I absolutely couldn't have asked for a better day.
• Analysing a survey I'm managing for a client and being incredibly happy with the results.
• An afternoon in the son watching Son play a great school cricket match.
• Gundog training with my beautiful dog and feeling like things are starting to click.
• The most amazing meeting in London with two inspiring, fantastic women and new projects on the horizon.
• A trip to Winchester, great shopping and a lovely lunch.
• Being inspired to revive an old book project, give it another go and being blown away by the response.
• Son writing his first blog post and getting great feedback.
• Sunny days in the garden, beavering away and peering vaguely at my laptop's screen but not caring because, finally, the sun is out!
• A blog I wrote about a charity 60km walk I took part in being used by the organisers to promote next year's event.
• Our local village carnival in the sunshine.
• Remembering my Grandad on the 69th anniversary of D-Day and loving the DDay7 tweets.
• Indulging my Mitford addiction by reading Diana's autobiography.
• Feeling like the work I'm doing for clients is making a real difference for them.
• A bit of 'me' time with some magazines and a cuppa. It's the simple things.

Instantly & Individual - Instagram

Hello again you lovely readers and we know it's been a while since we last posted but my goodness, we've been as busy as bees, beavers and other industrious animals. Some wonderful new clients we might just be a bit in love with, writing projects, meetings, charity work and of course, we've been trying to have a bit of downtime somewhere in there too.

Anyway, we promise, hand on heart, not to leave you for so long again. But we wanted to just remind you that you can always find Candid Apple on Twitter and we're big fans of Instagram too where you can follow us too - Candid Apple. Go on, we'd love it if you did.

There's something so lovely about sharing images - an image can tell many tales and give a wonderful behind-the-scenes look at life. It's also quick and easy which probably explains why we've been using it so much recently!

Instagram works perfectly for everyone in the wedding industry. We all love a bit of the pretty or a glimpse at new, unusual or personal things. We're generally quite visual people with a strong sense of what we like and what appeals. We also love to share and to connect and we love to be ourselves. As full-on wedding season approaches, Instagram is a great way to stay connected with clients, to inspire them and to stay social without having to write blogs or tie yourself up in tweets.

So, if you've not been following us on Instagram, here's a little snapshot (see what we did there?!) of our last few weeks...

We use the 'Fancy Frame' app to create these images.

On the Hounds For Heroes walk for this great charity

There were new dogs in the family too

Out for a walk when visiting family in Sussex - love this view

Meetings in London always lead to the purchase of treats!

We really do love bluebells

The app from 'A Beautiful Mess' lets you pimp your pics!

A 60km walk for Hounds For Heroes - read more here

21st April - The Week That Was

Firstly, huge apologies for not posting anything this week - I can't tell you how full the days have been but I promise normal service will be resumed next week when school is back in session and there's slightly less juggling to do to squeeze everything in. Anyway, here is, as usual, the round-up of my last seven days and fingers crossed for beautiful weather because I love the feeling that warmth, sun and summer days are just hiding around the corner.

• My gorgeous Mum's birthday complete with gifts and afternoon tea under blue skies at the rather beautiful Danesfield House.
• Having my first session with my dog and the fabulous trainer Sarah Miles. The blog post I wrote about it came from the heart - it was an amazing experience.
• Meeting a truly lovely woman this week - someone I know I'm going to just love working with.
• Writing writing writing - from real weddings for Love Scarlett through to summer holiday activities for families with their dogs!
• Dinner with Mr Apple at one of our favourite places and loving the drive there in the evening sunlight.
• Having my heart touched by the story of Shilton the dog, tied to a fence with horrid injuries and left to die. Happily within a few days of her story being mad public, enough money had been donated for Shilton to have her operation and for another dog at the animal sanctuary to have eye surgery too. Faith in human nature - restored.
• Watching son at cricket coaching and being amazed by him. Bring on the matches (and the teas!).
• Decamping to the garden and working there. What's not to love about that?
• Planning a big piece of work and getting that wonderfully smiling feeling that swamps you when you're just so excited.
• Indulging myself with re-reading an old favourite - 'Frenchman's Creek' by Daphne Du Maurier.
• Having lots of incredible things to look forward to over the coming weeks and being happy to wake up every day.

I just love this pic of my son and I

20 degrees?! Can that really be right?!

She's smiling at me!

It's All About The Money Money Money

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This image seems particularly appropriate today after I read a piece in Business Money Magazine saying that 1 in 10 SMEs are owed around £50,000 in late payments.

Apparently, around £30.2bn is owed in late payments in the UK and small businesses seem to be being hit the hardest.

Most small business owners report that large companies frequently ignore payment terms and basically pay up when they're good and ready, banking on the fact that small businesses are unlikely to have the staff or money to spend chasing for payments.

And it's having a huge impact - 23% of companies report that they're concerned about the impact that late payments will have on their business.

It sucks. Totally.

How many of us have been in the position of having done some work, submitted the invoice with payment terms on only to have it ignored? How many of us have been given the "we can't find your purchase order" or "we don't have your payment details" excuses despite the fact that we've got copies of paperwork clearly showing all of this?

So, here are a few tips to help you get your money:

1. Include your bank details and payment terms on every invoice that you submit and make sure they're so clear no-one could miss them. Also include the date as clearly as possible.
2. Submit invoices to a named person, not a general 'invoices@' account. Always get a read receipt or call to confirm all is ok.
3. Start chasing for payment the minute a payment deadline is missed.
4. Try and keep payment terms down - 7 or 14 days is way better than 30 days (which can then stretch to 50 or 60 before you finally see your money).
5. Be polite but firm. Ask for a date when the payment will be made and be prepared for all the old "you've missed the payment run" or "the person needed to sign off your invoice isn't in this week". Keep on asking for a date.
6. A good first step for an overdue invoice is a statement - it list the invoice number/s outstanding and amounts. It allows a company to highlight any genuine issues to you and it makes you look professional.
7. If you get the 'cheque is in the post' excuse ask for the date of the cheque, the cheque number and the address to which it was posted. 
8. Keep dated notes of everything you've submitted, asked and been told should anything be needed further down the line.
9. Keep your focus on the accounts department for payment - it limits the chances of souring the relationship with the people you've been working for but if you're really not getting anywhere, go back to your original client.
10. If it comes to it, don't be afraid to use the law - it's there to protect you, not them.

You deserve to get your money because [hair toss moment] you're worth it.

Summer Special 2 - Fab Follow-Ups

So, with wedding season upon us, wedding fair season is pretty much behind us. And how was it for you? Lots of enquiries? Lots of contacts? Lots of requests for information?

Today's Summer Special is designed to help you make the most of your information and your investment.

We'll design a brilliant, interesting and attention-grabbing follow-up schedule for you so you can work those contacts and make the most of those enquiries. We know finding the time to send just one follow up to everyone who left their details can be hard but did you know that some experts say you should aim to follow up for at least a year. Yes, that's right - a whole year of follow-ups.

And you know that makes sense - not everyone books everything for their wedding straight after attending a wedding fair or exhibition. So you need to follow up, stay in touch and keep your brand at the forefront of your potential client's minds.

• If you'd like us to just review your schedule and come up with a plan including ideas and incentives for you, our Summer Special offer is a very budget-friendly £25.
• If you'd like us to write some sparkling copy for you, it's £15 per message (to a maximum of 500 words).

As with our Brilliant Blogs offer, we've got limited space in our diary so e-mail thecandidapple@gmail.com and let's get started.

When you've invested all that money in attending a fair, you also need to invest in following up your leads.

Summer Special 1 - Brilliant Blogs

Here's the first of our Summer Specials and it's a great offer for all you wedding professionals who know that  regular, new and engaging blogs are a great way to drive traffic to your site, demonstrate your expertise to your audience and build a great on-line community of supporters for your product or service.

Finding the time to keep writing over the busy summer months can be tricky - with weddings to attend, meetings with clients, family commitments and everything else, it can be tough to find the time to sit down and type. You might not even find writing terribly easy or you might suffer from the odd burst of writer's block. Whatever the reason, can you afford to neglect your blog?

So, let us help you with some bright and breezy blog posts. Here's what you get:

• A post written just for you - you can either give us the title or let us make some suggestions.
• Up to 500 words of copy, delivered to you as a Word ready for you to style and upload when you want.
• If there's specific messages, offers or information you want included, just let us know.
• Total flexibility - book as many as you want to really get your blog moving or just request a couple of posts to make sure you've got plenty of content to get you through a really busy period.
• Each post costs just £10.

We've only got so much space in our diary from now until the end of August so if you'd like to book in, e-mail us now to reserve your slots - thecandidapple@gmail.com We'll send you the necessary booking form and payment can be made either by cheque, bank transfer or PayPal.

Shhh, don't tell everyone but we might have put a special offer on our Facebook page for those extra lovely people that 'like' us there...

Summer Specials - Starting Thursday 4th April

Another quick post this morning to announce that as of tomorrow, Candid Apple are launching the first of our Summer Specials...

What are Summer Specials I hear you ask? Well, we've been speaking with our lovely clients and other wedding professionals over the past few weeks to find out what help they'd like from us over the coming months and it seems like there are certain things lots of you would like. Things that it can be really hard to find the time for over the busy busy summer months but things that are oh-so essential.

So, we've put together some special offers to help. To help you keep on growing your business while you're out making wedding days wonderful for your clients, to help you keep up all the momentum you've built over the winter months and, most importantly, to help you keep some balance over the crazy summer.

The first Summer Special will be launched tomorrow morning - here on the blog and on our Facebook page. We'll be adding special discounts and promotions for all our Summer Specials on Facebook too so make sure you 'Like' us now (because you're going to love us for the Summer Specials, that's for sure!)

Summer 2013 - it's going to be a good one.

And Relaxxxxxxx - Thoughts On Downtime

With the long Easter weekend almost upon us, I'm sure there are plenty of wedding professionals out there experiencing that state of perpetual confusion experienced by many of us - whether to work or to take some time out.

When you run your own business, there's no 'home time', there's no-one from HR e-mailing you with your annual leave entitlement form and, quite crucially, there's no-one from Finance merrily paying money into your bank account every month.

It's all you. You are responsible for everything.

And 'everything' takes a lot of time. It takes a huge amount of time and then of course, there are the weddings themselves. Long, busy, hard days that are absolutely full of joy but, because we tend to love our clients and want to give them the best, they require total concentration and commitment and that's tiring

Then, when you're back from the wedding, the usual schedule of work at HQ tends to continue straight away. Downtime is rare. There's also the pressing need to 'get yourself out there' - to blog, to tweet, to Instagram, to Pin, to promote, to plan, to network and to build a personality and a brand. It can feel like a merry-go-round that spins a little too quickly and never stops.

But, there's plenty of research that says this continual need to be in the thick of it is totally counter-productive. That we should be contactable but not permanently available, that we should keep stuff back and not share everything, that we should actually do less if we want to do better. Being addicted to work and always being on call might be more socially acceptable than necking a bottle of vodka every day but it can still be incredibly damaging.

As a wise-man once wrote - "You'll never ever get everything done so stop worrying about it." And he's right. We are the ones that make everything on our schedule seem so gut-bustingly important. Perhaps we like to play the in-demand, always busy, bordering-on-being-an-inhumanly-amazing person. But really, didn't most of us get into working for ourselves so we didn't have to be a slave to anyone, let alone to ourselves?

And the thing is, when we whip ourselves into the fakey frenzy of imagined emergencies, we quite often do silly things - whether it's making a crazy decision or snapping at someone who didn't deserve it. Slowing down makes everything better and when you're in a better state, you do better work, you are a more attractive person to be around, you're rested, positive and less resentful of everything and everyone that's taking up your time. Which they're not, by the way. You're allowing them to take your time and your energy.

So, this weekend, give any of the following a try...

1. Have a little think back on the year so far. As my wise man said "reflection is one of the most underused yet most powerful tool for success." What's worked? What's gone well? What can you make better? 
2. Practice stepping away from your phone/laptop/iPad for a little while. Give your time to your family and friends, the people who are there with you. Share real things with them. In researching this piece, I read an article where the author called our love of social media "the e-leash" which is pretty accurate.
3.  Jump around a bit. Oh yes, this one works wonderfully. When you're getting sucked into something, make a conscious decision to jump around. On the spot, up and down for a minute or so. This has lots of benefits - it 'breaks' our state, it will usually make you smile and that little break is often enough to give you time to work out if you really need to go back to doing what you were doing.
4. Write down who you are without mentioning anything about your work. It's great to love what you do but you're more than that right? Just remind yourself about the rest of you.
5. Make a memory. Do something this weekend that you'll remember for a long time and even better, share it with someone else. 

So, even though it feels like you might not have time to relax, I bet you can find find some time this weekend to do just that. You just have to prioritise and surely, when you're the one that everything rests on, you're the one that needs to be in good shape so taking some time out is pretty damn important really. 

Have a great Easter weekend, eat chocolate, do things to make yourself happy, take a break and we'll see you on the flip-side...

If, in best BBC voiceover styleee, you've been affected by any of the issues in today's piece, you might like to take a look at the following links - Are You A Workaholic?, Workaholic, Understanding The Dynamics of Workaholism. Or, shut your laptop off and go and talk to someone.