One of the things I love about entrepreneurship, and hate in equal measure, is the unexpected surprises.

Surprises can be nice. They can also be like getting the shits, unannounced, no warning, and utterly ruinous for the rest of your day.

That's the life of the serial entrepreneur. We face more surprises than any other demographic known to man, the good ones and the damn right awful ones, and over time you learn to embrace them like making a cup of tea. We are the stoics.

This week, a good one came knocking.

I was at a friend's 40th birthday this weekend and got chatting to another friend who's just taken over the management of a local pub.

What first looked like a crown has quickly become a heavy burden.

He knows I've learned one or two things about business over the years, so it wasn't long before he said:

"James, we turn over so much money, and we just give it all to the Government."

Welcome to trading in Britain in 2026.

I think the overwhelming battle we all have with our own mind is what separates those who make it in life from those who really make it.

I'm not talking about simply getting by or settling for mediocre success.

I'm talking about proper success. A life where people genuinely love and respect you, where you've made a positive impact, and where you've built serious wealth too.

It's just you versus your brain every single day.

Weird thing happened this week.

I was in two meetings, both with banks.

Both meetings were… easy and the mood was different to these right fisted money hoarders.

Why?

Because the banks wanted to lend and on more attractive terms.

Bank managers are naturally cautious, but this felt different.

Too much Toy Story? Maybe. But I get the temptation, read on comrade’s.

Did you know that around 80% of all ice cream sold in the UK is one flavour?

Sherlock Holmes isn’t needed for this one.

You’ve guessed it, soldier.

It’s Vanilla.

Sometimes success takes less than ten years. Most of the time, it’s a marathon.

If you want more from life, business or yourself, you’ll often be handed bad news. Reframe it immediately. You won’t be handed bad news, you’ll be handed challenges.

That’s it. Another trip around the sun.

It was my birthday yesterday.

I’m now 41, and like every year I get older, I think about what I’m done with.

I’ll tell you what I get better and better at… my ability to not give a nanosecond to being anything but unapologetically me.

Do you know what drives me absolutely crackers?

Barriers to growth.

In my experience, most barriers to growth fall into three constraints:

• Capital

• Talent

• You, the leader

We’ve discussed these plenty of times in this newsletter.

The good news is that you can do something about all three.

People say “the harder you work, the luckier you get”. But I prefer this:

When opportunity meets those who are well prepared, fireworks happen.

Lady Luck wanders into our lives every now and then.

A chance meeting.
A change in government policy.
The contract you always wanted.
The deal of deals.

Or my favourite, someone believing in you enough to take a punt.

This week, I’ve felt luckier than I have in a year.

If you want to make more profit, you’ll be tempted to turn over a few stones.

I’d guess you’d be looking at these stones:

Stone number 1: Increase sales.

Stone number 2: Decrease costs.

Stone number 3: Get a salesperson.

Stone number 4: Efficiency and operational improvements.

But the stone that needs turning the most is the manager stone.

Suppose you make the decision to employ someone.

Just one person.

Not your wife for tax reasons. An actual employee.

Straight away, you move into a very small percentage of people in the UK.

There are around 4.3 million businesses in Britain with zero employees.

Only around 1.4 million businesses employ anyone at all.

Then it gets even crazier.

£150k for this, £350k for that, £2m for Mrs Reeves and some other turnover tax that’s been rustled up because our government thinks it can spend our money better than we can.

Drives me potty. 

If unwelcome fireworks weren’t raining over the UAE I can’t help but ponder the occasional thought to my chums who have moved there and are frankly loving it. 

That’s my brain every single day. An entrepreneur in growth mode is always optimising cash.

Growing a company taxes you far more than money.

I’ll be honest with you.

I have the “how about f—k off” days. 

I do have moments of quiet contemplation. More so than ever recently.

I have been under colossal pressure of late. I feel that by telling you, it helps people realise that no matter the size of your empire - big or small, you can still feel it.

Here’s three things you need if you want to build a behemoth.

Miss one, and it doesn’t work.

Not good. Not above average.

Exceptional.

There’s no silver or bronze here. You’re going for gold.

It comes down to three things:

Models. Managers. Marketing.

Dissatisfaction is what haunts most entrepreneurs.

I’m constantly disappointed in my achievements - I think I can do better. It drives me. 

The last year has been particularly tough for me. I’ve shared a lot of it here with you lot. Overheads, deals that didn’t land right, fallouts that have cost me.

I tell you this because no one has it perfect.

It’s a life of service. That’s the entrepreneur’s life.

One day, a few of you will get a liquidity event. A reward. A brief moment of calm… before you go again. Or die. Many of you will see death as the end. 

Putting our trotters up is not really how we roll. 

You always feel like you’re nearly there. And “nearly there” is what keeps you in the game.

Optimus is what got us going. Bundles of of it. 

Because deep down, you’re not doing it for money. It’s a calling, not a wealth grab.

This weekend, I stepped aboard my camper van and criss-crossed the country on a quest for knowledge and deals, learning from other folk’s 10,000 hours of mastery.

Not just any folk. Folk like us. At it. Learning their craft. In many cases, professors of entrepreneurship.

They’ve got the T-shirt and the flipping fridge magnet.

When can you charge more and people have to pay up? 

This weekend I have two tales to tell. 

I cooked this Sunday. I love cooking.

We needed some essentials as we were a tad bare at home. Family vote… spag bol it was.

It’s been a while since I’ve whizzed around a proper supermarket. Forgot the bags as well, so I was in for a rip-off. 40p a bag now.

For a moment, checking a few aisle prices, I thought I’d walked into Fortnum & Mason or Harrods.

Remember last week?  I shared the story of David, who sadly passed away surrounded by his family.

I wrote a few words about his wonderful outlook on life.

It made me think: why are so many people miserable and dissatisfied with where they’re at? 

The answer to that conundrum….

They major in the minor things.

On Sunday I found out that an old friend was in his final moments. This wonderful chap lives in Cornwall.

I spoke to him on Sunday and he said, “I’d like to shake your hand one last time.”

So I got in my camper van and started the drive.