* Why is Well House Consultants what it is today?

* Where are we headed, and why?

* How do we get there from here?



Some definitions:

Objectives - the broadest statements of what an organization chooses to attempt to accomplish.

Lisa and I, as proprietors of Well House Consultants, can look forward one, five, ten years ... and beyond ... and lay down our objectives. These objectives can change, and no doubt they will change a little, over time. But you'll be surprised how generalized our objectives are and just how little they do vary.

Strategy - a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal.

How do we achieve our objectives from where we are today - maintaining the status quo to continue to meet objectives already achieved, and developing to meet those objectives not yet achieved?

Tactics - plans and moves that gain position in the short term.

Within the strategies that we lay down, there will be a number of shorter term tactics - the 'nuts and bolts' if you like - which together engineer our situation towards our objectives. Many tactical decisions will be short term - a new situation arises that requires addressing, and decisions taken in the context of the strategies and objectives can be much more in tune with the development and future of the business than tactical decisions taken on a one off basis. (It's often said that laws based on a single case are usually bad laws, and this is because tactics are not considered).

Have you ever heard it said that "John is lucky" or that "Rodger's a nice chap but always seems to get things wrong". Perhaps some of John and Rodger's differing fortune comes down to pure coincidence, but then perhaps most John's gain comes from the fact that he's got objectives, a strategy to reach them, and that means that whenever he has to take a tactical decision it's often blindingly obvious.

I want to share some of our objectives, and the strategies we're using to achieve them, with our team. It's for two major reasons:

a) It means that all team members (and that includes Lisa and me) make any tactical decisions necessary to the best of their ability, with due thought to tactics, on all occasions.

b) It means that many tactical decisions can be made by individual team members without the need to refer back / question / think for a long time. Decision making made easy.

And hey, objective number one is an easy, efficient life ;-)

Two more definitions:

Rules - established standards, guides, or regulations set up by authority.

There's the legal rules ("laws"), and strategy number one is for Well House Consultants to act within the letter of the law at all times. We prefer to act within the spirit of the law as well bit we are not (for example) averse from saving money on a train fare by rebooking halfway.

Then there's our own rules. Oh help - we don't want too many of these! We want guidance:

Guidance - something that provides direction or advice as to a decision or course of action.

So in reality, our rules are our guidance, but with authority to back them up if you decide you don't feel that they're appropriate in any patricular set of circumstances.



1. To run an easy and efficient 'shop'
2. To enjoy what we do
3. To earn enough from what we do to be comfortable
4. To work in a way that's not injurious to our health
5. To be around and quietly available for family, friends and customers
6. To work within niche core businesses where we can shine, and not to diversity to excess.

Our objectives do NOT include

174. To make as much money or profit as possible
175. To build up a big empire
176. To support any particular religion or other belief system
(See how far down the list those things would be)



1. To act within the letter of the law and other external rules
2. To choose our sphere(s) of operation to be areas that we enjoy working in
3. To choose any staff we need to be in areas that THEY enjoy working in. However, since Lisa and Graham do NOT enjoy spending much time on staffing issues, the number of staff will be limited.
4. To provide an excellent customer service, even when we feel there is no earthly chance of repeat business
5. Make a tactical decision if you need , but tell others of your decision if it's important or may go wrong. Learn from other tactical decisions
6. Listen to customer input
7. Look around and ask "is this right" and "could this be better" and "can I help"?
8. Don't be afraid to say "no" or "I don't know" - if something is not core business, it's far better to turn it down than get into a mire. And any "don't know to" answer - provided it's followed up with "but I'll get you an answer" - is 100 times better than a guess.
9. Approach every situation / person / customer with an open mind; learn from experience and don't be restricted by it.



Many of our tactics are formalized in our price lists, terms and conditions, web site, and the way we work.

For each objective , there's half a dozen strategies. For each strategy, there's dozens of tactics; far too many to list here or anywhere else. Where there's no tactical guidance laid down, we're all encouraged to work it out for ourselves.



7. To work with our staff as a team; for those team members be friends, and to share with us to the extent that they wish the fun of what they do, and a comfortable living from doing so.