Lawrence Jones: Interview CEO of UKFast (Net Worth £330m)

In today’s episode of The Disruptive Entrepreneur Podcast, Rob talks to Lawrence Jones about his entrepreneur journey, his MBE award, how he grew his business and great pieces of advice for aspiring entrepreneurs out there. One of the great takeaways is the importance of having the right team. Once you’ve set up this dream business, it’s high time that you step back and let others do the best they can to further it. Rob and Lawrence also discuss the past, present, and future landscape for businesses in the UK. The recession is one big factor that will affect the future of your business. But despite it, they advise you just to do it and learn how to be adaptable. Discover also where successful entrepreneurs take inspirations, how do they grow to great leaders, and most importantly, how they are still able to help others when you tune in. KEY TAKEAWAYS Lawrence Jones was in Switzerland when he got a letter stating that he was awarded the MBE. It was a positive driving force to make him go back to the UK. Lawrence has made significant contributions to the digital community in the UK. How did Lawrence get 50% net margin in his business? Looking after your customers. Making sure that the people that are representing are engaged. Harnessing technology in account systems, billing platforms, etc. Rob shares how he and Mark became business partners. They had enough capital to buy 12 properties but had to ask their loved ones for deposits so they can continue what they’re doing. The recession didn’t stop them from growing their portfolio. They learned a lot from it happening was able to make it advantageous to them. Rob and Lawrence also discuss why business owners should know how to choose when and where to start, especially in a recession. Don’t wait for things to change, if you have to make important decisions right now, do it – do it after careful observation and judgment. As an ambassador for British business, Lawrence wants to showcase how businesses sprung up in the country. He also says that to contribute value to others is one way to learn more and improve yourself and your business. Most of the time, entrepreneurs are only good at the start – creating business and not able to grow them. Think of allying the right team behind you that can help you continually scale up your business. In Lawrence’s experience, he noticed that the more he steps back, the further his business grew. “A leader is someone who develops other leaders.” If you’ve trained your staff effectively, then things can go smoothly even without your direct supervision. It’s vital to know what competition you’re up to. When you observe what they’re doing, you plan carefully and avoid risks in the future. If you need your creative juices flowing to get new business ideas, take inspiration from your surroundings. Research about what entrepreneurs have done before, so you know what to do and to not do in your business. There will be challenges that will come in your way, and you have to face and get through them. You have to remember to continue living your life and change others’ lives for the better. Your team is critical to the success of your business. You, as the leader, should always cultivate a healthy high-performance work culture where everyone can be honest and understanding. This also inspires them to be passionate and sets the mood to their tasks wilfully. BEST MOMENTS “For anybody listening, anybody business owner, I would say you need a big team of programmers in your business and throw out all your software.” – Lawrence “I think all of us at sometimes feel that people are a bit unfair to us or are critical or can’t take seriously. Business people are able to harness the critics and things people say, and they prove them wrong.” – Rob “It’s funny. When you have the desire, the hunger, or even the pain, you start saying yes to opportunities.” – Rob “You got to do what you believe in and what you think is ethical.” – Rob “It’s less about making profit, it’s more about the speed and the quality.” – Lawrence “We’ve got two choices… either do nothing or take as much as we possibly can.” – Lawrence “Model the traits of the greats but bring this unique flavour of you-ness.” – Rob “It’s important to realise that you’re not alone. Being an entrepreneur can be lonely sometimes.” – Rob “Slow down, take a minute, and just refocus.” – Lawrence VALUABLE RESOURCES UKFast The Disruptive Entrepreneur Podcast iTunes | Stitcher Books Written by Rob Moore:https://robmoore.com/books/ ABOUT THE GUEST With more than 30 years of doing things differently, Lawrence Jones MBE is an ambassador for British business with a truly unique entrepreneurial mind. Lawrence Jones MBE is founder and CEO of cloud technology firm UKFast. In 17 years he has led its phenomenal growth from a startup in a spare bedroom to a £300 million enterprise. Today, Lawrence continues to mentor and inspire huge numbers of people including professional athletes, musicians and fellow entrepreneurs. Lawrence’s blog is read by more than 200,000 people every month. Source: https://www.lawrencejones.co.uk/ ABOUT THE HOST Rob Moore is an author of 9 business books, 5 UK bestsellers, holds 3 world records for public speaking, entrepreneur, property investor and property educator. Author of global bestseller “Life Leverage” Host of UK’s No.1 business podcast “The Disruptive Entrepreneur” “If you don't risk anything, you risk everything.” CONTACT METHOD Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/robmooreprogressive/?ref=br_rs LinkedIn - https://uk.linkedin.com/in/robmoore1979 YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLtKal0qTf3klDUr7JS_L9Q See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.