Meet Dr David Lowe.

David had it all figured out - working a 5-day month, earning great money, enjoying a fantastic work/life balance, doing meaningful work for clients he loved.

There was just one problem.

His business model relied entirely on in-person training.

And it was 2019.

You and I know what's coming...

But David didn't.

He spent the next two years frantically scrabbling to "pivot" (is there a more 2020 word?) and keep paying the bills.

Meanwhile, his kids remember "the Covid years" as a time when they finished their school work by lunchtime, and spent the afternoons building memories with Mum and Dad.

That taught David a lot about the ambitious/lifestyle business pendulum.

David joined the One Percent Club in 2023, and has spent the past few years working on a doctorate - looking at how humour can be used in coaching.. something that leans into our core values of FUN and constant, never-ending improvement really well.

If you'd like to join Dr. Lowe in the One Percent Club (and experience some of that coaching for yourself), the doors for our March intake will open very soon.

ps. Here's David's favourite joke:

Did you hear about the inventor of the knock-knock joke? He was awarded the No-Bell prize.

🤦

If you want to be a better coach and/or have more fun, this episode is for YOU.

The Ambitious Lifestyle Business podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts...

Links:

• Webinar series:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidjlowe/

• Explanation of the thesis:

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/davidjlowe_my-doctoral-findings-boiled-down-to-one-activity-7401195081862578176-epYD

• Questionnaire

https://forms.gle/tawvHWSNG9JHuBSL7"

If you're feeling stuck in your business (and/or your life), this episode is for YOU.

Three years ago, Mel Statner was working 12 hours a day (and sometimes 16!), finding herself exhausted, doing work that drained her energy.

In a nutshell, Mel was stuck.

Fast forward to today, and Mel works a 3 day week, having also doubled her income. Not by working harder, but because she found some instruction manuals for her operating system (her brain).

Mel changed how she thinks... how she makes decisions... and how she leads her life.

She's no longer stuck - she's thriving.

Jason and I have worked with Mel for several years now in the One Percent Club, and recently sat down with her to discuss her transformational journey.

It's beginning to look a lot like.. last year!

The Ambitious Lifestyle Business podcast 2025 Christmas special is here - and as usual, John and Jason are putting the world to rights (without getting political - honest!), summing up what's it been like running an ambitious lifestyle business for the past twelve months.

Cost of living crisis? ✅

High inflation a worry? ✅

Bad news coming in the Budget? ✅

Yep, the big themes this year are VERY similar to the big themes of 2024 - the "doom and gloom" isn't going away (other than on the ALB podcast, where, just like Morecambe and Wise, we aim to "bring you sunshine"!

Running a small business in the UK is tough right now. There's no getting away from it - unless you're looking to emigrate, of course - we talk about that once again in this episode, along with the power of surrounding yourself with positive, can-do people - something that we've done throughout the year, including our very first "Flamingos on Tour" event, in sunny Alicante in October.

As usual, we discuss our Book of the Year, and sum up our hopes and dreams for 2026 in ONE word.

The Ambitious Lifestyle Business podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts...

In September 2018, Driving School trainer Dave Foster fell off a two story building.

As he was falling through thin air to the cold concrete below, his life flashed before his eyes - and he had an epiphany. Until that moment, Dave was working 10-12 hour days every day in his business, and fully believed that "no one can run this business, except me."

Faced with being unable to work for six months, Dave had no choice but to remove himself from the day-to-day operations, and instead work ON his business.

And now, 8 years later, Dave has taken a "false exit" - running the business in an hour or two a day from his home in sunny Spain, after years of touring Europe in an RV.

In this episode of the Ambitious Lifestyle Business podcast, Dave implores anyone listening who says that "my business is different - and WON'T work without ME" to think again.

I recently came across my all-time favourite review of my book Big Ideas... for Small Businesses - from my ten year old son.

He's 16 now, so it really made me chuckle to see what the younger version of him made of a book that's aimed at ambitious lifestyle business owners, not ten year old kids!

How do you make sure you stay hydrated throughout the day?

By creating an easy-to-follow (and hard to forget) routine, of course!

Taking a leaf out of my own book Routine Machine, I've created the "5 teabag rule", to make sure I remain well lubricated through the working day...

"I'm sorry, that price is for new customers only"

A guaranteed way to get my blood BOILING... 😡

In this snippet from my forthcoming book Retention First, I share the story of a completely fictional broadband company, called "Emerging Media", who decide to tax the loyalty of their best customers, and give the best offers to those people who've never spent a penny with them...

Some of my "favourite" 1-star reviews:

"smug look at how awesome the author is"

"no help for small business owners unless they're already millionaires"

"my god you have to wade through an awful lot of pointless rambling to get there"

My books have attracted more than 2,000 five-star reviews.. yet it's the handful of negative ones that stick with me...