Thanks for your support so far in setting up Coffee Hour. In 4 sessions of coffee hour there have been 12 different people turn up, which I am so grateful for! However I have been watching other skoolers and based on what I have seen add further value for people, I’m going to tweak Coffee Hour slightly. Rather than running it weekly regardless, I’m going to test moving to a more intentional format, slightly less frequent and with a bit more structure. The idea: First 30 minutes – a focused conversation with a developer Second 30 minutes – open discussion, as usual. If that format appeals to you, drop a 👍 below or send me a message. I’ll only run the structured sessions when there’s genuine interest. Quality over routine.

I mentioned there would be some Ai in this community. I think it's important for all of us to be aware of how it can help our businesses. Now this video is not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. However, it took 2 minutes to produce. Think about the time it would have taken even 5 years ago, never mind the number of people!! There's camera set up, A roll, B roll, music, subtitles, etc etc....All the lip sync is dubbed just in case you are confused!!! Are you dabbling with Ai to help streamline your efforts?

Early look for the group – small development site (3 units) This one is openly advertised via Savills, so some of you may already have seen it. However, I’ve done some initial due diligence on it and I think there’s an angle here that isn’t immediately obvious from the marketing material. It’s a small scheme — consent for three houses of circa 2,400 sq ft each. My view on end values: - Conservative: ~£1.4m - Strong market: up to ~£1.70m - So total £4.2m to £5.1m There’s potentially money in it, but only if build costs are controlled and the scheme is approached correctly. I’ve also noticed a couple of points in the agent’s presentation that I think are either optimistic or slightly misjudged. That’s part of our job, not just to look at what’s being sold, but to question it and find where the value actually sits. If you’d like to see: - the site details - my initial appraisal - and where I think the opportunity (and risk) really is Drop a comment, DM me, or email me and I’ll send everything across. This is exactly the kind of opportunity I want this group to see early, not because it’s secret, but because analysis is where the edge is.

If one useful introduction or piece of help came out of this group, what would it be? It could be: - an investor - a lender - a contractor - an architect - a sounding board - or just clarity on something you’re working through You don’t need to explain the whole story. You don’t need to be specific if you don’t want to. A short comment is fine. A quiet DM is fine too. Sometimes the right person is already in the room, or quietly watching.

We’ve had a really good run of conversations this week. Coffee Hours, new faces, and even a deal coming together. That’s exactly what I’d hoped this group would become… I just didn’t expect that last part to happen quite so fast. Before we head into the weekend, I’m curious: What are you working on right now? Or what’s top of your list for next week? At Coffee Hour this week we also had two people who’ve only just started out on their own. They’ve got years of experience in the corporate world, but stepping out solo is still a brave move, and in my eyes, a very sensible one too. One thing that’s already clear is the depth of experience in this group when it comes to running businesses. Helping people take that next step is genuinely enjoyable, and I’m hoping the connections here start firing naturally. If you need direction, perspective, or a sounding board, just drop it into the group. Doesn’t need to be polished. One line is fine. And if you’re switching off completely this weekend, that’s also a perfectly acceptable answer.