The School of Hard Knocks
This is a business club conducted by our law practice. It is open to all owners and managers of businesses, and executives working in the public and not-for-profit sectors.
Kevin Sheedy presenting at the School of Hard Knocks
Meetings are held throughout the year, with keynote business speakers, discussion groups, business book reviews, handouts and legal spotlights.
The School of Hard Knocks is a hands on, very practical club. The aim is for local businesses to grow, survive and succeed.
We want business people to learn from one another and to pick up on ideas from others who are outside their own industry and business experience and who might have quite different perspectives.
As an owner or manager of a business or not-for-profit enterprise, you are warmly invited to attend any of our business club meetings.
Business Club members can access handouts and material from previous meetings here.
Stay tuned!
We will be announcing details of upcoming meetings shortly.
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Suggestions
Heard a spectacular speaker? Please let us know. We're always on the lookout for presenters who challenge, inspire, entertain, and know their stuff!
LinkedIn group
We invite you to join our School of Hard Knocks LinkedIn group here.
Questions?
For further information, please contact anna@sharrockpitman.com.au
School of Hard Knocks webinar recordings
Recordings from the School of Hard Knocks archives.
05-2020_SOHK_Powerpoint1.pdf
Previous events
Guest presenters we have had over the years.
October
Nick Green is one of Australia’s finest and most decorated rowers. Dual Olympic gold medallist as a member of the “Oarsome Foursome” and four-time world champion, Nick was awarded an Order of Australia in 1993 and inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2001.
Off the water, as a global business leader, Nick channels the lessons that delivered unrivalled sporting success to help corporations and not-for-profit organisations make their mark, whatever their stage.
November
Speaker: Lisa McInnes-Smith is an expert on peak performance. With a tertiary background in Sports Psychology and Human Performance, Lisa propels groups, teams and leaders to new levels of achievement focus.
Topic: Up Your Capacity!
August
Stacey Currie is a change expert. Her presentation and gutsy messages focus on turning the traditional goal-setting approach of "focus on what you want" on its head, providing instead practical tips for going after what you really want through conscious, positive and deliberate choices.
Topic: Good Riddance: How to make hard choices for a change
September
Speaker: Kevin Sheedy AO
Topic: Coping with Change to make a Change: - The power of positive and lateral thinking
February
Our guest speaker was Danielle Storey international business co-owner and innovation champion.
Her topic was: “There has never been a better time to be YOU!”
June
Speaker: Olivia Carr
Topic: Daring, resilience and being true to yourself - the keys to business success
March
Speaker: Paul Wade OAM
Topic: The First Day of the Rest of Your Life! Leading by example and succeeding through adversity
June
Speaker: Chris Helder
Topic: Uncertainty Acceptance - How an Adventure Mindset Will Set You Up For Success
March
Speaker: Winston Marsh
Topic: Simple Secrets to Revive a Locked Down World
November
Our last guest speaker was Stephanie Bown, a performance specialist, mentor, facilitator, trainer and coach, and former Performance Partner to the executive and senior team at Swisse Wellness.
Stephanie's topic was: "Simplifying Strategy Creation".
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February
Our guest speaker was Rob Nankervis, business consultant and former Director of Performance and Improvement within Ernst & Young.
His topic was "10 Numbers to Drive Performance, Growth and Valuation in Your Business (and none of them are on your financial statements)".
October
Our guest speaker was Scott Dutton, founder of Fighting Fair, a leading conflict resolution training + services consultancy.
His topic was: "Difficult to Connected Conversations: DCs made easy".
August
Our guest speaker was Peter Engelhardt, founder of Plan2Brand and strategic design agency Creative Brew.
His topic was: "Brand Strategy Demystified".
May
Our guest speaker was Jessie Weatherley, founder of Jork Consulting, a boutique marketing agency.
Her topic was: “10 Red Hot E-Marketing Tips to Attract New Customers”.
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November
Our guest speaker was The Reluctant Entrepreneur, David Sharrock.
His topic was: "Gotta Keep the Customer Satisfied"
August
Our guest speaker was Rachael Robertson, an Antarctic expedition leader with 20 years of 'extreme' leadership experience.
Her topic was: “Leading on the Edge: the future of teamwork and why respect trumps harmony”
We also had additional guest presenters:
The Reluctant Entrepreneur, David Sharrock sharing on “Highly Effective Leadership”
Jacob Sarkodee from International Justice Mission
February
Speaker: Des Mueller
Topic: Playing to Win: How Strategy Really Works!
Additional speakers:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Up Up & Away! Strategizing for Enterprise Success
May
Speaker: Dr Graham Kenny
Topic: A Blueprint for Agile Strategic Planning
Additional speakers:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Building Pyramids Incisive Planning for Enterprise Success
October
Speaker: Leanne Faulkner
Topic: Stress Busters for You and Your Team!
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: Jessica Lancashire from Online HR
Topic: Self-Care for Employers
February
Speaker: Craig Rispin
Topic: Bullet Proofing Your Business for the Future
Additional Speakers
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Leading on L Plates – 5 More Things I Learnt in 2016
August
Speaker: Ron Gauci
Topic: Optimising the Performance of your Organisation
Additional speakers:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Planning for Enterprise Success (Part 1)
May
Speaker: Shaun Coulton
Topic: The 12 Steps to Building Your Personal and Business Brand on LinkedIn
We also had additional presenters sharing on digital media trends:
Adam Laurie from Digitial 360, shared on Current Trends in Digital Marketing Strategies
Phil Speers, from Catch All Digital, shared on SEO Do’s and Don’ts
Mitchell Zadow from Sharrock Pitman Legal shared on Your Business on the Web: Managing the Risks
October
Speaker: Chris Helder
Topic: Useful Belief – as a game changer in the field of motivation and performance
Additional Speakers:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Generating Business Momentum
August
Speaker: Glenn Manton
Topic: Positive Conversations and Life-giving Relationships
Additional Speakers
Speakers: David Sharrock, Mitchell Zadow, Andre Ong
Topic: Positive Conversations, Positive Relationships
May
Speaker: Jason Cunningham
Topic: Have Your Cake and Sell it too: The 7 Key Ingredients of Business Success
Additional Speakers
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Business Values
August
Speaker: David Parkin, former AFL player and coach.
Topic: Team Building
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Red hot tips for firing up your business.
February
Speaker: Graeme Joy
Topic: Leading Your High Performance Team
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Leading on L Plates
April
Speaker: David Penglase
Topic: How to Build Intentional Trust to Boost Business Success
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: For Business Success, Build a Bridge of Trust
January
Speaker: Iven Frangi
Topic: Outstanding Customer Experience for Business Success
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Customer Service
February
Speaker: Tim Costello
Topic: Becoming the Business Leaders we can be
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Business Leadership
May
Speaker: Amanda Gome
Topic: Entrepreneurship – Crikey, I Forgot My Skirt
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Panel discussion and Q & A with three local entrepreneurs, Christo Christophidis, Craig Lane and Adam Laurie.
October
Speaker: Russell Pearson
Topic: Elements of Effective Brand Design
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Business Branding
August
To kick off the first School for Hard Knocks our presenter was David Sharrock. Our business club was started for like-minded business owners and managers.
His topic was “What’s the Key to Sustained Success in any Business”.
August
Speaker: Tom O’Toole
Topic: Workplace Culture and Team Building
We also had additional guest presenters:
Speaker: David Sharrock
Topic: Let’s go fishing …. for a vibrant workplace
November
We had a panel discussion on how to deal with tough financial times.
Our panel comprised of:
- Tim Wilson, Partner, Wilmit Australia Pty Ltd: 5 Hot Tips on Surviving and Thriving in Your Business in Tough Financial Times
- Paul Humphreys, Director, Accountkeeping Plus Pty Ltd: 5 Hot Tips on Having Great Business Cash Flow in Tough Financial Times
- Mathew Thong, Business Banking Manager, National Australia Bank: 5 Hot Tips on How to get Bank Finance for Your Business in Tough Financial Times
- Mitchell Zadow, Principal, Sharrock Pitman Legal Pty Ltd: 5 Hot Tips on Protecting Your Private Assets from Business Creditors in Tough Financial Times
- Ashley Davidson, Executive Director, Pitcher Partners Advisors Pty Ltd: 5 Hot Tips for Dealing with the ATO in Tough Financial Times
