02/09/2026
What a beautiful pictureā¦This post isnāt about going to the Rovers game last night and how much I enjoyed watching it with Wayne Clean N Bright
Its about South Yorkshire, its about the Business Community and fundamentally its about Friendshipsā¦
South Yorkshire - I am not a Donny lad and spent the first 42yrs of my life in different areaās of the UK, I may have said it before on LinkedIn but I have lived in 37 different homes (thereās a conversation starter right thereā¦) but none in South Yorkshireā¦So why am I giving this info, mainly just for contextā¦I got together with my now wife Emma at 41yrs old (46 in a couple of months)ā¦who is South Yorkshire through and through, never met anyone like her (she will never move outside the county)ā¦and so nearly 5yrs ago I started my journey into South Yorkshire, where my step daughter was born and where my little boy was also bornā¦and somewhere that has gradually become home.
Business Community ā Most sensible people when they decide to start a business they start in an area they are familiar with or they have at least one connectionā¦meā¦NOā¦.I started with all the gear but no idea, so the first thing I did was join as a member with the Doncaster Chamber, and on my first event I ever attended I met Hayley Treo Recruitment , Mrudula & Terri-Leigh, who couldn't have been more welcoming, and the 2nd event which was the following week, I happened to sit down next to one Lisa Clean N Bright (who still is and was at the time amazing) she chatted to me as if she had known me for years, I remember it because when you walk into a room not knowing anybody, it stuck with meā¦that was exactly 18mths ago (I will come back to this)ā¦and from attending events, networking, speaking to peopleā¦I have honestly found the business community in Doncaster, South Yorkshire (and not to forget my tribe in North Lincs The Growth Community) amazing, caring and want to help and support anyway they canā¦I have also met people that arenāt like thatā¦but I would question whether they are in the right game š
Friendship ā From knowing nobody locally, 18mths ago, I now have the start of a beautiful friendship group born out of the business community. And this takes me full circle, the pictureā¦ From randomly sitting next to Lisa at my second networking eventā¦to getting a text from Wayne at the weekend asking:
"Are you free to go to the football?"
And then spending last night watching Rovers with a mate (thank you Wayne)
My Wednesday morning takeawayā¦.Life can be hard, business can be harder, but sometimes finding that one connection it can change your outlook on everything and put a smile on your faceā¦
