Business with Soul
Dr Mumbo suspected April Fool’s Day had come early yesterday when he received an email pitching an interview with a Melbourne-based “business guru” called Neville Christie.
Christie has, the email excitedly read, “hit on a new business philosophy that has NEVER been more relevant – especially to advertising!”
His manta is called Business with Soul.
Sadly, the “serial entrepreneur” and author, who “was born under a restless star”, launched his first business at the age of six, and who is related to the once-famous Wirth’s travelling circus, is not James Brown in a pin-striped suit.
Total genius, I’m sacking McKinsey and Bain and putting this bloke on full time.
This is gold! Go on, tell us, did Neville use an agency to send this pitch? Or is this a DIY job?
We need an interview with this bloke Tim.
I cant believe you had the balls to post an article like this and attack somebody helpless like Neville.
Fucking retards
Hi anonymous,
He’s not helpless. He sent us a press release. If you send a press release, you invite comment on its content.
If you want your press release to be reprinted without comment or point of view, then it may be best to pick another outlet.
Cheers,
Tim – Mumbrella
I’ve never worked with Neville, but I know plenty of really switched-on, genuine business owners who do. It sounds like the release was a bit hammy, but Neville is anything but.
Marie and Gary (and Dr Mumbrella), I do hope that we get to read, or hear or watch an interview. Not everyone works in adland or pr-ville. Some people actually build business, create things, build industries and stuff. 😉
Neville is a former MD of Bristol Paint, Chairman of the CEO’s Institute, Entrepreneur-In-Residence at one of the top four accounting firms.
He’s helped and started more Australian businesses than most media people have had long lunches.
Anyway, sounds like the media release could have done with some polish, but Neville is a stirling silver bloke.
You’re being a little harsh aren’t you?
Good to see you’re a keyboard warrior here. Why don’t you give him a interview or speak to him before you rip into him….
These guys are really two a penny. The Brad Sugars, the Anthony Robbins , the so called business coaches who buy franchises who are mostly refugees from jobs as snake oil salesman. They prey on the stupid, the losers, the vulnerable with just plausible bullshit and take their money and run. Anyone who was going to be successful would have done it without them
Ask not ‘how many successes have you had?’, ask ‘how many people whose money you have taken have not succeeded?’
If they are genuine why not offer an independently judged money back guarantee?
Till then Tim take the piss, it’s your duty.
Neville is well-known among Melbourne entrepreneurs for the CEO Institute, his former role in Destra, and for being an all-round great guy. If you’re going to attack him from behind your computer screen, at least interview him so he has a chance to respond to your comments.
At the end of the day a press release is released to solicit a response and therefore to be remarked on in the particular publication it was sent to. In this case it certainly worked as we have a healthy discussion going on here.
All I can say is, I do wait with anticipation your followup interview with Neville as I know you’ll find him to be a fascinating guy with many powerful insights and experiences in business and he’ll change your perception on many things like he’s done with mine.
Will be a good read methinks.
Neville, cut your losses with this lot mate – and I say this respectfully. You must remember what type of animal you are dealing with here. Not all, but many are egomaniacs using fear based messaging to push consumerism onto the masses, and the trade press wholeheatedly embraces this mentality. That’s how sites like this generate subscriptions/traffic – by appealling to the lowest common denominator in the segment.
I admire your efforts to bring a bit of soul to the industry, and judging by the support in this thread you already have, but the path of least resistance (a different market) will yield a much better result.
This is a dirty game and you’d be well advised to seek out another vertical. But I’m sure if you wanted to buy some bannners Tim and the team at Mumbrella would gladly take your hard earned to offset all that house inventory (could be an idea if you want to return the piss-take).
@Tim, don’t max out your karmic credit card mate. You never know when your’e gonna need it.
Hi Souless,
Thanks for the advice on the need for positivity. I’d suggest that you might make the point with a little more credibility if the last time somebody posted from your IP address as “Mike”, you hadn’t told the previous commenter they were “just another fool”.
Cheers,
Tim – Mumbrella
Weird how lots of people are suddenly coming to this guy’s defence after 11 days – 6 in the space of a few hours, after a gap of several hours. A spot of astroturfing going on?
Hi anon, the comments are coming from different IP addresses, some that have previously posted which implies that it’s probably not just one person. However, it does looks a bit organised – not that there’s anything wrong with that.
Cheers,
Tim – Mumbrella
Regarding the ‘astroturfing’ comment, I’m probably responsible for that.
After reading the post, I contacted some of the people who have worked with Neville and suggested that they leave a comment. Like mumbrella, I’m a big believer in the idea that the truth will always come out online.
If someone is a ‘snake-oil merchant’, their detractors will come out en masse. If they’re a credible person that has earned good-will from a life time of good work, their supporters will also emerge. But, yes, sometimes the truth does need a kick along. But that’s a whole debate for another day.
As for Groucho’s comment, when not defending people on the mumbrella blog, I’m the editor and founder of Anthill Magazine. We write about business growth and entrepreneurship. Approx 60% of our readers own a business. About 10% invest in businesses and about 30% ‘advise’ businesses. This means, as I’m sure you can imagine, that I am possibly exposed to more self-promoting wannabes than any other business editor in Australia. And I’ve seen my fair share of people who ‘teach’ because they ‘can’t do’. I’ve also seem plenty of people who have got rich by ‘teaching others to get rich’ (which is inherently flawed).
Grouch, you ask: ‘How many people whose money you have taken have not succeeded?’ I ask the same question. If Neville has taken your money and you have not achieved a worthwhile, positive result, put your hand up.
As I said above, I’m a big believer in the idea that the truth will always come out online.
Neville is a guy who has had an incredible career and recently has begun mentoring people. He has decided to turn that part of his life into a business, which is a common approach among the baby-boomer generation. And worthy of praise.
@ Tim – just telling it as I see it. Ever heard the saying fools rush in? You may want to re read the comment it was refererencing. It was intended as neither positive or negative – simply an observation (evidently an accurate one). Not that this has anything to do with the comment in this thread. You had better note down this IP address for future reference as well.
James, part of the psychology of the business coaching scam relies on people not admitting that they have failed., if not to themselves at least to others.So the truth very often doesn’t come out.
I don’t have anything against Christie in particular but his one liners make me suspicious as they are the trade mark of those who prey on people with short attention spans, and those looking for easy solutions.
Mostly what they show us is ‘There’s a sucker born every minute’.
Just because there are fools out there doesn’t make it right to exploit them.