Million Dollar Consulting® Mindset
From Alan Weiss
Volume 2 Number 6
June 2012
A monthly newsletter with the objective of quickly and pragmatically helping consultants to improve their craft, results, and lives.
Give Yourself A Fighting Chance
The risks in solo work are significant. You need to be careful about labor intensity, life balance, proper fees, keeping clients happy, handling administration, and continually marketing your services.
The rewards can be wonderful IF you allow yourself to enjoy them: maximizing discretionary time, determining which clients to work with, developing alternative offerings, creating a powerful brand, maximizing your fees, taking orders from no one. You have to enable that kind of benefit while minimizing the risk.
Set yourself up for success. Don't allow yourself to be "bullied" by your clients or the competition. Have clear policies you can articulate, defend, and demand, e.g., 50 percent of fees upon acceptance, or first class travel for speaking engagements. Right now you should be mapping out your vacation, family, and personal time for 2013, put it in your planner, and work around it as business comes in.
Be careful or you'll find you left the corporate world to go out on your own only to have a tougher, more unreasonable boss.
Case Study
A new breakfast shop opened on Main Street in our town, where there is plenty of competition, but competition opens markets, and this shop occupied the site of a former, quite popular one.
We walked in to find the air conditioner not turned on despite a 75 degree morning. The menu was limited, with no fruit or cold cereal (what do you do with kids?). The co-owner who waited on us explained that the other owner was the cook. She had starkly yellow teeth. When we ordered, she warned us that every breakfast required at least a 20-minute wait, since there was just the one cook.
We paid her for the coffee in front of us and left. We tried to explain why, but she didn't want to listen. She should have tested the competitive restaurants, and focused on service and ambiance, not strictly low prices and a small menu. She and the cook were trying to operate on the basis of their margins and not their customers' value.
Are you putting yourself in your clients' shoes?
Frequently Asked Question
Q. What do I do with a coaching client who constantly gives me "feedback" on how to do better, even though none of my other clients have ever requested similar services even when I've asked them? She's very demanding.
A. Let her go, don't try to renew every piece of business. The customer is not always right. So long as your value and approaches are satisfying your best customers, don't worry about the exception and "squeaky wheel."
Upcoming
the RESOLVE event
June 6
Marriott at Los Angeles Airport
Travel beyond accountability, discipline, and organization to that state where you repeatedly and accurately obtain results, complete projects, and maximize time use. Merely being accountable doesn't result in actions unless you acquire RESOLVE in this one-day, unique event.
THE ALMOST FREE WORKSHOP
June 7, 2012
Marriott Hotel, Los Angeles International Airport
We drew 250 people to the Boston session of this presentation. Join Alan at a ridiculous price for six hours on buyers, fees, objections, language, options, leverage, marketing plans, and much more. He's even buying lunch! Hear directly from his Master Mentors who will be helping small groups.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP WORKSHOP 2012
October 22-24, 2012
The Breakers, Palm Beach, FL
The third annual conference, limited to 20 people, which has featured Marshall Goldsmith and David Maister the past two years. Learn how to rise to thought leadership in your field with practical techniques and ongoing support. The graduate session is already sold out a year in advance! Fifteen spots remain. There is no other opportunity like this in the world. The finest venue, great interaction, top people. All lodging and meals are included.
Read about the 2011 session here.
Sign up for 2012 here.
© Alan Weiss 2012. All rights reserved.
You may reprint and excerpt this newsletter provided that you include our copyright, the source, the author, and �reprinted with permission.�
ISSN: 2159-306X
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