You’ve done well.But here’s the truth you’re avoiding.
You’ve done well. But here’s the truth you’re avoiding: You followed the playbooks. The best practices. The frameworks. The “this is how it’s done.” And it worked… until it didn’t. You built something real. But now you’ve hit a ceiling— and you can’t
Learn to ask hard questions.
Learn to ask hard questions; there’s often more underneath. A lesson I’ve learnt coaching consultancy business developers. What do hard questions look like? ↳ Simple. ↳ Sharp. ↳ Risky. Once asked, the listener can’t unhear them, even if they don’t reply out loud. And if they do answer honestly,
We now live in a world that's overflowing with answers.
We now live in a world that's overflowing with answers. Data, dashboards, and AI that can pull together almost anything. But the real work of thinking (for leaders and their advisors) hasn’t changed. It’s still about making a judgment call when things are cloudy. That'
Ever feel hijacked by your reaction to a client event?
Ever feel hijacked by your reaction to a client event? You get asked an awkward question - answer it badly. Then you replay that in your head for hours. Punishing yourself multiple times. We spend so much time stuck in thoughts we didn’t choose. I used to think “professional”
Systems Analyst to Sales.
I used to be a Systems Analyst. Then I stepped into sales. Overnight, the rules changed. In systems analysis, things are structured, logical, predictable. The odd error wasn't usually catastrophic, just inconvenient. But in sales, failure isn’t an error in logic. It's missing quota and
From Trusted Advisor to Vendor.
From Trusted Advisor to Vendor ... The silent slide that's killing your firm's credibility. It doesn’t happen overnight. One day you’re leading strategic initiatives ... The next, you’re just “another supplier” on a rate card. That slide - from partner to provider - is slow,
Stop body-shopping and contracting.
Stop body-shopping and contracting. A.k.a. Consultancy firms are not temporary staffing agencies. And I know plenty of people will disagree with this PoV. Let’s be clear: consultancies and staffing agencies both add value for clients. But they do so in very different ways. A consultancy delivers expertise,
Want to know why your pipeline feels full but your results don’t match?
Want to know why your pipeline feels full but your results don’t match? Vagueness. Remember this? Soon is not a time. Some is not a number. If you accept those vague words in business you’ll get a vague pipeline and vague results. Not so great when you’re
Consulting used to solve real problems.
Consulting used to solve real problems. Now, it’s often just resourcing with no traction. From a client perspective: You hire experts. You get a slick slide deck. You end up with productised meh. Consultants who fail to challenge. Accepting orders like staff. Little value created. Meanwhile, inside your organisation?
I didn’t like what he said about me ... but he was right.
I didn’t like what he said about me ... but he was right. And it changed my life. I still remember that morning clearly — the day everything shifted. The 14th Floor of Metropolitan House had stunning city views. I was, as usual, one of the first to arrive. Maybe one