The Weekly Brief
The secret of the puppy dog sale
I know. The headline reads more Enid Blyton than sales story. Perhaps more on writing headlines next week ... until then
The Weekly Brief
Memos written for consultants Aug 2014 - June 2024.
The Weekly Brief
Going against gravity
It's hard to do, but escaping the gravitational pull of delivery work is important if you're
The Weekly Brief
Are you interesting, or interested?
As a consultant you've probably felt the pressure to impress clients. Here are some of the patterns I
The Weekly Brief
The power of simple listening
Earlier this week I was given a 'damn good listening to'. There was something big playing on my
The Weekly Brief
Are you doing value-subtraction?
Last week someone hijacked my weekly nugget of wisdom. They turned the concept I wrote about into a full length
The Weekly Brief
How many £20/hour tasks are you doing?
You know what I’m talking about, those jobs where you find yourself thinking “why am I doing this” ... but
The Weekly Brief
Can this executive buy?
Some executives have the power to make decisions.
Others evaluate and make recommendations for their boss to consider.
These recommenders
The Weekly Brief
It's worth paying attention to attention
Pay attention while you listen. Framing, paraphrasing, analysing, summarising. Those all come later. Attention first.
Pay attention while you speak.
The Weekly Brief
Are you problem solving, or creating?
I wrote the Consultant's Handbook 10 years ago in support of the Consulting Skills Workshop I taught for
The Weekly Brief
How do I talk to top executives? (aka the C-suite)
You’re more likely to get access to these busy executives via a politically savvy mid-level manager (aka The Fox)
The Weekly Brief
That resistance you feel
Reaching out to new prospects. That resistance you feel. It’s something you can sort out.
You’re far more
The Weekly Brief
Stop selling the process
Decision makers don't want to know about your consulting process. Seriously, it doesn’t matter how unique it
The Weekly Brief
Have the courage to say no.
When the work isn’t a good fit, or the client relationship seems awkward, or they won’t agree to
The Weekly Brief
4 ways to quickly add value
This article by Mark Lindwall over at Forrester Research highlights how 80% of meetings with sellers fail to meet executive
The Weekly Brief
3 common mistakes in first meetings
Which of these have you been guilty of?
1. Pitching services. This is the biggest complaint I hear from corporate
The Weekly Brief
Let's meet and catch up
It’s obvious, isn’t it. The purpose of the important meeting. We’re meeting to … to what precisely?
In
The Weekly Brief
10 decisions clients make before buying consultancy
Here's a list of different sales conversations you'll want to master, so you can guide client
The Weekly Brief
Mentoring or Coaching
Mentoring
Mentors apply their expertise to real-time situations their clients face. They talk things through with clients and interventions are