I pushed too hard the other day. Or did I? I was trying to get Janis, a relatively new financial services representative who works at a branch of a large insurance company, to take the last available seat in my workshop program. I had offered her help with the tuition, and she had committed on
Don’t Ignore Referability
Last November, my mother received a well-written letter from a law firm offering to represent her in a tax appeal, which might bring about a refund of some of her real estate taxes. A simple “Attorney Representation Agreement” and a return envelope were enclosed. My mother, who understandably defers to me on legal matters, asked
Burn Your Boats…
When ancient Greek warriors landed on a shore to conquer an island, their Generals motivated them in a powerful way: They ordered the boats that brought them to the island to be burned, so that there would be no way to retreat. Burning your boats is a good way to motivate yourself to do the
End “Analysis Paralysis”
I often start a seminar by asking for a show of hands from professionals and entrepreneurs who have enough quality clients—they don’t need any more. Usually, one or two people raise their hands. If there are a hundred people in the room, however, that means that ninety-eight percent of them do not have enough clients (or
The “Happiness Ratio”:
OVER-Deliver / UNDER-Promise Your client or customer wants to see a report as soon as possible. It’s almost impossible for you to have it ready before next Wednesday, but under pressure, you promise it to her by this Friday. “Why did I do that?” you ask yourself. Your intentions were good. You didn’t want her
Working Hard on the Wrong Work
A Case Study One of the problems I often find myself helping clients with is how ineffectively they are spending their time in their business or practice. My clients tell me that I’m pretty good at catching them in the act of working hard, but doing the wrong work. It’s a coaching task: pointing out
Choose to Make Time for YOU
I received this letter recently from a real estate broker: Dear Sandy, Perhaps you can do an article on finding time to make appointments with yourself and your loved ones; that is, the ones who aren’t too busy? When and why did this happen? We have more “time savers” than ever before, but there is