Why successful executives fail as independent consultants
Does a good plumber automatically make a good gastroenterologist?
Huh. Thought so.
Neither does a good gastroenterologist make a good plumber.
So why do successful corporate executives think that they will thrive as independent consultants?
This week alone I’ve talked to, or exchanged emails with, about half-a-dozen such folks. Good people. Smart people. Talented people with a lot to offer. But they were wrong when they assumed their big-company success would translate into a thriving consulting business.
The skills you need to succeed in a company are not the same as the skills you need to attract a steady, consistent, predictable flow of great clients.
For example, in the corporate world, you can get by with speaking Corporababble. It’s the way the average ‘headcount’ speaks in that world.
But when you’re an independent consultant, you’re going to have a hard time attracting clients by being average.
You can talk about positioning and engagement. You can insultingly call people ‘the talent’ and ‘the headcount’ or a ‘full-time equivalent.’ You can talk about onboarding stakeholders.
But, consider this:
Have you ever shared a YouTube video where someone talked like that?
When someone babbles on about employee engagement?
Or about how change is inevitable. And about their robust process for change management engineered to ensure a high degree of end-user adoption by easing the transition to reduce resistance on the part of the headcount…
Does this inspire confidence in you? Does it inspire respect?
Does it inspire the feeling that “Wow. I’m now in the presence of someone who has truly mastered their craft!”
Huh. Thought so.
Which videos have you shared? You’ve shared videos from people who speak in plain language. People who speak like proles, not Party members. Like they’re sharing a beer after a long day, not conducting an earnings call after a bad quarter.
If you are a corporate refugee, take a good hard look at your marketing. At your website. At how you describe what you do.
If you sound like a prole, good. You’re on your way.
But if you sound like a Party member, it’s time for a deep scrub.
Add your 1am bar-brawl reactions to this blog in the comments section below. Make it colorful, but keep it clean.
Dov Gordon
PS – The entrepreneurial world also has it’s own sinful jargon. Like calling the people who respect you and follow your work “peeps” and “tweeps.” [Shudder] Never from me. Never.
Wow this is strange. I have just been answering a question on LinkedIn from someone being hounded by companies promising him page one of Google for $1200. I think a lot of industries hide behind techno babble and rely on their customers to be so confused that they will blindly trust this ‘professional’to sort it out for them. News update folks – people are getting smarter and talking over their heads will NOT bring in more business – it will only alienate you as a person and as a business.
My biggest bugbear is those who try and speak for all of us in order to somehow make their point (selling) more acceptable. ‘We all agree that..’ or ‘We all know that..’ No we don’t! Don’t speak for me! Grr!
P~
Well, Peter, as you’re in the UK, let me tell you what the American people want. We’ve been told what they want often during the recent election…
Dov
Love this, Dov. It’s the Golden Rule in it’s original sense – Do NOT do to others what you would not have them do to you. Talking down to someone is not what we would have them do to us, that’s for sure.
A UK colleague told me that over there it’s common to refer to the lower level attorneys in the firm as the “fee earners.”
I call this enterprise BS. These poor people don’t know that others
- don’t understand it
- don’t like it
Even worse is that after 14 years of listening and having to speak like this I have problems getting rid of the corporababble.
“…I have problems getting rid of the corporababble.”
Uh oh. But if you hang around here, I’m sure you’ll start to recover.
Dov
This kind of talk is so inpenetrable that even as an independent industrial consultant I can barely unpack the language of a big consulting firm industrial consultant when I’m sitting across from him/her. I’m sure a tinge of that virulent contagion probably leaks into my communications despite the best of intentions.
Hi Kent, have you considered sprinkling your home page with the kind of writing you used here?
Unpack the language. Tinge of virulent contagion. Leaks into my communication.
Visual, simple and powerful.
Dov
I’ve never been in a corporate setting so I don’t have that language but, I do have the language as a counselor of 25 years and 3 years as a yoga instructor and I must always remember to talk to my clients/students with the language that is meaningful to them.
For me, that usually means really listening to and using, the language that I hear them use.
Interesting article. I’ve found you have to ditch industry jargon and speak plainly. It is also better to listen than speak much of the time. Sorry, but you forgot one particularly offensive appellation IM’ers use: Herd.
Welcome, Stewart. Have you read Gerry Spence’s book “How to Argue and Win Every Time?” Excellent examples of simple, powerful language.
I recommend it to everyone.
Dov
Agreed Dov! You have put it into a clear perspective. Cool
Thank you, Selvaraj. Were you able to access the bonus recordings?
Yes, able to access with Shayna’s help. Thanks and keep up the good work.
Ha. We used to play corporate speak bingo at big meetings. Now we painstakingly check ourselves to be sure we are talking plainly and as pointed out earlier — listening more than talking. Listening isn’t just being quiet — it is taking in new information and letting the speaker know you are listening. Oh – and how about asking TRULY open ended questions….that is a skill really worth investing in. To me, shaking off the corporate speak and getting to what is truly important to our clients is the most exciting part of what we do as consultants!
Hi Marian, I can tell from the way you worded your comment that you practice what you preach.
Dov
We have two choices when we communicate: boost ourselves, or boost others. If we choose wisely, we get both. Others like to listen to us because of how we make them feel about themselves (empowered, smart, gifted, needed). That naturally will transfer to their business as they go forth in confidence with a “can do” attitude that they can share their gift with the world.
I’ve lost corporate jobs because I don’t speak corporatise
Well now as an outside consultant, you can use your language deficiency to your advantage. Prospects often can’t put their finger on it. But when you articulate what they want in a way that is clear and simple, they can feel that you are different – even if they can’t put their finger on why.