I was first introduced to the CBM Club in 2012. What a novel concept! In August 2011, we bought a small motorhome from Born Free in Humboldt, IA. At a rally in 2012, I met John Dodgen, the 85 years old founder of Born Free back in the 1960s. What a delightful man, with a […]
Like many others, I was enchanted by the Pope’s recent visit. And I even gleaned some consulting lessons. To wit: (1) Be likeable — Pope Francis radiates likeability. Nobody wants to listen to a jerk. As consultants, this means being genuinely interested in your clients. It means really liking them, and not being mean, snarky, […]
Here is a reply I left recently at my favorite financial blog, Mr. Money Mustache. Pete, a fellow engineer, spent the last several years challenging and cajoling people to become financially independent. He “retired” at age 30, and now does what he wants with no financial worries. Lives a nice lifestyle in nice digs, too. […]
The short answer — NO! But you DO need to be able to help your clients. Time for a mini-rant. If you are like me, you are probably weary of hearing about how you MUST become a though leader to succeed in business. Unless, of course, you are pitching books or programs on thought leadership. […]
Received an email a while back from a fellow engineer whose consulting firm is struggling. The question was what to do now? First, a little background. To protect privacy, I’ll be purposefully vague. He started a consulting firm some years ago, but it recently began to slide. Rather than give up, he kept putting money […]
This dilemma is often faced by those considering a business of their own –– often at mid-career. Should I strike out on my own, or should I stay and climb the corporate ladder? There is no right answer. You must first seek to know yourself. It is YOUR decision — nobody else can make it […]
Last Wednesday, my good friend and business partner of 40 years passed away from pancreatic cancer. The end came sooner than expected, but at least he is no longer suffering. I will miss him terribly … hell, I already do! A future blog post will address partnerships. Most of the time I advise against them, […]
In February I shared the sad news that Bill Kimmel, my business partner and good friend of almost 40 years, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. That is the main reason the posts here have been few and far between. Here is an update. It has been a rough few months. The chemo failed, but it […]
Here is my reply to a question on LinkedIn about motivating professionals. The more I thought about the question, the more it festered. Is it motivation, or is it manipulation? You decide. How do you motivate your professional staff? … How do you motivate a surgeon to perform an operation? How do you motivate an […]
Time for a rant. This was precipitated by an unsolicited phone call early one Sunday morning, from a so-called “marketing firm” run by a so-called “consultant.” Too bad he is giving consulting such a black eye. Normally I’d let the phone ring, but for some reason I decided to answer. Actually, I was kind of […]
Learned this lesson early in my consulting career. Fortunately, somebody else made the mistake, and I was able to benefit from their goof-up. We’ve always had a policy of full and open disclosure for our clients. Retain us, and we will share everything we know about our specialty, with the exception, of course, of proprietary […]
Ninety percent of Americans have virtually no savings… so says the latest issue of Money magazine. If you are in the ninety percent, consulting may offer a way out. The problem with most jobs is that the income is fixed. Unless you are in sales (commissions) or an executive (bonuses), you have little opportunity for […]
So said Senator John McCain — and as a tortured POW, he ought to know. Oooh… I feel a rant coming on… Frankly, I could not agree more with with my Arizona Senator. Torture IS wrong — and so is ANY kind of bullying. Because Senator McCain courageously went against his own political party (and […]
Thanksgiving is over, and we’re into the leftovers. But there are still plenty of reasons to be thankful. Upon reflection, here are five things for which I am most grateful. (1) My Family – Two sons, two daughters-in-law, and six extraordinary grandchildren. And of course Mary (my wife), the matriarch of our little clan — […]
No moral or message – just an update for the last day of October. Got back last night from a three week RV trip. MN (where there are grankids) to AZ (where there is no snow) via CT (where there are more grankids.) The trip included drives through the Shenandoah Parkway, the Blue Ridge Parkway, […]
If you’ve been following my blog, you’ve noticed a lack of posts this summer. Don’t worry — not quitting — just needed some time to regroup. A key catalyst was two recent funerals. Not to sound morbid, but these events have a way of causing one to reflect on where one has been, and where […]
Not sure when it happened — or when I even first realized it had happened. But one day I woke up and recognized that I was no longer a young warrior, but rather had become an old warrior. So what’s the difference? And does it matter? Well, the old warrior’s main purpose is to now […]
The lead generation worked… the phone rings… now what? Let the sales process begin… This is where the rubber meets the road — or where the consultant finally meets the client. Many people see sales as mysterious at best, and manipulative at worst. Neither are true for selling consulting services. Consulting is a helping profession… […]
So you’re approaching retirement, and wondering what to do next. Or maybe you’re already retired, and getting bored out of you mind. After all, you can only do so much golfing or fishing (see Karl the engineer.) What next? How about consulting? If you enjoyed your career, you just might like this. After a long […]
So says a recent article in Computerworld — Your next job, next year, may be self employment. According to Emergent Research (a firm focused on small businesses trends) approximately one million IT (Information Technology) workers today are self-employed. This represents about 18% of the IT workforce. Not only that, the independent IT workforce is growing […]
