Dan Norenberg, who is an executive coach, friend, and mentor, once told me, “Doug, you need to find time to work on your business, not just work in your business.”
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It is easy to get caught up in the daily routine of taking care of clients and meeting with prospective ones. Yet in a time when people are working remotely and staying away from human contact as much as possible due to COVID-19, traditional in-person business development needs to be modified.

When someone asks you what you do for a living, how often do you use stories to help paint a picture that will stick in their mind?
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I would venture to guess that most of you rarely use stories if any at all!

​I was communicating with a pro cyclist who offered to donate one of his bikes to a non-profit high school mountain bike race league that I have supported the past 10 years. It was a wonderful gesture and simply required us to meet for the bike exchange. After a few text exchanges, he simply stopped communicating. No word since that initial communication and ultimately no bike for an underprivileged kid who would have really appreciated it. 

​I recently interviewed one of the top rainmakers at an 800+ attorney law firm for an upcoming article I plan to write on how professionals become rainmakers in the professional services world. He said that building a business is not about selling but rather caring. He added that if you truly care about your business relationships, demonstrate it. 

​As you plan for your business growth next year, how much energy are you focusing on finding GREAT clients rather than MORE clients?
 
Several professionals who I coached this past year dealt with too many PITA (Pain in the A$$) clients. These are new clients we’re eager to land because they initially look attractive but turn into a drain on time, energy, and margins. PITAs demand lower rates, complain on a regular basis, and never pay for additional work.

​My father-in-law once told me that there are four major contributors to stress – moving, getting married, having a kid, and changing jobs. A few years ago, I managed to squeeze all four into one year. To make matters even more interesting, I was laid off from my prior employer. 

​I was speaking with one of my clients, Andrea, yesterday about whether she sends out handwritten thank-you cards during this time of year to her important clients and contacts. She replied “I don’t just do that. I make homemade toffee, fudge and cookies for my clients. It’s a pain in the butt, but still worth it.” 

Recently I walked away mentally exhausted from a conversation with a gentleman who I met for the first time. I will call him Bob for the sake of this discussion. Bob was a nice guy, but his biggest problem was that the conversation was all about Bob. Don't get me wrong, Bob asked me questions about me, but I never got the feeling that he wanted to hear my answers. Often he would look away or look over my shoulder while I answered. I kept thinking to myself, "is he THAT bored with me already, or is he just easily distracted like my labrador, Jax?"