I was recently interviewed for a very interesting book, “The Masters of Consulting Interviews: 9 Interviews with the World’s Leading Consultants.”
There are a lot of consultants out there. I affectionately refer to them as “unemployed, but with skills and a business card.” They are looking for a job, but to make ends meet they are selling their services as a “consultant” on a contract basis until a full-time job comes along.
This book is not about them.
Michael Zipursky from Business Consulting Buzz put this book together to capture the best practices of trusted advisers and professional consultants. Through these 9 interviews, he covered a broad-ranging set of topics like:
- How to make money, charge and create a sense of value?
- How do you find new prospects after you have tapped every person you ever met?
- What are typical mistakes, misunderstandings and misconceptions about the role of a consultant?
- What is expertise, how do you value it and how do you claim your own?
If you think about just this sample, it doesn’t take very long to figure out that this is about a lot more than just consulting. The applications for revenue generators and professional sales people is immediately apparent.
I am Interview #6 and to be honest, I don’t pull any punches. I am a fairly jaded past purchaser of consulting services and can tell you quickly whether a consultant brings value or just billable hours. I try to cover that value equation in my interview.
I encourage you to pick up a copy if you are in the business of generating individual trust with clients and securing their commitment to value at a 1:1 level.