How to be a good consultant-Principle 4 of 7
7 principles of Professional Services
Being a Consultant is not an easy job and there is a reason why Consultants are handsomely paid.
When a team hires an external Consultant, they expect that they provide more value than their own team members. A consultant carries this burden of high expectations on his shoulders throughout the time of their engagement.
Anyone who wants to become a Consultant must read “The Seven Principles of Professional Services” by Shane Anastasi. I was lucky that I got referred to this book by one of my colleagues.
These 7 principles now act as a constant reminder to help me become more valuable with my services.
I would highly recommend buying this book and reading it multiple times. (Please note that I am not affiliated with this book. These are my personal opinions)
In this story, I have noted down key takeaways for the 4th Principle from the book which says “Have Difficult Conversations Early”. This in no way covers all the important points mentioned in the book. I have only noted down the ones that are most relevant from my point of view.
Principle 4: Have Difficult Conversations Early
Focus Area: Delivering engagements successfully
Customer’s Trusted Advisor
When you see something problematic, you should step up and have a difficult conversation with the aim to highlight the problem and also with an intention to get it resolved.
Such conversations will be difficult as they may cause disappointment and as a result of the disappointment, you will be at the receiving end of an emotional burst. But in the long run, these conversations will only help get you and your customer successful.
Despite the challenges that you’ll face, such instances will make you the customer’s trusted advisor.
Timeliness of resolution
As stated also in the previous principles, any misaligned expectation should be brought to notice to the customer as early as possible. Any delay in resolving the misalignment will cost more as time progresses.
Differentiating Important vs Urgent
As a consultant, your focus should be only on important and urgent matters. There will be many distractions that may fill in your backlog with urgent matters. Always question if they are really urgent and important. Filter out the ones that are unimportant.
What is important is seldom urgent and what is urgent is seldom important — Dwight D. Eisenhower
Be careful with how you deliver an uncomfortable message
The customer may have been warned by you for doing something that is not correct but they may not have listened to you. When the project ends up at a place which you had expected, avoid saying “I told you so!” Instead, start by saying “Let’s not dwell too long on why this happened.”
Structure tough conversations using Empathy, Understanding and Resolution
- Show empathy for the customer’s situation and let them vent without interrupting.
- Demonstrate a clear understanding from all perspectives. Note that understanding doesn’t mean agreeing. The primary objective is to gather as many perspectives as possible from the people involved.
- Take ownership of the resolution of the situation.
Calm and Constructive
When unexpected situations arise, always remember to be Calm and Constructive.
Losing your cool can divert your energies over irrelevant issues and you will quickly lose your Trusted Advisor status.
Read about the next principle here:
