Unleashed - How to Thrive as an Independent Professional

Today we welcome back David A. Fields, the author of The Irresistible Consultant’s Guide to Winning Clients: 6 Steps to Unlimited Clients & Financial Freedom. David was my very first guest, on Episode 1, when we covered many of the topics in his book. https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-1-david-fields-on-winning-clients/ In Episode 170, David shared tips on how to make outbound calls: https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-170-david-fields-on-how-to-make-outbound-calls/ In Episode 172, David explained how to set up a CRM system for a small consulting practice: https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-172-david-fields-on-how-to-set-up-a-crm-system/ And in Episode 190, David discussed what makes for a successful consulting partnership: https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-190-david-fields-on-what-makes-for-a-successful-consulting-partnership/ In today’s episode, David and I riff on tips to increase the chances of converting a possible consulting opportunity into a confirmed project. Definitely buy David’s book if you haven’t already, and check out his website, davidafields.com. I love his weekly blog posts and if you visit his blog and scroll down, you can sign up to get his blog posts delivered right to your inbox – it is the first email I read every Wednesday morning.

Our guest today is Paul Millerd, who has been on the show before, on Episode 62. It was great to welcome Paul back to hear what he has been up to. I’m so inspired by Paul, who has been incredibly deliberate about designing a life.  He has built a practice that allows him to work completely remotely, and recently left home in Boston to spend a stretch of time working in Bali and then in Japan and now in Taiwan. He has developed several online courses with over 4,500 students on Udemy alone, he writes a very popular weekly newsletter that I love, and he is incredibly generous with his time: on his website you can book time to have a “curiosity conversation” with Paul; he has spoken with hundreds of people around the world who have reached out to him in this way. Check out Paul’s website, think-boundless.com Follow him on Twitter @p_millerd  Check out the consulting skills course he created at strategy.co https://strategyu.co/ Paul has written one of the most authoritative articles on the evolution of consulting talent platforms, and I’ll include a link to that piece in the show notes: https://think-boundless.com/the-failed-promise-of-freelance-consulting-talent-platforms/ Email me at unleashed@umbrex.com and I'll add send you the weekly Unleashed email that includes a summary of each episode and bonus material.  

Ripa Rashid is the Managing Director at Culture At Work, which works with Global 500 organizations to build cultural change strategies to maximize their Diversity and Inclusion efforts while generating positive business results. Ripa is the coauthor of three books: Disrupt Bias, Drive Value (Center for Talent Innovation, 2017), Growing Global Executives: The New Competencies (Center for Talent Innovation, 2015), and Winning the War for Talent in Emerging Markets: Why Women Are the Solution (Harvard Business Review Press, 2011) She is featured often in the media as a thought leader, and has appeared on BBC, NPR, CNN, CNBC, Harvard Business Review, and Bloomberg. She is cited widely in mainstream and management publications such as The Economist, Forbes, Huffington Post, Newsweek, New York Times, Washington Post, The Times of India, Hindustan Times, HR Matters and South China Morning Post. In this episode Ripa explains to me what the research shows on the benefits of increasing diversity in the workplace, and what diversity and inclusion initiatives tend to be the most successful.

Nir Eyal was my guest on Episode 200 of this show. I found his message so important that I asked Nir to discuss his latest book, Indistractable, at an Umbrex Presents event, which took place October 28, 2019. This episode is Nir's complete live talk to a capacity crowd at StandUpNY, followed by a Q&A period. Subscribers of the weekly Unleashed email receive private invitations to register for Umbrex Presents events before the general public. To subscribe, email unleashed@umbrex.com

In Episode 213, Will Bachman discussed how to source experts for interviews - either using an expert network or by doing the work yourself. Listener Gary C. asked if consultants should sign up with expert networks as the one to be interviewed. This episode answers his question, in three parts: Will your expertise be useful to the people who are asking the questions Are you likely to get selected for an interview What are the costs and benefits of joining as an expert – so is it worth your time To connect with Will Bachman on LinkedIn, visit:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/willbachman/ Every week we send out an email to subscribers with summaries of each Unleashed episode, transcripts, and bonus materials. To sign up, email unleashed@umbrex.com

David Minifie is the Chief Experience Officer and Executive Vice President of Corporate Strategy at Centene Corporation. Centene is a Fortune 500 company that provides a portfolio of services to government sponsored healthcare programs. In this episode, David explains to me the role and responsibilities of a Chief Experience Officer, which includes and expands the responsibilities he previously held as the Chief Marketing Officer. You can learn more about Centene on their website, centene.com And you can see more of David’s background on his LinkedIn profile – a link is in the show notes. https://www.linkedin.com/in/c-david-minifie-50250a/ Each week we send an email with summaries of the latest Unleashed episodes, transcripts of each episode, and bonus materials. To subscribe, email unleashed@umbrex.com To connect with Will Bachman on LinkedIn, visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/willbachman/  

What should you say when you are meeting for the first time with an individual at a client you are already serving? Here's the approach I've used the past few years:  “I’d be happy to provide context on the project, but I don’t want to go over material you are already familiar with. What have you already heard about this effort?” In this episode, I explain why I use that question. Every week I send out an email with summaries of each Unleashed episode, transcripts of each episode, and often some bonus material. If you’d like to receive it, send me a note at unleashed@umbrex.com  

I was chatting with an independent consultant at an event last night, and he told me, “I’m having a hard time finding project opportunities, and I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. I’ve got three decades of experience, so usually if I sit down with someone and talk to them about their business, I’m able to find a way that I can be helpful, but I’m not getting the opportunity to have those conversations.” This short episode was my response. Every week I send out an email with summaries of each Unleashed episode, transcripts of each episode, and often some bonus material. If you’d like to receive it, send me a note at unleashed@umbrex.com

In this episode, Will Bachman explains how to source experts to interview for a consulting project. The episode covers: 1) How to work with expert networks such as AlphaSights, GLG, and Third Bridge and 2) How to source experts on your own using LinkedIn and other channels We cover: - How to identify the populations to be sourced - How to work with a researcher to generate a list of targets - How much to pay experts - Whether to record the call - Detailed tips on a Google tracking sheet Bonus material: To receive a sample tracking sheet, sign up for the weekly Unleashed email by emailing Will Bachman at unleashed@umbrex.com

Umbrex member Ushma Pandya is the Co-Founder and Partner at Think Zero Inc, an environmental consulting firm supporting businesses' waste reduction and diversion goals. In this episode, Ushma walks me through the stages of a typical waste reduction project, and shares some of the surprising things she has found in the recycling bin. You can learn more about her firm at: https://thinkzerollc.com/ To receive the weekly Unleashed email that includes a summary of each episode, transcripts, and bonus features, send Will Bachman an email at unleashed@umbrex.com