So, this space here… our blog… is a place of candor, truth, and strategy. If you’ve not been around very long, you may start to notice that — in an effort to protect the “guilty” — I often wait a few months before posting a business story we can all learn from. Sometimes I’ll fudge the “location” of a particular “offender” or their sex. (He becomes she, etc. lol…)
While I get TONS of emails saying, “OMG.. I read your blog and I know you’re talking about me…” I’m really not. =) As an aside, I recently sent my pastor a similar email about one of HIS blogs. RAW TRUTH has a way of making us feel like someone’s been in our junk drawers.
Here, we’re in the junk drawer of your business. And, just so you know. I “sat” on this particular post for almost a full year.
So, I have a pet peeve about having my time wasted and a disdain for being lied to. When you waste my time by lying to me, we have a problem.
If you are in business and you want to make more money, create more leverage for your time (so you can make more money) or FINALLY start to be paid what you’re worth — I can help you. But, the most important thing you can tell me is THE TRUTH.
So, here’s the story. A person was referred to me for some help. When I met with said person, I was in NO POSITION to waste any time. I was busy. I wasn’t taking on any more private consulting clients and I secretly wondered if I’d ever get to the people on my Private Client Wait List. I had two events coming up and reasoned that while I couldn’t work with her directly, I could perhaps help by inviting her into one of these events.
I agree to speak with her. In this conversation, she paints a picture of being a proud business owner who LOVES what she does and wants to consult with others in her specific industry. She makes the following claims: zero debt, thriving business, desire to help others.
Only ONE of my upcoming events was a fit, but it was a perfect fit. I make the invite. She says yes. Then, I never hear from her anymore. I have zero time or inclination to find out “what happened.”
Fast forward about a year. Said person “pops up” again to thank me for my support. (Evidently still on my newsletter list.) She then writes how sorry she was that she couldn’t take advantage of my services “back then” and confides that she was IN DEBT, ready to close her doors and desperate. (Not EXACTLY the picture painted before, right? And CERTAINLY not someone I’d recommend others FOLLOW!!!)
Continuing, she tells me what changed in her business — which had nothing to do with marketing or mindset or sales or anything she did or created. It was really a fluke, lucky, very unsustainable circumstance. NOW, she says, she’s ready. She’s ready to work with me.
What????
I was in disbelief. You mean, last year, when my schedule was GASPING for air, you just made up stories to tell me for a full 90 minutes? And now, you want to enter in a trusting, working relationship? Essentially, she forgot all that she’d told me before.
The truth is, while I know she’s an extreme case, I also know that admitting you need help, direction, guidance is tough. I’ve been there before and will be there again. In business, in marriage, in other areas as well.
But know this: Asking for help demonstrates YOUR COMMITMENT to your goals. Being willing to tell the TRUTH about where you are is a giant leap towards where you really WANT to be. Like an addict lying about their addiction tells that they’re not ready for change… so too does being a business owner “playing pretend.”
I have no room for pretense. Neither do the savvy entrepreneurs that work with me. Life’s too short and the speed of business is too swift.
So, for today, find someone and tell the TRUTH about your business. What’s going well? What’s frustrating the heck out of you? What MUST change? What do you want? What is NOT working? Where do you need the most help? Because telling the TRUTH is the first step. From there, I PROMISE, there is a sales and marketing solution that will change everything for you.
