The Desert of Arizona
Sunny 54 Degrees
If you’ve been a Client Letter reader for any length of time, you know there are a lot of annoying issues that can come up working with clients.
You also probably know that I firmly believe it’s we service providers (NOT the clients) that are responsible for creating most of them.
These issues can lead to a lot of emotional distress in the life of a well meaning service provider.
Today, let’s get rid of that.
The way you fix it is with a process.
Think of any annoying client situation that keeps happening to you.
- Late payments?
- Lack of respect?
- Pressure for too many meetings?
- Downward pressure on fees?
Doesn’t matter what the issue is, you can fix it with a process. This was one of the big topics in the Client Management training I did not long ago.
A process means you think through things before hand. You either KEEP the annoying thing from happening, or you have a predetermined response for it.
That way, you don’t put yourself through any sort of emotional turmoil trying to figure out what to do.
The “process” allows you to detach emotionally and just execute on the process.
Take a look at the stuff that is driving you nuts. Then ask yourself, “What type of process would have to be in place for this to never happen again?”
That question will lead to good things.