The Client Letter
November 12, 2013
The Desert of Arizona
Sunny 56 Degrees
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If you’re too nice, today’s message is for you.
I’ve discovered that there’s no cure for NGS (nice guy syndrome.) So if you have a bad case of it, and you’re looking for a quick fix, I don’t have much but bad news for you.
There’s no pill, cream or treatment that can take that away.
It’s either just part of who you are, or a symptom of the fear you’re really feeling inside.
Regardless, there’s no quick or painless way to change it.
But here’s the good news.
You don’t have to change it. You don’t have to act gruff, or grow a spine in a day, or pretend to be someone you’re not, or even get over your fear of rejection by next week.
You can just be yourself, with one small little change.
All you have to do is create a series of processes that take your ability to be your nice guy self off the table.
Have trouble spitting out large numbers in the presence of your clients to be? Then do it all in writing. Set a fee basement, write it down.
Not sure you can stand up to the pressure of your new client and give yourself adequate time to work on the project? Then set your “delivery schedule” where you lay it all out, in writing, before you even have the conversation.
Think of all of the times your “nice guy syndrome” caused you to fold and make dumb decisions in order to “please” your client… write all of those things down and then ask yourself this question:
“How can I create and document a process to ensure that this never happens again.”
You’ve been a “nice guy” (or gal) for wayyyy too long. Don’t change it. Just figure out how to make it pay.