

#15: Be prepared
Consultants should have imbibed rule #15 with their mothers’ milk: Be prepared. Assume, you get a speaker placement at a conference. As a matter of course, you should use time – a lot of time – to prepare your presentation. … Continue reading #15: Be prepared

#14: Admit failure and learn from it
Success is the sum of all failures. To turn failure in success, one has to learn from mistakes. And to learn from, means to admit failure. First admit. Then analyze. Find the cause. Find out when and what went wrong. … Continue reading #14: Admit failure and learn from it

#13: Accept failure
Michael Jordon – probably the best basketball player ever – ones stated “I can accept failure, but I can’t accept not trying.” Thomas Edison – mostly known for inventing the light bulb – told “I have not failed. I’ve just … Continue reading #13: Accept failure

#12: Be human, not superhuman
All business is personal. Especially consulting business. Clients often do not hire consultants best fitting to a certain job. Clients normally hire consultants they like having around; those they feel most comfortable being with; those they will probably enjoy working … Continue reading #12: Be human, not superhuman

#11: Don’t tell an old cowboy how to ride
In the wild west, everyone – and especially greenhorns – knew and followed rule #11: Don’t tell an old cowboy how to ride. Or in german: “Du sollst einem alten Trapper nicht in seinen Colt pissen.” But incredibly, many consultants … Continue reading #11: Don’t tell an old cowboy how to ride

#10: Avoid the fights you know you’ll loose
Growing up on the streets, kids learn to fight at an early age. They go through some hard lessons. They fight. They win sometimes. They loose often. Getting older og streetwise, these kids become more and more cynical. Reputation, status … Continue reading #10: Avoid the fights you know you’ll loose

#9: Repeat, repeat, repeat
And another quite typical setting in a consultant’s daily life: You’ve been working hard for several days, weeks or months with an improvement program or a business proposal. You described concrete actions. You defined a detailed implementation plan. You calculated … Continue reading #9: Repeat, repeat, repeat

#8: Dress like your client, speak like your client, smell like your client
Rule #8 has its origin in farming. A cattle herd would never accept cows which do not have the same stable smell. Cows need a special stable odor which signals the rest of the herd that they belong to the same … Continue reading #8: Dress like your client, speak like your client, smell like your client

#7: Make yourself understood
Almost everyone has been in this situation before: You try to explain your case but the listeners don’t understand it. You try again. But still – no understanding. You try again – this time with other words. But still – … Continue reading #7: Make yourself understood

#6: You must be present to win
Everybody is nearly constantly connected to internet services. Sales of smartphones and tablets rise. Every minute new mobile apps are released. The “cloud” is getting bigger and bigger. Smartphones are not longer just a gadget but for some people a … Continue reading #6: You must be present to win

#5: Who serves, rules!
Tennis players know this for real. Consultants should know this rule too: Who serves, rules! Writing a meeting protocol doesn’t really sound like the most exciting task for a consultant. Preparing some nice Powerpoint slides for the Top Management neither. Setting … Continue reading #5: Who serves, rules!

#4: Leave footprints
“One who walks in another’s tracks leaves no footprints.” This proverb fits perfectly for consultants too. For a consultant it’s important that clients recognize your results, perceive your contribution and appreciate your work you do with them or for them. … Continue reading #4: Leave footprints

#3: Walk the talk
Consultants love talking. Mostly in big words. Mostly accompanied by Powerpoint or Keynote presentations. But actions speak louder than words. So here’s rule #3: Walk the talk. It’s quite easy to propose actions when you don’t have to perform them. … Continue reading #3: Walk the talk

#2: Make your customer shine
Many consultants try to play a lead role and being in the spotlight. However – smart consultants practise rule #2: Make your customer shine. Instead of appearing smarter – better – more important than your customer, ones focus should always … Continue reading #2: Make your customer shine

#1: Customer is king
It may sound pretty trivial – but this should be the most important consulting rule ever: Customer is king. It’s that simple. It’s that obvious. Nevertheless many consultants forget that customers’ needs should come first. Therefor – rule #1: Customer … Continue reading #1: Customer is king