CAREER-PHYSICIAN, HEAL THYSELF: TAKING YOUR OWN MEDICINE (November/December 2001 Issue)

"Don't have your clients do things you haven't done yourself."--Dick Bolles

When I began in this career consulting business and told John Crystal I'd like to do what he was doing, he said, "Jack, I've seen a lot of zealous novices--people who finish my workshop and say 'I want to do this, too!' But you can't teach others something you haven't experienced yourself. Use my training and change careers--then, if you still want to be a career consultant, make me a proposal."

In so many words, he was saying, "Practice what you preach." In marketing terms, this can be called the "attraction principle."

Career consultants who do for themselves what they preach to their clients--who have clearly written long- and short-term goals; who can articulate their skill set (services) in under 120 seconds; who negotiate for their full market value; who network constantly to achieve solid visibility and credibility in their field; who tap into their passion and continually rework their work to keep that passion alive; who spend/invest in their professional development through career- and personal-growth-trainings, and who do it with as much career satisfaction and success as possible--those consultants "attract" business. Put another way, they use the "attraction principle" to build their practice.

On the other hand, some counselors employ what might be called the "promotion principle." In short, their energies and money are invested in promoting themselves--sending out brochures, placing ads--with very little attention paid to self-development in their field. While on the surface this looks like necessary work, it backfires: these counselors have more trouble closing sales because their prospects have no hard evidence they've ever actually been "in the trenches."

But step into those trenches with care, because practicing what you preach is harder than it sounds. Neglect one element, and the "attraction" loses some of its luster--and the element neglected most, even by dedicated career counselors, is networking.

We preach to our clients to network. They're told to make sure that the real players in their field know who and how good they are. Yet, even though the biggest complaint/fear private practitioners express is isolation, only a small percentage of those "isolated" counselors make the consistent effort to break out and find and form professional relationships with colleagues. This error is not for you. To grow your business by the attraction principle, keep building your reputation within your field.

Now, this doesn't mean you have to crow about your capabilities to every career consultant you know! It means that you seek to form a few good relationships. It means finding at least three to five other career consultants with whom you can let your hair down, "tell it like it is," problem-solve, laugh, support, giggle, "Ah hah," get new perspectives, celebrate or commiserate--as the case may be--and share all the ups and downs of your businesses.

How do you make the "attraction principle" happen for you? Take these four steps.

One: Decide firmly that you will make it so.

Two: think of a counselor who is way ahead of you in the "game" and see if that person will give you some time as a professional courtesy. Explore ways you could remain in communication with them in a way that would benefit both you. (Paying for consulting is one way, but there are many others. Some people really enjoy mentoring others as they were mentored themselves in days past.)

Three: select ten people you respect who are about at your competency level, give or take a little, and set up an exploratory interview with them (by phone if necessary) asking the open-ended question, "If we were to be support people for each other in some way, what might that look like?"

Four: be prepared for rejection, change, disappointment, and glory. This loose group you're forming will consist of real, live people who are sinners just like you. They've got foibles, pride, envy, fear, and beautifully neurotic parts of themselves that just may not "click" with you as you had hoped. Fritz Perls says, "If perchance we meet, it's beautiful; if not, it can't be helped." Your persistence, though, will find a set of relationships that not only work, but enhance your success in ways you couldn't have possibly predicted.

In addition to the above "do-it-yourself" method, there's another opportunity available. I have formed a Teleconferencing CADRE that is designed to be peer support & problem solving for each other. We meet by phone (and occasionally in person) several times over the year. We encourage, strategize, share, problem-solve, and support each others' success. If you are in private practice and wish to participate in this CADRE, get in touch with me right away. There are a few prerequisites, but even in the case that you don't meet the requirements, I can probably help you get connected with other like minded people to form a support system for yourself.

Best of success to you.

Jack Chapman is author of:
Negotiating Your Salary: How to Make $1000 a Minute
He is a career consultant in private practice and runs ongoing support and training teleconference sessions for career consultants in private practice.
He can be reached at 847-251-4727 or jkchapman@aol.com.