Why You MUST Track Your Rainmaking Results


How do you track the results you get from your business development efforts?
 I recently spoke with a potential client and asked that question.  Her response?  “I don’t need to track my results.  I know what’s working.”  She had a $25,000 book of business, and based on our conversation, I suspect she could triple that relatively quickly just by getting clear on what was and wasn’t working in her rainmaking.

When you’re working on legal business development, having some sense of which activities are profitable is extremely important as you determine whether to discontinue or to increase your involvement with that activity.  Unfortunately, an informal, memory-based, qualitative system for tracking results is not sufficient.  Memories fade and may be inaccurate.  Just as mental tracking is unreliable for balancing a checkbook, it is insufficient for making decisions about business development activity.

Every lawyer should have a client intake routine that includes determining how that client became aware of you and your practice.  Consider incorporating into your client intake form a question that asks, “How did you find out about me/this firm?”

If you work in a larger firm that does not use intake forms, consider creating your own form that requests the information and gathers information about how and when a client wants to be contacted, who else should be kept apprised of the matter’s progress, and other information that will help you deliver better client service.  And if you’d prefer to avoid forms altogether, create an intake checklist so you make certain to ask these questions.

This insight from business performance improvement expert Dr. H. James Harrington applies directly to business development for lawyers:

Measurement is the first step that leads to control and eventually to improvement.  If you can’t measure something, you can’t understand it.  If you can’t understand it, you can’t control it.  If you can’t control it, you can’t improve it.

How important is it to track your results?  According to one consultant, two out of The Ten Most Effective Law Marketing Techniques deal with tracking (numbers 3 and 10).  While I might word my top 10 list differently, there’s no doubt that knowing what is and is not working is critical if you want to grow your practice.

Extra tip for law firm marketing:  if you’re hoping to increase your firm’s or team’s business development results, one of the first steps you should put into place is tracking what each team member is doing and what results those activities are generating.  Not only will you have better information about which activities work, but you’ll also get much-needed information about which team members are putting in the appropriate effort, where their strengths lie, and how you can help them to be more successful.

How do you track your results?  If you’d like to get a baseline of your business development effectiveness plus tips for your next steps, take the 20-question Law Practice Profitability Audit.  There’s no charge, and you’ll get insight into what you’re doing well plus where you can improve and how to do so.  Completing the assessment will take about 5 minutes, and you’ll get a personalized report delivered by email as soon as you submit your responses.  Visit this page to get started.

Legal Business Development: Do this & never compete on price again


Warning:  Being a fungible billing unit is bad for growing your law practice!

I’ve written previously on finding your Unique Service Proposition, which distinguishes you from other lawyers (and non-lawyers) serving your ideal clients’ legal needs.  In that article, I noted that if you are one of a pool of fungible practitioners, you’ll be forced to rely on other ways of distinguishing your practice–including, perhaps, competing on price.

In today’s cost-conscious environment, many lawyers feel that they must compete on price.  (Note that this issue applies to all lawyers, regardless of the size of firm or sophistication of practice.)  No savvy client will pay an undeserved premium, and clients seem to hold the advantage in hiring lawyers these days.  But competing on price is not the only option.

Other lawyers struggle to find a reason why a potential client should choose them over someone else.  Personal connections make a difference, and many lawyers feel most skilled in landing business after a face-to-face consultation.  But getting to that point may seem daunting.

When it comes to marketing, if you feel like you’re just one of a large number of fungible billing units, you’ll have trouble standing out from your competitors in a way that will be appealing to potential clients.

The common thread?  The belief, All of the lawyers in my practice area are the same.

At first blush, this may be true.  You most likely have the same education and similar experience (though the depth of that experience may differ), and most lawyers would say that they are strategic, good listeners, responsive, and smart.  Fair enough.

Your task is to dig deeper and find what sets you apart from others in your practice so that your potential clients and referral sources know what makes you the best lawyer for their specific needs.  Without a clear point of differentiation, you are simply one of many fungible lawyers, which makes your business development job more difficult.

When searching for what makes you different, consider these examples:

  • Does (or should) your practice focus on some subset of clients or issues?  For example, you might be an employment attorney who focuses on the food service industry.
  • Do you have previous experience or education that is particularly relevant to your practice?  For example, if you do white collar defense and you previously prosecuted such cases with the Department of Justice, that insight will distinguish you from other defense attorneys.
  • Do you approach your cases in an unusual way?  For example, you might offer a collaborative approach.  In some practice areas, flat fee billing or a retainer engagement would be a distinctive form of practice.
  • What skills or resources do you have that benefit your clients?  Consider fluency in a foreign language, a wide network of advisors and service providers you can refer to your clients, or a familiarity with a foreign legal system that’s relevant to your practice.

When you determine what sets you apart from others who practice in the area of law that you do, you lay the groundwork for business development activity that is both distinctive and appealing.  But remember:  the touchstone of these points of distinction must be usefulness to your clients.  You should not market based on your skill in rock-climbing, because it will not benefit clients–unless you have a niche practice in representing individuals who suffered injury on rock climbs and now seek to sue an expedition leader.

Questions for you to consider today:  What sets you apart in a way that your clients value?  How can you capitalize on that attribute or experience in your marketing?

Tips to Simplify Legal Newsletters


Newsletters offer a way to stay in contact with a large number of contacts easily, consistently, and productively.
 Newsletters focus on substantive information, and assuming you’ve defined your areas of practice carefully enough, your content will be valuable to recipients and therefore welcome.  Better yet, if your topics are timely and if you include an appropriate call to action, you may even receive requests for assistance on matters related to your writing.

Most firms have multiple newsletters tailored to their various areas of practice, often with multiple contributors.  Whether you’re responsible for coordinating the content for your firm’s (or team’s) newsletter or you’re a sole practitioner with soup-to-nuts responsibility for the newsletter, you’ve probably had more than a few hair-raising moments wondering how you can possibly get it all done.  (And if your firm doesn’t have a newsletter, I can virtually guarantee that fear is the top reason why not.)

So, let’s make newsletters simple.  These five tips and resources will reduce the time and angst required to produce a newsletter that delivers results.

Repurpose presentations and articles you have written for publication elsewhere into newsletter content.  Shorter articles tend to be more useful, especially in electronic newsletters, so you can often get several issues of content from a single article.

  1. Keep a list of generic questions your clients ask and turn the responses into newsletter articles.  You must make certain that no one interprets your article as legal advice for them (check your local ethics rules to be sure you’re in compliance) but with appropriate language, you can easily create useful information based on frequently asked questions.
  2. Use social media to “listen” for topics you should cover.  You may find news or op-ed pieces you’d like to address, and by catching hot topics, you’re increasing the chance that your readers will be interested.
  3. Include the “so what” for news.  It’s hard to offer unique breaking news that isn’t being covered by journalists, bloggers, and other newsletters, but you can one-up many other reports by including some analysis and commentary of the news.  In other words, let others handle the details of who, what, when, where, and how.  You focus on the why and so what.
  4. Source your content from a good outside vendor.  In the past, I would not have recommended using pre-written articles because they’re generally easy to identify a mile away.  Generic and often not written for the audience to whom they’re sent, bad pre-written articles that are simply dropped into a template will not help your marketing efforts and may indeed inflict terminal damage.

But I recently learned about a content provider that offers well-written articles that can (and really should) be edited so that they offer good information with your unique voice and perspective.

Insight in Motion, an offering from Amicus Media, offers articles written by lawyers on topics currently including estate planning, family law, bankruptcy, immigration, and personal injury.  (I’ve urged them to include intellectual property soon–we’ll see!)  I’ve reviewed the articles and I’m impressed with the information presented and the way the content is presented.

Offering two levels of subscriptions based on the number of legal articles you need each month and number of practice areas, Insight in Motion provides a “keep it simple” approach at a reasonable price.  Even better, the company will create a customized newsletter template and send your newsletters if you’d like.  The content can even be published on your firm’s website or blog.

I took a thorough tour of the system and asked the same questions you likely would, and I’m impressed.  If your practice falls within the areas that Insight in Motion covers and you’ve been holding off on creating a newsletter, this may be your golden opportunity.

For more information on Insight in Motion, visit this page.

And in case you’re wondering:  no, I will not receive any affiliate fees or other incentive if you enroll in Insight in Motion.

Which of these tips can you use to make your newsletter strategy simpler?

Networking Secret: We tend to like people who like us.

This month, I’ve selected quotes from some terrific blog posts about relationship.  Read the quotes, and then go check out these posts.  They’re too good to miss.

We all like people who like us.  If I show you I’m genuinely happy to meet you, you’ll instantly start to like me.  (And you’ll show that you do, which will help calm my nerves and let me be myself.)
~Jeff Haden, 6 Habits of Remarkably Likable People

A few might dispute the notion, but most will agree — relationship trumps everything.

Whether in the business or personal arena, relationship provides the context in which almost everything is interpreted.  It influences judgment and defines value.
~Eric Fletcher, Deliver the Experience or Lose the Relationship

Social media is the perfect medium for someone like me — someone who’s an introvert, a bit on the shy side, and prefers to have the safety of being behind a computer screen rather than face-to-face.
~Lindsay Griffiths, Taking it Offline 

Business Development: Sales and Service


One of the primary objections lawyers have to business development is that business development equals sales, and “sales” is a four-letter word.
 (Sometimes the stereotype of math-challenged lawyers does stick!)  The word may conjure the stereotypical used car salesman, ready to unload a lemon just to make a quick buck.  And, of course, no one wants to be a part of that kind of sale–to sell or to buy.

A sale, however, only refers to the exchange of money for a good or service.  There’s nothing unprofessional or sleazy about that.  The distaste we feel for sales comes from how the sale is made, not from the fact of the sale itself.

If ethically questionable business development tactics are repellent to you, you will likely take great care to avoid engaging in them.  Be certain by reading your jurisdiction’s ethics rules, and make a note to reread them at least annually since rules and commentary may change.  In most cases, you will find the rules broad enough to encompass any type of activity you might choose to do.  If you have any question, you’ll need to find answers before you proceed, since this is not the place to hope or assume something is acceptable.  Most of the time, within a few well-understood rules, you won’t even wonder.

The bigger concern, then, is not about ethics but rather about appearance.  Does your business development activity look (or feel) pushy?  Desperate?  Obnoxious?  Would someone view the fact or the substance of your business development activity or materials as an indication that your practice is not doing well?  Is there anything unprofessional about business development or marketing?  These are the real questions.

Business development done well is never pushy, desperate, obnoxious, unprofessional, or anything remotely similar.

Consider this:  when you approach your business development activity from the perspective of service, you will almost certainly come across in a positive way.  Service calls on you to explore the potential client’s situation and objectives, to share your skill and experience in the area, perhaps to make some initial suggestions on approach, and to determine whether a good match exists between the potential client’s needs and what you have to offer.

Business development, at its most successful, is an exploratory conversation.  Both sides bring information to the table, and both seek information and a sense of comfort from the other.  If there’s a match, business results.  If not, you have formed a connection that may lead to a referral, or work in the future.

If you approach business development from need (as in, I’ve gotta have this business to make payroll or to make partner), the lines become blurred.  An unspoken self-interest may cloud your ability to explore the potential client’s needs or to give a fair evaluation of the matter’s merits or your ability to meet the need.  The same self-interest may blind you to warning signs about the client:  hints of an inappropriately demanding or unrealistic outlook, signs of inability or unwillingness to pay your fee, or a fundamental philosophical mismatch.

The risk of appearing pushy, obnoxious, or desperate comes into play when self-interest controls the conversation.  It’s up to you whether your business development and marketing activity will seem unprofessional.

When you come first from an attitude of service (even when you also really want the fee or the client relationship), you’ll put the relationship before the retention.  In doing so, you will avoid the risk of feeling like you are being aggressive (as opposed to assertive), too eager (as opposed to deliberate), or rash.

What’s your primary motivation today:  service or self-interest?

Track Your Results, Grow Your Practice


My clients often tell me that they don’t need to track rainmaking results, that they just know what’s working and what isn’t.
 Keeping records may seem inconvenient and unnecessary.  In reality, though, simple tracking will help you to get better results in business development.

If you’re getting new business, you know something is working, but you may not know what.  If you don’t track your rainmaking activity and results, you risk three problems:

  • You may find it difficult to make a rational decision about whether to continue an activity.  Without data on whether a particular effort is paying off, how can you know whether your investment is worthwhile?
  • You may overlook a valuable source of new business.  For example, one of my clients reported that an acquaintance sent him three potential clients in a ten-month period, yielding income of close to $30,000.  If he hadn’t tracked where that business came from, he might not have been able to express his appreciation and further develop the relationship, which in turn led to even more business.
  • You may mistake luck for skill.  Beginner’s luck isn’t limited to card games, nor is it limited to beginners.  Sometimes new business comes flooding in for coincidental reasons.  Without tracking the source of the business, there’s a risk of overlooking the coincidence, focusing on the results, and reducing activity.  The consequence?  A drop in business when luck dries up and skill has not taken its place.

Many lawyers believe that having a sense of how new business comes to them is good enough.  And for a handful of lawyers, that may be true.  In most cases, though, an informal, memory-based, qualitative system for tracking results is not dependable.

Memories fade and may be inaccurate.  Just as mental tracking is unreliable for balancing a checkbook, it is insufficient for making decisions about business development activity.  Every lawyer must have a client intake routine that includes determining how that client became aware of you and your practice.

Remember this insight from business performance improvement expert Dr. H. James Harrington:

Measurement is the first step that leads to control and eventually to improvement.  If you can’t measure something, you can’t understand it.  If you can’t understand it, you can’t control it.  If you can’t control it, you can’t improve it.

If you aren’t tracking the sources of your business, start today.  Here’s how:

  • When a potential client contacts you, make sure you or your staff asks how she found you.  When getting this information becomes habit, you’ll start to build useful data.
  • Incorporate questions about how the client came to contact you or your firm into your client intake form.  You may find that you get clearer results if you offer check boxes for the activities you’re engaged in (speaking, a blog, or referral, for example) rather than leaving a blank for the client to complete.
  • If you are working in a larger firm that does not use intake forms, consider creating your own form.  Request sourcing information as well as information about how and when a client wants to be contacted, who else should be kept apprised of the matter’s progress, and other information that will help you to deliver better client service.
Recognize too that your data probably will not be 100% accurate.  Depending on your practice area, some clients may not know how they found you, and some may be unwilling to tell you.  Nevertheless, any information you get will be more useful than a baseless guess.
What records will you keep to track the sources of your new business?

 

Where Are You In Your Rainmaking Journey?


A few years ago, I had to drive to an important business meeting in an unfamiliar city.
 Because this was before I had GPS, I printed out directions before leaving my office, so I had a good idea of where I was going.  The sun was beaming down and my “pump me up” playlist was blaring, and I was feeling really good.

But then I hit an unanticipated obstacle:  a road closed due to construction.  I didn’t know the area and the detour wasn’t well-marked.  Before long, I had no idea how to get from here to there.  I knew which roads I needed to find, but looking at the map was useless because I didn’t know where I was.  So frustrating!

When I talk with lawyers about business development, this story feels all too familiar.  So often, lawyers have a sense of what they’d like to accomplish (the destination) and even how to get there (the directions), but after hitting an obstacle–sometimes even despite a lack of obstacles–what had seemed clear seems confusing.

If you want to succeed in business development, you must:

  • Know where you’re starting. One of my favorite cautions is, “Don’t mistake luck for skill.”  If you’ve had success in landing clients, make sure you know why and how to replicate that.  If it’s sheer luck, you have to find a way to shift that luck into something you can repeat and transform into skill.  What’s going well?  What’s broken?  What questions do you have, and what resources do you need?I created the Law Practice Profitability Audit to simplify this step.  Take the Audit here.

  • Know how you’re going to get from where you are now to where you want to be.  In other words, you need a plan.  You need to be able to describe your ideal clients and referral sources, and you must know how you can reach those people and businesses.  What specific actions will you take to get to your goal?
  • Know the most effective ways to accomplish the tasks on your list.  This is why it’s important to read books and get training on business development topics.  You have to master the skills such as effective networking, speaking and writing that builds your reputation and gets you clients, and asking for business.
  • Take action consistently on your plans.  What you know is important, but what you do is what will make you succeed.  It is not sufficient to take action occasionally or at random times; you must act consistently and persistently.
  • Track your results.  There’s a concept (attributed to Lord Kelvin, among others) that what is measured can be improved.  Without knowing whether an activity is producing results for you, it’s impossible to know whether you should expand it, keep to the status quo, or discontinue it.  While data may be difficult lto gather (especially in high value, low volume practices tend to have a longer “sales cycle”), it’s important that you have at least a qualitative sense of how successful your activity is at moving you closer to your business development goals.

When you have all of these aspects of successful business development in place, you will be able to adjust your plans when you encounter an obstacle.  Equally importantly, you will know how to take advantage of opportunities that present themselves, and you will consistently move toward your rainmaker goals.

What more do you need to succeed, based on this checklist? 

Catching attention, building connections


I recently spent nearly two hours sitting at an airport gate, sitting about 5 feet behind a stand with Delta American Express card representatives.
 You’ve probably seen these stands:  a table to the side of a concourse, with various promotional freebies, application forms neatly stacked, and one or two hawkers, trying desperately to get people to pause and fill out an application.

Annoying, right?  I drowned out the hawker’s calls.  But as I sat reading, I noticed that more people than usual were coming up to this table, and they were staying longer than usual to talk with the card rep.  So I started listening.  And I re-learned something useful.

The average hawker bombards passersby with the “great offer” they simply “can’t pass up”.  But this rep focused on individuals and engaged them:  “You, miss, in the red shirt!  Where are you headed today?”

Some people ignored him, but over and over, people paused, walked to the stand, and talked with the rep.  Some told him about their travel delays.  Others told him about the jobs they were traveling for or the family they were leaving behind.  Several soldiers told him what it’s like to be on leave from duty in the Middle East.  And the marketer listened.  He asked questions and empathized.  He was genuinely present with the people who were talking with him.

After he’d heard some part of their travel story, he’d weave in his offer:  “Man, wouldn’t you like to get an extra 10,000 miles so you can get back to see her more often?”  Sure, the rep was trying to get people to apply for a credit card, but he was doing it by connecting with people, by building a relationship, albeit a brief one.  And almost without exception, the people who stopped in front of the display filled out something, whether a credit card application or a Delta mileage program application.

Observing this guy reminded me of a Maya Angelou quote:  “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”  What I saw was the power of listening and genuine, though brief and superficial, connection.

The contrast was clear when he went on break and another pusher took his place.  This hawker didn’t engage people,  He threw out half-hearted, “Sir, don’t you want some extra SkyMiles today?  It’s a great offer!  You can’t pass it up!  Sir, you flyin’ Delta today?  We’re giving away 10,000 SkyMiles free — for nuthin’!”  But the busy passengers did pass by the table over and over without stopping.  Those who did stop received only the sales pitch, and I’d guess this vendor’s application completion rate was much less than half of the other man’s.

Small sale or large, connection really does pay.  And it doesn’t require a tremendous amount of effort.  It simply requires genuine presence.  Not a bad reminder while waiting in an airport.

How can you apply this insight?  Write your website copy or the introduction to an article from your target read’s point of view.  When talking with a potential client or referral source, ask questions before you talk about your experience and qualifications.  Make it your practice to seek to understand before you seek to be understood.

The Powerful (Marketing) Message You Should Deliver Daily

The statement “I’ve got your back” is one of the most powerful business development messages there is.  When you have someone capable and attentive on your side to offer assistance and cheer you on, you’re likely to be more willing to undertake new, difficult, or risky-feeling activity.

Consider this:  a child learning to walk or to ride a bicycle will often look to a parent to be sure that someone is there to encourage them if they waiver.  We applaud speakers and those receiving awards as a way of saying, “Good job!”  And we’ve probably all called a friend for support after being rejected by a potential client or date, or a job opportunity.  Just about everybody appreciates encouragement and support.

There’s another side to “I’ve got your back”, too:  someone capable who’s in the trenches with you, ready to help.  And that’s where “I’ve got your back” goes from a source of feel good emotional support to a do-good, hands-on promise.  That’s also where it becomes a powerful business development message.

Think about your client’s perspective.  Whether your clients are legally sophisticated large companies or individuals who have never worked with a lawyer or legal problem before, every client wants to know they’re in capable hands.

More importantly, clients want to experience being in capable hands.  That means, for example:

  • Having a lawyer explain the heart and the context of the legal matter, to an extent that feels comfortable to each particular client, and knowing that the lawyer fully understands and appreciates the relevant law and its impact on the client.
  • Having a lawyer who’s proactive in flagging new issues and opportunities
  • Getting calls and emails promptly returned by the lawyer or a knowledgeable staff member
  • Knowing the status of the matter, including the reason for delays or quiet periods in a representation
  • Being billed clearly and appropriately, in accord with expectations
  • Receiving emotionally intelligent communications, whether that’s congratulations or an explanation of what went wrong and why (this is the feel-good side in a business context)

When you convey that you’ve “got a client’s back” through your actions, you’re laying the groundwork for great client service.  You’re building a relationship that’s characterized by respect and support, in the context of legal skill.  That service not only keeps your current clients happy but also creates the potential for repeat business or referrals.

You might choose to say, “I’ve got your back” (or more businesslike words that convey the same message), but your actions must back up your words.  If not, your statement will backfire:  your actions will demonstrate that you don’t have the client’s back and, almost worse, that you either don’t realize that fact or you’re willing to lie about it.  (This, I believe, is one root of many lawyer jokes and the usual low standing of lawyers on lists of trustworthy professions.)

How can you demonstrate and perhaps say that you’ve got your clients’ back?

From your own perspective, working with someone who’s “got your back” as you undertake business development activity (which may be unfamiliar and feel risky, at least at first) can be a key factor in your success.  It’s the flip side of the points above, substituting marketing for legal knowledge and skill.  When you have great support, you get a cheering squad, a listening ear, a brainstorming partner, a source for new ideas and insight, needed resources, and more.

Here are a few ideas on how you can get the support you need:

  • Join forces with one or two colleagues who are also working to grow their practices
  • Join a rainmaker group (or create your own)
  • Use social media for accountability and support
  • Hire a consultant or coach

If you’d like to join a group of colleagues, check out Chapter 1 of The Reluctant Rainmaker (pages 26-30 in the print edition) for specific suggestions of how to find or create the right group.  And if you’re looking to hire a consultant or coach, let’s talk and see if we’re the right fit.

Blog Posts You MUST Read

I keep up with dozens of blogs (legal and otherwise) on a regular basis, and I like to bring the best of the best to you periodically.  Without further ado, here are the top five posts that I’ve read in the last few weeks.

  1. Why Being Told “No” is Actually the Greatest Motivator (Peter Shankman)  Shankman founded Help A Reporter Out (HARO), which I’ve highlighted in the past, and I enjoy his block for its insights into non-legal marketing.  He’s also a good storyteller as you’ll see in his post, which starts with an ode to the excesses of Dubai.  The post ends with ways to use a “no” answer to help you move forward.  (Think in the context, of course, of business development.)  While I don’t agree 100% with his perspective (sometimes a “yes” is not available at a particular time), his advice overall is spot on.  Read this especially if you find yourself frustrated by near-misses with new business.
  2. Welcome to the Year of the Snake:  13 Law Practice Resolutions for 2013 (Adrian Baron)  I was introduced to Baron’s The Nutmeg Lawyer through another favorite blog, Cliff Tuttle’s Pittsburgh Legal Back Talk.  Baron is a sharp observer with a funny streak:  “According to the Chinese Zodiac, 2013 is the year of the snake.  As such, I believe it should be a great year for attorneys, car salesmen, contractors, and DMV employees.”  This post offers some insightful ideas for improving the way you practice, as well as some commonly-overlooked common sense.  For instance, tip 3 reads in part:

    Pay attention to your support staff.  How does your secretary answer the phone?  Does he or she simply say ‘Law Office’ or do they mention the firm’s name?  How do they greet clients when they walk in the door?  In my own practice, we instruct our staff to greet clients followed with a “somebody will be right with you.  Can I offer you coffee, tea or cappuccino?”  I actually purchased an easy to use cappuccino machine that uses a disc system.  Sounds goofy, but you would be surprised at the effect something so simple has on clients.

    (For my thoughts on greeting clients, see this post.)

  3. Will LinkedIn endorsements effect search results?  (Kevin O’Keefe)  I have a confession:  although I appreciate the endorsements I’ve received on LinkedIn, I absolutely loathe the endorsement system itself.  Allowing a 1-click endorsement facilitates quid pro quo skill recognition, often from those who have no way to judge the strength of the skill being endorsed.  However, the system is apparently here to stay, and after reading this post, I decided that I’d better learn how to use it.  After you read O’Keefe’s post, check these posts for more information (or this one to laugh).  I’m still not a fan, but I’ll be updating my skills list in the next few weeks.
  4. Actually, it goes the other way (Seth Godin)  If you’ve ever wanted to throw in the towel on business development because you’re not a “born rainmaker”, read this 5-line post right now.  And then read it again.  And then print it out and tape it to your monitor, your telephone, or your forehead.
  5. Nurture Your Network for Success (Steven Taylor)  Very often when I ask new clients about their network, they’ll insist that they don’t know anyone who even might be “useful”– but that’s equally often incorrect.  If you’d like a more robust network (and, really, who wouldn’t?), look to this post for suggestions.

Want more resources like these?  Follow me on Twitter (@juliefleming), where I share 5-10 useful posts and articles every day.  (And please say hi–I enjoy conversational tweeting, too!)  Don’t want to see that much from me?  Wait until next week, when I’ll reveal how to receive a more focused stream of information.