A map is useless if you don’t know your current location. Similarly, consultants thrive when they possess a clear understanding of their present reality, enabling them to minimize confusion and resolve conflicts. Establishing a shared understanding with clients about the current situation – within their company, project, or even life – is crucial for making significant progress.
Get a Grip on Reality
There’s a saying: “What you resist, persists.” This holds true, particularly for consultants. Lacking a clear understanding of your current role or neglecting a complete inventory of your responsibilities will hinder your ability to deliver results for your client.
“Real generosity toward the future consists in giving all to what is present.” – Albert Camus
What is your job right now? What is your top priority today? The answer is rarely obvious. Answering these six questions can provide clarity:
1) What are your current tasks? These are the immediate actions required by your commitments: phone calls, emails, conversations, errands, brainstorming, etc. A busy consultant might have hundreds of these.
2) What are your current projects? These are the outcomes you’ve committed to achieving. As an independent professional, upholding your promises is paramount. Which of these outcomes requires multiple steps? Most consultants have dozens of active projects.
3) What are your specific areas of responsibility? Most consultants have around ten to fifteen areas, such as staff development, asset management, planning oversight, or customer service. However, you are not responsible for the entire company’s operation – that remains with the owner or CEO.
4) How will your consulting responsibilities and personal life evolve over the next year? Effective consultants integrate their work and personal lives. As a multifaceted individual, remember your personal well-being. Separating consulting from real life leads to unhappiness and potential failure.
5) How will your life change over the next five years? This is a long-term vision. Understanding this helps clarify your present job by showing whether it aligns with your long-term goals.
“It takes about ten years to get used to how old you are.” — Unknown
A thorough inventory of your commitments, issues, and projects, especially in these six areas, will provide a solid definition of your work. This requires effort. Identifying current actions and projects can be time-consuming. However, this preparation is crucial for effective client interactions.
This work is valuable for recalibrating your job description and adapting to necessary changes. Many have vague ideas about their future. But without a clear understanding of their present reality, they’re like the Flying Dutchman, forever adrift.
Know your location on the map to determine whether to turn left or right.
“Discipline does not mean suppression and control, nor is it adjustment to a pattern or ideology. It means the mind sees ‘what is’ and learns from ‘what is’.” — J. Krishnamurti