On Consulting and Giving Advice

Offering a new perspective is a valuable thing. Companies pay independent consultants a pretty penny to give them new ideas, but even an amateur golfer can take their game to the next level with a little advice from a pro during a lesson.

Not every human is open to change, however. Most would rather go kicking and screaming then make a lifestyle change. The old phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is something they live by.

This is where it becomes tricky to be a subject matter expert (SME) because you have a wealth of great information, but you need to make it palatable. On top of that, you need to make a blend delicious enough for the vast majority of the people you’re trying to help to want to drink what you’re making.

This is why it’s so important to know your audience and understand what would make their life better.

For example, if you’re selling a solution that will require every employee to carry around a large device to scan boxes when they’ve been doing it by hand for decades, you may run up against a wall. As much as the manager loves your solution, the implementation may stall or even fail.

The same goes for any remotely subjective topic like politics or religion. Finding your purpose may have changed your life and everyone’s life in your immediate following. However, taking it to social media if it’s not packaged up in a way that a lot of people can understand may kill your credibility.

It’s all about feeding your audience bite sized pieces that it would be in their self interest to eat up to get stronger.