Author: Douglas Kruger
‘Quick! The business is dying! Find me the humblest possible consultant to solve the problem!’ as Experts don’t disqualify themselves. Author Allen Weiss makes this tongue-in-cheek point in his book, ‘Million Dollar Maverick.’ And it’s a good one. As we strive to position ourselves as top-level experts in our industry, a demure and deferring persona […]
‘Quick! The business is dying! Find me the humblest possible consultant to solve the problem!’ as Experts don’t disqualify themselves.
Author Allen Weiss makes this tongue-in-cheek point in his book, ‘Million Dollar Maverick.’ And it’s a good one. As we strive to position ourselves as top-level experts in our industry, a demure and deferring persona does not serve us well. The opposite actually applies: Certainty and clarity win the day.
Clients want to know that you know your stuff, and that you know it better than anyone else. Is that what you currently portray? If not, you may be disqualifying yourself as an expert.
‘But my Momma raised me right’
This isn’t a clarion call to arrogance, and manners will always matter. Even more so at the highest levels of industry, I would content.
Instead, this is merely about the ability to state your value openly and confidently. Imagine yourself in the client’s shoes. There is little upside for them to a best-kept-secret or a reticent rescuer. Rescue boldly, if you want to lead an industry. The energy and conviction of a confident problem solver is attractive, and it’s not akin to rudeness.
Taking Charge:
My local barber is staffed by a friendly group of Moroccan men. They’re conveniently located and very good at what they do, even if I struggle to understand them. We get by on short sentences and a lot of pointing.
One day, I got the new guy. And it occurred to me as I took my seat and he started going about his business that there is such a thing as ‘too polite.’ He was tentative and cautious to the point of it becoming wearisome for me.
While his experienced seniors would simply take my head into their hands, move it assertively into position as they needed, and confidently run the show, all the while chatting up a perfectly unintelligible storm, the newcomer was timid. He was scared to move his customers around, or to take charge in any way. It was incredibly taxing. It flipped the dynamic and actually forced me to be in charge, which I didn’t want.
When you engage the services of an expert, you want them to own their role and lead the way. Yes, of course they should listen effectively and properly diagnose. But after that, it’s their show and they should run it.
Taking charge is one way to avoid the humility trap.
Showing before and after
Another way to avoid the humility trap is to clearly depict results. What desirable outcomes can you achieve for your clients? What impressive results have you had in the past? Are you shy to share them? Are you burying them in a blanket of silent humility?
Don’t. That’s the same thing as being completely unknown. That’s the opposite of an industry expert.
Those results, and their strong promise, are precisely what your buyer wants and needs. He or she is in the market looking for clear, positive outcomes. If you are too sensitive to announce the great results that you can achieve for them, you’re out! Someone with bolder assurances will win that business.
We never seek out the humblest solution. We seek out the best one. And if you’re not clearly showing that you fit the bill, you may be disqualifying yourself for earnings. You may be quietly and cautiously striking out as an industry expert.
Contact Us at WeSpeak Global and follow us on Facebook
Author Profile
Read further articles in similar categories
Video
The articles, video and images embedded on these pages are from various speakers and talent.
These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.
The COVID-19 pandemic reshaped the modern workplaces and Female Workforce across the world and the United States. Unfortunately, women were disproportionately impacted sparking the “She-Cession.” According to McKinsey’s Women in the Workplace annual study, one in four women are considering stepping out or stepping back from the workplace which is unprecedented. Now more than ever, management must holistically support, encourage […]
When it comes to diversity and inclusion as a leader you need to understand one thing, you need to understand that; It is more than just activism, minorities vs the privileged, and correcting the injustices I’ve observed the efforts of many organizations and leaders when it comes to diversity, equity, and inclusion, to be more […]
When I was in high school i realized Leaders You Dont Need To Have All The Answers, there was a teacher that had a brilliant line when he was asked a question that he didn’t know the answer to in the moment. He would state: “That is beyond the scope of this course,” with a […]
Do you get easily distracted when you should be working on a task? Work/Break Block System (WBBS) – The Productivity Secret You Will Love! Do you find yourself taking breaks more frequently than you know you should? Do you sometimes spend too much time working on a task and then get totally burned out before […]
We all want to come up with the BIG Little Breakthroughs and the winning idea, solve the challenging problem, or invent something major that will become a staple for generations to come. Under pressure, it’s easy to freeze up and procrastinate. We get the false assumption that the only ideas that are important are the BIG […]
Getting absolutely clear about HOW TO UNCOVER YOUR PASSION is critical to your success as an entrepreneur. You want a passion that you are willing to shout from the rooftops—that you’ll share with everyone, even strangers at a cocktail party. Why is identifying your unique passion so important? Because passion is fundamental to your forward progress. […]
If you’ve ever sat through a presentation that left you wondering if you showed up at the wrong venue, most likely the organiser and planner didn’t put much thought into HIRING KEYNOTE SPEAKER. When investing in a keynote speaker you want to get the most bang for your buck, especially considering some of the exorbitant […]
Eddie Botes, Leadership and Culture Speaker wrote this article, Critical Thinking for the Adaptive Leader. VUCA is an acronym that is now well established as a description of the business world that we currently operate in. In a Volatile, Uncertain, Complex, and Ambiguous world, there is no going back to the familiar and predictable world before the global financial […]
Our Mission
© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME
