Urban Vancouver

It's the weekend...are you working? Do you want to be working?

When you're an independent consultant, time should be your own. You can determine when you want to work -- and if.

But I know many consultants who work weekends because their clients call them with rush jobs. When the phone rings at 4 pm on a Friday, it can be tempting to say "Yes", if the money is good enough.
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What Steve Nash can teach you about business

Basketball MVP Steve Nash has had some phenomenal successes in his career. I recently read this quote from Nash, who grew up just a few hours away from me:

People have always doubted whether I was good enough to play this game at this level. I thought I was, and I thought I could be. What other people thought was really always irrelevant to me.
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You quote on a project, but the prospective clients says you're too high. You were really hoping to land this client and now the money seems less important than the prestige. You're just starting out and your client list is pretty slim. Should you drop your rate?

No way. If you discount your rate to get the job, it tells the client that your first quote was inflated. It also means that you'll never be able to charge them your full consulting fee rate -- they'll always expect you to cut your fees.
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This week's Friday 5 comes from John Wesley -- the top 5 ways to build a wonderful life.

#5 was especially meaningful for me:

Work Towards a Dream You’re Passionate About

Even if your life isn’t perfect, you can always build towards a goal you’re passionate about. If you aren’t building towards something, you’re probably stagnating.
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You may have heard of the Pareto principle, where 80% of your revenues will come from 20% of your clients. I'm not sure how true that holds for consultants, but it's always seemed pretty likely to me. While it's good to find new customers, it's a lot easier to build strong relationships with current clients so they will buy again. Heck, they bought from you the first time. So how do you do it?
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Once in a while, I have lunch at a market near my home. There's a struggling greasy spoon that has changed owners several times. I've never ordered from the greasy spoon because their menu looks like this:
spaghetti
chicken

• burgers
• sushi
• potstickers
• meatloaf
• pasta with your choice of 10 sauces and three meats
• teriyaki with your choice of two carbs and three meats
• pizza
• all-day breakfast
• salad with your choice of three meats
• and so on

The greasy spoon has pictures of all the foods hanging above and around the counter. Some of the food actually looks pretty good. But I've never ordered any.
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Happy Fourth of July to my US readers! While you're celebrating Independence Day, I'm thinking about my time as an independent consultant. I've talked about Independence Day before, but let me emphasize this year's reasons that I love consulting.
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You open an email and it's a forwarded message from a trusted colleague:

Bob's a long time friend of mine and his business is looking for someone who can do "windows". I know you usually do consulting, but they're desperate to get going and they can pay handsomely, if you can start right away. They value a referral and they don't have the time to look much further. Can you do windows?
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Wi...

Although my consulting income tends to be pretty stable, I sometimes have months where I earn more than I expected. I have an emergency fund and enough cash flow that I don't need to bank all the extra money. I recognize that some people have feast or famine cycles, but I've been working long enough for things to be steady.
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Want to get ahead? Consider taking on a side job. Working at a second job is often a great way to:

1. Pay down credit card debt
2. Save for a downpayment
3. Build up an emergency fund
4. Top up your retirement fund
5. Get your consulting business or other small business off the ground
6. Eliminate your student loans
7. Save up for a car
8. Get money together for a dream trip
9. Have a dream wedding
10. Have cash on hand for the next year of car insurance, home insurance or anything else you've been planning to finance.

I started consulting on a part-time basis, back when I still had a day job. As a result, I was able to achieve many dreams. Now I run my own business on a full-time basis. What could a side job do for you?
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The next issue of the Consultant Journal newsletter goes out this week. I'll be talking about breaking free from your comfort zone and sharing some of my own recent attempts to shake things up. If you'd like to get on the list, sign up today with the subscribe form at the top right of this page.
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When clients pay late, do you blink? Do you assume that it's just part of doing business? Or that it's the fault of your client?

Is it your fault when clients pay late or not at all? Sorry to break it to you, but it may be your fault when clients pay late or never pay at all. Some reasons clients fail to pay on time:
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I'm pleased to announce that I've partnered with Fit 4 Two to offer Discover Your Inner Mompreneur to thousands of new parents. Headed by Melanie Osmack, Fit 4 Two is a leading chain of stroller fitness, prenatal fitness and postnatal fitness providers.
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