Robert McDonald, Proctor and Gamble's chief operating officer, recently borrowed a military term to describe the current U.S. business environ-
ment. "It's a VUCA world," he said - volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous.
Most of us would agree. The real question is how can we as business people respond? Perhaps hardest hit in this VUCA climate are small business owners, independent workers, consultants and entrepreneurs. But many talented and once-inspired professionals have also found themselves looking for strategies that will help ensure their success on the battlefront of change we're experiencing.
In Book Yourself Solid, author Michael Port offers a baseline system for generating business and doing it on your own terms. Port suggests that most of us, whether working for a large organization or ourselves, make the number one mistake of failing to market and sell effectively. Many of us still consider marketing and selling as pushy, self-centered and bordering on sleazy. Until we change that mentality, Port argues, we will not achieve the success we want.
The author presents his strategies with a preface: business development should equal personal development. Achieving success is an empowering process, he says. One of the main reasons professionals hate marketing and selling is that they're trying to market without a foundation and credibility-building strategy.
Book Yourself Solid suggests a way for moving away from the old-school paradigm of client snagging and into a success strategy of abundance and integrity. Getting there is a journey, Port says, one that will help you build a solid business foundation while also making you feel authentic and honest.
Port's ideas are not new. It is his compiling them into a unique foundational system that makes this book worth reading. He gives step-by-step details on first defining the mission of your work, finding the ideal client/customer and, finally, determining the strategy for working with that client.
Book Yourself Solid is written in three modules: 1) Your Foundation; 2) Building Trust and Credibility; and 3) Seven Core Self-Promotion Strategies.
The first module, "Your Foundation," presents the controversial idea of Port's red velvet rope policy. The author suggests that the first step in building a foundation to being booked solid is to choose your ideal clients, only letting them past your velvet rope like movie stars at an opening. When you work with clients you love, you'll truly enjoy the work you're doing, he says, and you'll do your best work.
The second step is the more controversial one: dump the duds. That's right - dump any clients who are not ideal for you. Getting rid of the duds may take a leap of faith, but ultimately, the emotional and financial rewards will be astonishing, Port says. Doing this is not only crucial to your success, but to your personal happiness.
Port's strategies for identifying your target market and developing your personal brand are not revolutionary. Where he differs from other authors is his emphasis on personal development. For example, rather than selecting a target market based on the most lucrative choice, you should chose one that you feel most passionate about serving.
This emphasis is the basis for business integrity, according to Port. It is so important that he spends the entire second module of the book discussing it. He instructs that if you work for people whom you cannot serve with your full ability, you lack integrity. Ultimately, you will not do your best work for these clients and they will zap your energy and creativity. You would benefit the client and yourself by divesting the business of these people.
The third module is a collection of ideas on marketing and selling and how to apply these to your business. It is a gluttonous read and you can quickly be overwhelmed. Port suggests that you pick the strategies most aligned with your strengths and run with them.
The self-promotion strategies include network, direct outreach, referral, writing and a keep-in-touch focus. Public speaking and writing are often considered difficult for many people; Port's emphasis on finding what works best for you makes those areas seem less intimidating.
If you're starting a business, Book Yourself Solid is an excellent cornerstone to your building process. For anyone in the workplace, it provides superb reminders of how we should be branding, marketing and selling our skills and preparing for our next position. Finally, Port gives us his most important teaching: real success comes when you work with integrity both to yourself as well as your clients.