I would like to share this great little exercise that I encourage anyone to partake in. If you wish to work through this exercise, just download it right here:
Whether we’re looking for a great employee to represent our brand and organization, or whether we’re looking for our ideal client, we’re usually thinking of everything we want in that employee or everything we want in that client. Contrast-Clarity is a great exercise to get clear on what we don’t want as well as what we do. Let’s just take an ideal CPA client as an example. Contrast, they don’t follow instructions to get the result they want. Clarity, they follow the rules of the game and do exactly as I say, because as you know, if your clients follow your rules, they’re going to get the results they’re looking for.
Nothing’s more frustrating than dealing with somebody that you are trying to deliver your goods and services and they’re not cooperating, and then they’re giving you a hard time because they’re not getting the results they’re looking for, while all along it’s because they’re not doing the work. Contrast, a client stays for the short term. Clarity is a client that keeps coming back again, and again, and again. Contrast, a client that doesn’t tell their friends. Clarity, is a client that raves about your services and your brand to all their friends and colleagues.
Same thing with an employee. Contrast, someone who shows up late. Clarity is someone who shows up early and stays late without being asked. Contrast, always have to ask them to do more. Clarity, willing to take on whatever I ask. Go through this exercise, whether you’re looking for an ideal client or an ideal member of your team.
I’ll share the template. On the left side, write Contrast of all of the things you don’t want in this particular individual, whether it be a client or a team member. And write next to that, what the opposite, the Clarity of exactly what you do want in that team member or that client. As you go through this exercise, you’ll be crystal clear when people show up how you can articulate exactly what a perfect client is and exactly what a perfect client is not. You can articulate exactly what a perfect person for your team to represent your brand is, and exactly who they are not. And as you’re going through this process of looking for the right clients and the right team members, you’ll be crystal clear on what you don’t want to show up and what you do.
With this newfound clarity, the right people will eventually show up that fit into your culture. When you have the right team and the right clients, this makes your brand and your business a heck of a lot easier because there’s nothing better in business than doing business with people you enjoy doing business with, and that appreciate you stepping up to give them your goods and services with excellence and also a team that is willing to go the extra inch to do what it takes, so they themselves grow and become great.
When you’re crystal clear on your ideal customer and ideal team member is and is not, your business will thrive as you’ll enjoy working with all your customers and clients as well as having a team that shows up as their best, which helps your organization become an industry leader. In the end, everybody wins!
COACH MICHAEL DILL is an Award-Winning Certified Business Coach, global speaker, and published author. He is a proud Action Coach Franchise partner as well as the President of Power & Ice Wealth Creation a strategic leadership company that works with business owners, leaders, teams, and entrepreneurs to both develop a systematized and structured organization while accelerating their mindset, efficiencies, and effectiveness to grow both personally and professionally to achieve extraordinary results. He brings more than 40 years of business and entrepreneurial experience in his leadership, team training, and mentoring practice. Businesscoachmichaeldill.com