Unleashed - How To Thrive As An Independent Professional

I highly recommend Evernote - it is far more than a note-taking app.  You can also clip websites, save voice memos, store emails, and many more. In this short episode I give some examples of how I use Evernote. Sign up for your own Evernote account at www.evernote.com

Mark Williams, aka 'Mr. LinkedIn', is the host of one of my favorite podcasts, LinkedInFormed - I've listened to dozens of episodes, and much of what I know about LinkedIn I know from Mark. In this episode, Mark provides tips on key aspects of the LinkedIn profile: the headline, the photo, the about section, and the experience section. At one point I mention a specific episode of LinkedInFormed on the types of posts that engage. That one is Episode 242, and it would be a great episode to start with if you haven't heard this show before. You might also check out Episode 211 of Unleashed, in which I share my perspective on each aspect of the LinkedIn profile.    

Umbrex has set of a task force to help small businesses navigate the coronavirus pandemic. We'd love to get your help across these workstreams: 1. Create the content for the playbook 2. Design and publish the playbook (as a wiki? website? TBD) 3. Recruit coaches and consultants 4. Spread the word to business owners who need help 5. Administration of a database and reporting 6. Outreach to partner organizations and government 7. Legal advice on NDAs, employment law, etc.    

Our guest today is Umbrex member Susan Drumm, a BCG alum and the CEO of Meritage Leadership Development. Susan has extensive experience in running virtual meetings via videoconference, and in today’s episode she shares a set of tips to make virtual meetings more effective. Susan is publishing an article on this very topic tomorrow, March 16, and you can find that article and more of her writing at www.meritageleadership.com/blog If you find some value in this episode, I encourage you to check out Episode 65 of this show, in which Susan provides tips on facilitating high-impact offsite events. In that episode our discussion focused more on content, which in today’s discussion we focus more on tactical aspects of running  a virtual meeting. In today’s episode I suggest that someone on each meeting be designated to send a recap email; I discuss recap emails in more detail in Episode 203. I also mention the real-time polling tool Mentimeter, and to learn more about that tool, check out Episode 53 in which I inter

Our guest today is Rhona Silverbush, co- author of Speak the Speech!: Shakespeare's Monologues Illuminated. Rhona teaches small-group classes and privates one-on-one coaching to actors on how to speak the language of Shakespeare. You don’t need to be a professional actor to work with Rhona: some of her students are members of the regular public who just want to get a better appreciation of the plays – and there is no better way to do that than reading the plays aloud in a group. She periodically hosts a play-reading circle in New York City, and if you are interested to learn more, check out her website: http://www.rhonasilverbush.com/

Our guest today is Jay Charkow, President of International Tariff Management. For several years I’ve been wanting to understand the basics around tariffs. In the New York Times or Wall Street Journal, usually all you get is some very broad statement such as “the Administration has imposed a new round of tariffs on goods imported from China.” I wanted to ask some basic questions: do Americans pay tariffs on goods imported from any country? Does the tariff vary by country? How much are the tariffs, and how are they calculated? Does the tariff vary by the type of good? What if you import some parts, make a good, and then export it? What if you import a part into Mexico, do some processing in Mexico, and then import the good into the US? Do we have trade deals with every country? If not, which ones do we have a deal with? If we don’t have a special deal with the country, how much tariff do we pay? How much tariff do other countries charge when the U.S. exports goods? What are the details behind the Trump trade wa

Our guest today is Andrea Bonime-Blanc, a leading global expert in the area of risk management, and the author of five books, including the recently published Gloom to Boom: How Leaders Transform Risk Into Resilience and Value. Gloom to Boom expands the traditional risk-management framework of ESG, which stands for environmental, social, and governance risks, by adding technological risks, so the acronym gets expanded to ESGT. In our discussion today we talk about her latest book and her work consulting to Board Directors on risk management. To learn more about her practice, visit https://gecrisk.com/

Our guest today is McKinsey alum Gaurav Bhatnagar. Gaurav is the Founding Partner of Co-Creation Partners, where he leads cultural transformations for his clients.  In this episode, Gaurav explains to me what a cultural transformation is, what you actually look at during a cultural diagnostic, and what sort of tools his firm uses to drive change in an organization’s culture. To learn more about his firm, visit http://www.cocreationpartners.com/

For executives who are thinking about becoming a consultant in a year or two, a time investment of two hours per week now can dramatically improve your chances of success when you launch your practice.

Our guest today is Jim McEachern, an independent consultant who has been working with the Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (or ATIS) on developing technology to cut down on robocalls. For years I’ve been wondering why telecommunications companies haven’t done more to eliminate robocalls, so when I saw Jim quoted in a  New York Times article about this work, I reached out to him. I was so pleased that he agreed to be on the show to talk about his work and explain to me how spoofing works and why the existing technology has made it hard to fight robocalls. I also learned a practical tip: whenever I get a robocall, I have been blocking that phone number on my phone. Jim explained to me that I’m probably just wasting my time, since robocallers often use a different spoofed number on each outbound call. In the show notes, you will find a link to the NYT article where I first heard of Jim’s work, a link to the ATIS website that has more info on the protocols Jim discusses on this show, and Jim’s L

Our guest today is Liliana Petrova, who runs The Petrova Experience, a consulting firm that helps brands build differentiated experiences and leverage technology to increase customer loyalty, efficiencies and revenue. Liliana was previously the Director of Customer Experience at JetBlue Airways, and on this episode we discuss some of the culture driven behind-the-scenes decisions that set JetBlue apart – including the blue potato chips and the free wifi. Then we discuss some of her more recent work, including an effort to map out and then improve the experience of fans at a sports arena. To learn more about her firm visit thepetrovaexperience.com  Linked In: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lilianapetrova/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/LilianaPetrova Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepetrovaexperience/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Petrova-Experience-419743838814954/?view_public_for=419743838814954  

Today's guest is McKinsey alum and Umbrex member Tineke Keesmaat, who is based in Toronto. Tineke’s firm works with ambitious leaders and she is known for her unique blend of world-class strategy, organizational change, and people leadership. Tineke was recently awared with a MacKay Canada CEO’s Trusted Advisor Award, recognizes the contributions that Trusted Advisors make in the leadership field to enable Canadian businesses to succeed. You can learn more about her firm’s work on their website, which is extraordinarily well designed:  http://tiltco.ca/

In my conversations with independent consultants, a common question I get is how to generate more business. There are a lot of things one could POTENTIALLY do to generate more revenue, and some people flail around putting effort into initiatives that may have a low return on investment. Of course we all want to put our time and energy into areas with a relatively high return on investment, and I’ve found that it is useful to break down all the possible factors into what I call the Consulting Revenue Equation. Also check out Episode 221, in which I discuss with David A. Fields some ways to increase your conversion rate.

Our guest today is Michael Ryan, whose headline on LinkedIn is a great example of a fishing line: "Helping B2B Manufacturers Optimize Inventory and Operations to Increase Cash Flow" In this episode, we explore Michael’s work on inventory issues. Michael is certainly in the top 1% of people I know in how he has been using LinkedIn to build a brand. Michael has posted every day on LinkedIn for six months, and his posts are always on-brand, always related to inventory management. In the second half of this show we discuss how Michael has been using LinkedIn, and the impact this investment has had on this business. Definitely check out his profile – it is a fantastic example of someone who really gets LinkedIn and social selling: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isolveproblems/ To learn more about his business, visit www.mryangroup.com

Today we welcome back David A. Fields, the author of The Irresistible Consultant’s Guide to Winning Clients: 6 Steps to Unlimited Clients & Financial Freedom. David was my very first guest, on Episode 1, when we covered many of the topics in his book. https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-1-david-fields-on-winning-clients/ In Episode 170, David shared tips on how to make outbound calls: https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-170-david-fields-on-how-to-make-outbound-calls/ In Episode 172, David explained how to set up a CRM system for a small consulting practice: https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-172-david-fields-on-how-to-set-up-a-crm-system/ And in Episode 190, David discussed what makes for a successful consulting partnership: https://www.umbrex.com/unleashed/episode-190-david-fields-on-what-makes-for-a-successful-consulting-partnership/ In today’s episode, David and I riff on tips to increase the chances of converting a possible consulting opportunity into a confirmed project. Definitel

Our guest today is Paul Millerd, who has been on the show before, on Episode 62. It was great to welcome Paul back to hear what he has been up to. I’m so inspired by Paul, who has been incredibly deliberate about designing a life.  He has built a practice that allows him to work completely remotely, and recently left home in Boston to spend a stretch of time working in Bali and then in Japan and now in Taiwan. He has developed several online courses with over 4,500 students on Udemy alone, he writes a very popular weekly newsletter that I love, and he is incredibly generous with his time: on his website you can book time to have a “curiosity conversation” with Paul; he has spoken with hundreds of people around the world who have reached out to him in this way. Check out Paul’s website, think-boundless.com Follow him on Twitter @p_millerd  Check out the consulting skills course he created at strategy.co https://strategyu.co/ Paul has written one of the most authoritative articles on the evolution of consulting

Ripa Rashid is the Managing Director at Culture At Work, which works with Global 500 organizations to build cultural change strategies to maximize their Diversity and Inclusion efforts while generating positive business results. Ripa is the coauthor of three books: Disrupt Bias, Drive Value (Center for Talent Innovation, 2017), Growing Global Executives: The New Competencies (Center for Talent Innovation, 2015), and Winning the War for Talent in Emerging Markets: Why Women Are the Solution (Harvard Business Review Press, 2011) She is featured often in the media as a thought leader, and has appeared on BBC, NPR, CNN, CNBC, Harvard Business Review, and Bloomberg. She is cited widely in mainstream and management publications such as The Economist, Forbes, Huffington Post, Newsweek, New York Times, Washington Post, The Times of India, Hindustan Times, HR Matters and South China Morning Post. In this episode Ripa explains to me what the research shows on the benefits of increasing diversity in the workplace, and w

Nir Eyal was my guest on Episode 200 of this show. I found his message so important that I asked Nir to discuss his latest book, Indistractable, at an Umbrex Presents event, which took place October 28, 2019. This episode is Nir's complete live talk to a capacity crowd at StandUpNY, followed by a Q&A period. Subscribers of the weekly Unleashed email receive private invitations to register for Umbrex Presents events before the general public. To subscribe, email unleashed@umbrex.com

In Episode 213, Will Bachman discussed how to source experts for interviews - either using an expert network or by doing the work yourself. Listener Gary C. asked if consultants should sign up with expert networks as the one to be interviewed. This episode answers his question, in three parts: Will your expertise be useful to the people who are asking the questions Are you likely to get selected for an interview What are the costs and benefits of joining as an expert – so is it worth your time To connect with Will Bachman on LinkedIn, visit:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/willbachman/ Every week we send out an email to subscribers with summaries of each Unleashed episode, transcripts, and bonus materials. To sign up, email unleashed@umbrex.com

David Minifie is the Chief Experience Officer and Executive Vice President of Corporate Strategy at Centene Corporation. Centene is a Fortune 500 company that provides a portfolio of services to government sponsored healthcare programs. In this episode, David explains to me the role and responsibilities of a Chief Experience Officer, which includes and expands the responsibilities he previously held as the Chief Marketing Officer. You can learn more about Centene on their website, centene.com And you can see more of David’s background on his LinkedIn profile – a link is in the show notes. https://www.linkedin.com/in/c-david-minifie-50250a/ Each week we send an email with summaries of the latest Unleashed episodes, transcripts of each episode, and bonus materials. To subscribe, email unleashed@umbrex.com To connect with Will Bachman on LinkedIn, visit https://www.linkedin.com/in/willbachman/