Chapter Ten - Be Kind To Your Client And Yourself - Ellen Foley

"We Wish We Had Known: Everyday Tips from Consultants To Grow Your Business"

#Client Relationships
#Personal Values

Be Kind To Your Client and Yourself

Ellen Foley

Ellen Foley, Ink

Consultant in Marketing and Communications

When I made the switch from a decades-long successful corporate career to consulting, I decided to build my company with a focus of kindness. I see that quality as a key tenet of my brand and the distinguishing character of my business. At the same time, I realize that many clients measure the success of a consultant by how many documents, plans, visitors to a website, etc. that he, she, they deliver.

      Melding these two major prongs of consulting involves setting good boundaries with clients. It’s easier to do in corporate life because we understand that in the workplace, we have one main role, and we go home each evening to another life.

      Consulting is often an intimate experience with a client who is in crisis. I’ve found that this kind of work consumes me if I let it. Maintaining good boundaries is a constant job for good consulting hygiene. Building relationships with our clients is key.

      Current clients are often our pipeline to future clients. One of my consulting colleagues likes to remind me that consulting is at its core “therapy.” As advisers, she’s not too far off. Each of us decides in our practices how we govern the boundary with clients.

1. My top priority in my consultancy is to be kind.

      In corporate life, the need to build profit for those who often do not work for the company can wring kindness out of work culture. As consultants, we give ourselves the permission and the opportunity to be kind. I operationalize that by focusing on three core practices that are sometimes more aspirational than I would like.

• ·       I am patient and not judgmental when dealing with clients.
• ·       I am curious about their business, personalities and foibles.
• ·       I believe they are capable people and I remind them of that in many ways.

2. To have good boundaries and not take the ups and downs personally, it’s important to know your strengths and your weaknesses.

      I happen to be great at identifying my weaknesses. A group of people who worked for me when I left one of my executive positions after a difficult period at a large company gave me a gift of telling me about myself and my many talents. They gave me a chart I keep in my office taped right above my desk.

Strong	Intelligent	Powerful	Empowering
Beautiful	Empathetic	Caring	Kind
Gifted	Loving	Loved	Weird Wild
Brave	Forthright	Talented	Cherished
Adored	Respected	Admired	Needed
Wanted	Missed	Inspiring	Friendly
Helpful	Understanding	Awesome	The Queen
The Goddess	Creative	Insightful	Intuitive
Noteworthy	Experienced	Special	Fun and Funny
The OGO	Role Model	Delightful	Simply the Best

      When I am tackling an overwhelming challenge with a client, I often look at this chart because it reminds me about who I am and how others perceive me. It gives me confidence.

ELLEN FOLEY

Ellen Foley, a prizewinning journalist, author and marketing executive, focuses on small to medium organizations that need one-on-one attention and large organizations that require quick strategies for thought leadership, crisis communications and employee engagement.

Ellen’s practice differs from others because of her many years of experience in higher education, health care, publishing and financial services. She currently teaches business courses at Edgewood College.

Key projects include branding, corporate narrative development, compelling storytelling for individuals and organizations, media relations and training, web content creation, and social media and digital advertising planning.

She works onsite and virtually at her office.

Ellen recently finished writing a memoir about resilience and redemption that chronicles her journey through the tragic murder of her sister, Mary, and her husband’s 13-year battle with brain cancer. She hopes to publish it in 2022.