Vampires. Werewolves. Scary stuff in the movies. Scarier still in real life.

Vampires feed on your energy and give nothing back. The client who demands constant attention and yet balks at your fees? Vampire. Worse still, doing your best work with vampires is difficult unless it’s 100% focused on their (often hidden) agenda.  They leave you drained and lifeless, looking for the nearest stake. Enforcing consistent boundaries works best with vampires, but sometimes you’ll just need to cut them loose.

There’s waiting. And then there’s waiting for Godot.

Waiting—especially for those of us who thrive on action—is hard. Waiting for a client to OK a new project. For the check to arrive. For Congress to pass a debt-ceiling bill. You know that an answer—maybe not the one you want, but an answer nonetheless—will come. Eventually. And so, you wait.

And then there’s waiting for Godot. Plenty of time and energy is spent in the wait, yet he never does appear. Are you waiting for Godot?

Here are some telltale signs:

Sales people talk about the state of their “funnel”—aka their sales process. Why build a funnel? To move more, larger deals—revenue— faster.

The challenge for boutique firms—where those who DO the work also SELL the work—is building and managing a consistent, scalable sales funnel.

Think about it. You need current clients with urgent matters so you can stay billable. You need prospective clients—the relationships you're nurturing—for the future. And, you need to ensure your referral sources are keeping you top of mind.

We’ve all had at least one. The client that enjoys turning up the heat. Tight deadline? Make it tighter. Big bodacious project? Refuse to invest the resources required.

Or, as a reader recently shared, the former Walmart buyer who is in a constant battle to win the lowest price on every project.

We’re talking clients who thrive by creating chaos, not those who must simply lead the way through it (we love those folks). What’s an advisor to do?

The year is brand-spanking new. And you've probably already made a list of resolutions for 2011. If you're like most folks though, by say mid-January, you'll have stopped, forgotten, moved to other things.

So forget resolutions. In fact, try banning the word from your vocabulary.

Instead, choose 1 action you will take. As in "I will..." It can be a small thing--there is great power in small, continuous movement. One additional call a day/a week can easily turn into 5 or 10 improved relationships or new projects this year.