What Are You Doing For Your Tribe?

Let’s just agree that we’re living through an unprecedented time right now.

Your clients have probably had their lives upended, suddenly working from home with kids, spouses or partners underfoot or worse: being furloughed, worried about finances or caring for loved ones who are sick.

You may also be wondering where to take your own business right now—whether you’re crazy busy (you might be surprised by how many consultants are actually busier than ever) or grappling with a sudden dent in your revenue.

Regardless of where you’re at right now, one thing is true: the way forward is to focus on your tribe—the clients, buyers and audience you serve—and how you can help them. 

If you’re in high demand right now, the next steps are easy: keep serving your base and leveraging your skill set as much as you can so their problems get solved and you’re delivering the transformations you’ve promised.

But what if you’re feeling a little deer-in-the-headlights right now?

It’s time to connect, engage and publish.

It’s NOT the time to wait, to hesitate, to sit on the sidelines. Because if you can’t help your audience when times are tough, why should they trust you when times are good?

Connection shows you care. Touching base with the slice of audience you serve is never wasted effort. If you work within, say the hospitality industry, your revenue may have taken a hit, maybe even a big one.

But staying in touch through this time demonstrates that they mean more to you than the last assignment or a chunk of cash flow. Being interested in their challenges, their thinking and their ultimate personal and professional outcomes matters. It’s part of the connective tissue that binds you together no matter what comes next.

Engaging earns you new (and deeper) friends. Even though—or maybe especially since—most people are in enforced captivity right now, there is a window to engage more deeply on-line.

Have you noticed how you’re using social media more right now? You’re doubling down on those voices you’ve always valued (unless they’ve suddenly gone tone deaf which is a whole ‘nother thing) but you’re also finding new connections. People whose message is hitting you just right and you’re paying close attention.

So why not be MORE visible, more engaging on your social media channel of choice? Deepen the ties that already exist within your circle and reach out to new people, venues and communities.

We don’t yet know how the world will change our lives and our businesses, but we can engage with those who resonate with us as it all unfolds.

Keep (or start) publishing. You’re in a knowledge business which means you never stop building wisdom. Publishing your ideas in the form of content was mission-critical before this and will be so during and afterwards.

This is not the time for fear in any form to hold you back. Fear of stepping into a controversial opinion, fear of criticism, fear that you aren’t _____________ enough to say what you’re thinking.

Use this as your guiding force: does it help the audience you aim to serve?

Because the best possible thing we can do right now is the next right thing.

p.s. The April topic in my virtual ConsultantsNation group coaching is Leveraging Social Media (with deep dives into LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram). If you sign up by April 9^th, you can still attend both April sessions (use code APR2020 for $50 off the monthly price forever).