Hello Reader,

I recently hired a creative writer to help me craft some "thought leader stories" aka what normal businesses call "case studies." I wanted to do something different, and tell the stories of some of my clients rather than the normal "here's what the project was, here's the outcome." It just feel like I needed to do something different. (They aren't quite ready yet, but I'll share them when they are.)

In those stories something came out that shocked me: a client said that I was the first person they'd ever worked with who didn't want them to stop doing what was working for them and replace those actions with "my way."

I was absolutely floored by this. And then I started asking other people about this, friends and colleagues and clients. To a number, all had had this experience. They'd worked with a consultant or coach and they'd been told essentially, "Change everything and do it my way."

Wild, right?

Do I have a methodology that I use? Absolutely!

Is it flexible and adaptable? Also absolutely!

A better approach—and this is one of my rare absolutes—is to say, "What's working really well right now?"

(We even included this as a question on our mastermind application, because it's important!)

From there, we can engineer methods that embrace our clients' strengths, leverage what they already know is effective, and build systems to complement what's already successful.

Are you a Facebook powerhouse? Awesome! That's not my preferred way to build an audience because it's riskier than I like, but it's a treasure trove of data and audience insights. Let's examine what's working well there and replicate it in different formats.

Does your newsletter pay the bills every single month? Awesome! Let's figure out how to leverage that information to build a podcast strategy.

An original blogging wizard? Great! What blog posts can become YouTube videos that expand your visibility even further.

Or, stepping further out, whatever is working—whether it's a marketing approach, a business model method, or a systems strategy is working for a reason. It's not just luck. Understanding why something is successful is step zero in being able to improve.

As experts, I truly believe we have a duty and an obligation to our clients to not simply reply on what we know, but to learn from them and then use our tools to help them reach their goals.

Can you imagine if we never adapted recipes for our stove's unique quirks? (Mine may or may not be quirkier than most.) All my bread would be burned to a crisp and raw in the middle! Business isn't any different.

We're all baking our businesses with a unique set of circumstances and we need to adjust our recipes as a result.

I almost didn't write this newsletter, to be honest—I am very cautious about speaking negatively of other people's methods. But it needs to be said: Listen and learn from others, absolutely—but ask the same of them. You deserve that much.

Talk soon,

Sarah

P.S. If you missed my newsletter earlier this week, check it out here. I announced our mastermind, a new workshop, and a podcast appearance.