A recent conversation with my five-year-old daughter ended up cutting through something I see a lot of firm owners quietly struggle with.
When you’re forced to explain what you do in the simplest possible terms, it has a way of reminding you what actually matters.
In this episode, I’m getting into what that is and how it could change the way you approach your clients.
Listen below.
0:51 Try explaining something to a five-year-old and jargon disappears fast. You’re forced down to the simplest, most honest version of the thing.
1:58 At the core, you’re in the business of helping people. Simple as that. But the operational reality of running a firm tends to pull most owners away from that idea quietly, over time.
3:50 Think about your discovery calls. How much of that conversation is about understanding what the prospect needs — versus explaining your deliverables and pricing?
4:54 For clients driven by anxiety reduction, proactive communication isn’t a nice to have — it’s the job. Reaching out before they have to ask is how you deliver on what they actually hired you for.
5:45 A lot of firm owners can feel the difference between a trusted advisor relationship and a transactional one. What they don’t always see is how early that dynamic gets set.
6:49 Beyond the discovery call, make a habit of reconnecting with clients around outcomes, not just deliverables. Not just “the books are done” — but are things moving in the right direction, and are there new challenges you could help with?
8:14 Over time, something shifts. You stop feeling like you’re selling services and start feeling like you’re solving problems. That’s a different energy entirely — and clients pick up on it.
