Help First

Last week I had an enjoyable breakfast meeting with an interesting business founder. I had never met her or even spoken with her before our breakfast. She somehow discovered me and reached out via a lovely short email sharing a problem she was having and asking if I could find some time to speak with her about it. Her company’s mission and her global background intrigued me, so while I was inclined to accept her invitation, I responded that a lot of people reach out to me in this way, and I would need clarity about her expectations so that neither of us would waste our time. She quickly replied with just enough detail to reel me in.

The week before our meeting someone else had politely reached out to me with a similar request, although this time suggesting lunch. Again I was sucked in and wound up with both a great Greek salad and an engaging business discussion.

This morning I’m following through on a third such request, so look forward to yet another interesting conversation, in a nice local diner. I’ll be meeting with someone I’ve known casually for some years who asked me if I had time for him to discuss something with me. He didn’t elaborate and I didn’t ask him to. His tone and demeanor were all I needed to decide to meet with him.

Both of the first two meetings lasted an hour and a half. By the end of each, I had guided the leader in rethinking their business model, helped them evaluate issues about pricing and how to market more effectively, and left them with a new perspective on their companies as well as quite a few new ideas to investigate. I expect the outcome of my breakfast conversation this morning will be similar.

When I tell people I do this, they often strongly advise me to charge a fee or at least get some commitment for a future engagement. I never do either although I do expect the beneficiaries of my advice to pick up the check. I mention that the discussion we just completed and the recommendations I offered are one of the business services Benari provides so keep me in mind for additional help. They provide interesting issues and a meal and I provide food for thought. Final answers and implementation strategy require more work

I firmly believe that Help First is more than a slogan to hang on your office wall. Too many forget this as they become busy and successful and accumulate titles and power. “What’s in it for me?” guides everything they do.

As I’ve gotten better known I get more and more of these requests for advice. I screen them carefully since in spite of what I’d like to believe, I’m not the person to solve every issue and I only have limited time. Still, quite a few people meet my criterion for such a meeting, primarily that they present interesting issues I’d love to explore with them.

The funny thing is, it works the other way too; the more I do this for people, the better known I become and the more people want my help with well paying projects. Sometimes they’re even the people who left with their heads filled with ideas from our Help First meeting.

I enjoy these meetings immensely. I get to let my mind run free and bring my strategic thinking into play. I learn quite a bit about a variety of interesting businesses and the problems they face. I widen the network of people in awe of my skill (sorry, it seemed like a good place to drop this in) who spread the word to other business leaders in their network. Best of all, it just feels like the right thing to do.

Remember and honor those who helped you get where you are by helping others succeed with no expectation of anything in return.