Peter Block Flawless Consulting: A Guide To Getting Your Expertise Used, Second Edition

Chapter 13. Preparing for Feedback

A Clear Picture May Be Enough

Let's return here to the third-party role of the consultant, as this is the situation still most common. Every line manager wants to know what to do about a problem and so wants recommendations. Resist being carried away by the struggle to develop perfect recommendations. If you have presented a clear and simple picture of why the problem exists, the client will have as many ideas for recommendations as you do. The reason the manager has run out of recommendations to believe in is because of the inadequate picture of the problem the manager is now working with. The consultant's primary task is to present the picture—this is 70 percent of the contribution you have to make. Trust ...