I’ve been pretty busy this past week dealing with some unexpected events, but I made a commitment to post a newsletter every Sunday at 9:00 am EST, so here’s what I’ve got for you:
An important reminder.
Let’s get into it →
Always Try Your Best
“How you do one thing is how you do everything.”
I have no idea who said that, but I completely agree with it, seeing as the way you do anything either strengthens the identity you’re proud of or hurts it.
The reason I mention it is because this past week I began my first AI consulting engagement with a medical practice.
It’s a new offer that I’ve put together to generate cashflow to fund a product launch, so I’m still building my initial pool of clients.
That’s also why I offered to do it for free.
And even though I’m not getting paid a dime, I still spent 90 minutes preparing for the call, adjusted my schedule to meet theirs, and am spending several hours more crafting their AI strategy report.
If I wanted to do a half-assed job, seeing as I’m not getting paid, I could have not prepared at all and spent 30 minutes knocking out the entire report.
So why am I not doing that?
Well, the way I landed them as a client was by initially reaching out just wanting to interview them as part of my market research.
They agreed to the interview, and we had quite a long conversation. They shared all the things they were struggling with, but I couldn’t solve that many problems at the same time.
Still, I promised to follow up with them after I had put together a way to move forward.
Fast-forward a month, I had conducted 9 other interviews with different business owners, and I realized I wasn’t getting the kind of market validation I needed to build a software product.
So, I decided to pivot and began offering consulting and development services. They’re helping me learn about the nitty gritty operations of the businesses I want to serve, and they also provide real validation when I get paid.
I shared all of this with my client nearly a month after speaking with them, and they decided to give me a shot.
They told me that they appreciated my initiative and were happy to support me as a result.
Moral of the story?
I could’ve told the client I wasn’t willing to work with them, and I could’ve “forgotten” to follow up with them.
Instead, I kept them in the loop, showing them I was working to find a way to move forward. I tried my best.
At the time, I had no intention of offering these services, but now that I am, the effort I put in to maintain a good relationship with this business owner back then is the reason they’re now my client.
And by the way, I am getting paid for any development work that comes out of this consulting engagement.
So that’s why I think it’s important to always try your best, even if you don’t see the point of doing so at that moment.
This instance, among many others, gives me the confidence that any effort I put in now will somehow benefit me in the future.
It’s just like Steve Jobs said, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”
The Final Musing
I think it’s important to figure out your own way of trusting the process, and then executing even if you don’t see the point in doing so.
Neither you nor I can predict with 100% accuracy how things will turn out.
But I think I can surely increase the likelihood that things turn out well if I put my best foot forward every day, and I encourage you to do the same.
That’s all for this week.
See ya next Sunday 🙂
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