The Case of the Stuck Consultant

As one of the more practical Bees, Kas Neteler has decided it’s high time to share some insights from all the buzzed out coffee dates that we attend on a regular basis. We enjoy getting together with potential clients, collaborators and the like to share experiences and offer suggestions for tough organizational issues. If you would like to contact us for a coffee date (in person or virtual), and don’t mind us alluding to insights from the conversation (without giving away organizational secrets, of course) please email us at thebees@theideahive.com with the subject line: “coffee date”.

photo credit: autumn_bliss

Recently, I had coffee with an aspiring independent consultant, Victoria (not her real name), who wants to work with sustainability practices in the Latino community. Unfortunately, she was feeling stuck in her efforts to find and engage in her work. Here is one method I have used myself and with others to gain clarity in getting “unstuck”.

One caveat before proceeding: I am primarily a visual learner and the advice I am about to dive into is geared towards others who learn this way. If you soak up information in a different way, please chime in with a comment (below) to add diversity to this topic and perhaps help someone along the way.

Create the Space

Time to put down the laptop, get away from your 8 ½ by 11” notepad and create a fresh space to explore your ideas:

You will need:

• Sticky notes (many colors work best)

• Color markers (colors!)

• A big surface (e.g, white board, butcher block paper, big clean table top, or over-sized sketch pad)

[A brief aside: in all the workshops we have designed, each time we have placed 100 colored markers on the table our attendees light up with glee -- and so do we!]

A Touch of Structure

Often the first step in getting “unstuck” is taking a muddled pile of thoughts, ideas, concerns, limitations, expectations and every other random notion and applying a simple structure. In the case of our aspiring consultant, she has bilingual skills, a family to support, blogs to write, Latino community, green practices, small business owners struggling to stay open, non-profits vying for funds, fundraising… and so much more that came flooding out in our conversation. No wonder she felt stuck!

OK, from my own experience this is where we need to take a deep breath before we move on in the process. Good. Now let’s use the simplest of frameworks to begin the process of navigating towards clarity.

At the very top of your paper write, “Higher Purpose.” This is it, your big chance to write down your life’s purpose. This may take some editing and revising, but this is key to the success of the structure.

In our example, our heroine Victoria, may define her higher purpose as:

“Educating the Latino Community in Sustainability Practices”

Next, under your Higher Purpose, create two columns: one with the header “Opportunity Statements;” and the other “Problem Statements.” With sticky notes and colored markers in hand, brainstorm on each category. Remember to write one thought per sticky and place it under the appropriate header (Opportunity/Problem) as you go. In the end, you should be able to see each sticky note and read it from a short distance away – don’t overlap/cover up any of your notes, you want to see them all.

In our example, Victoria may have created a list that read:

Opportunities:

• Making a living as a paid consultant

• Translating Green Practices into Spanish and vice versa

• Connecting on a deeper level with my community

• Finding allies in the community

• Connecting with Latino business leaders

• Creating a collaborative network

Problem Statements:

• Getting paid!

• Finding funding to serve an under-served community

• Making connections in community

• Meeting affluent Latinos

• Finding affordable self-educational opportunities

• Making a profit

Now that you have brainstormed your list, take a step back and look at your sticky notes. Seeing any patterns? Begin to move sticky notes into clusters (remember no overlapping) to show emerging themes under your two headings.

In a final step to build momentum, make a header under all the others that says “S.M.A.R.T. Goals.” S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and timely) goals help you form actions and measure results.

In our example, Victoria may have written:

S.M.A.R.T. Goals:

• “Set up six informational interviews with Bay Area Latino small business leaders for February”

• “ Attend one green audit workshop in next 4 weeks”

• “Respond to at least one RFP for greening Latino community each quarter”

• “Get a paid consulting gig within the month!”

Nice Job!

Step back and take in the big-picture-living-document (meaning you can change and update this anytime) you have just created. Are you still feeling stuck or can you see how you just created a map to help navigate towards the future? You have defined your higher purpose in life, organized your opportunities and problems and finally created some actionable/measurable steps toward progress – not too shabby for a rainy afternoon.

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