As they write their answers, we ask them to discuss their responses. That often leads to dead silence. Many people simply aren’t comfortable discussing their situations with strangers. But when they do, the sharing they do with peers can lead to valuable insights. And at the very least it gets them thinking about the issues and getting their thoughts down on paper.
We can now move on to the second page—the action page—and it, too, is divided into four quadrants.
This is where the participants address the critical steps they can take to thrive—there’s a step for each of the four quadrants, and just as we did with the assessment page, we ask the participants questions to facilitate discussion.
When we say “stay informed,” that also means understanding whom a client wants advice from. If you run the workshop well, you are probably already part of the client’s quadrant, because you’re helping them think about what they need. They are also likely going to think of the services you offer when they move to the other action items—ensuring their financial security and acquiring resources—and thus they’ll also want to think about compensating you for your services.
You can glean insights from both the assessment and action pages and use these perspectives to help the clients achieve their goals.
Follow Up
Again, you can run workshops for anybody: for ultra-wealthy entrepreneur clients, for the wealthy clients of people who refer you or for a high-end mastermind group. Whoever it is, you’re going to want to make sure and follow up with everybody who comes. There are a number of reasons for this.
First and foremost, you want to make sure you’re delivering value with the workshop—that you are indeed helping clients through both good and difficult times. By contacting them afterward, you can ascertain their reaction and likely find ways to refine your approach to the sessions and get better at hosting them.
You’ll also want to follow up because participants will want to discuss the answers they gave on the assessment and action sheets. They’ll want to know what you think about their answers and what other people like them are doing. Your ability to provide these insights and perspectives is very useful to them and will give you more chances to apply your expertise. The result is often that you’ll help the clients—and then you’ll help yourself by generating more business.
Russ Alan Prince is president of R.A. Prince & Associates. Brett Van Bortel is director of consulting services for Invesco Consulting.