[Porsche-O-Phile]

The #1 thing I've learned (and I hope to put this into practice for myself in a year or two) is that in a service business, don't forget to provide SERVICE.

I've seen a number of other firms and consultants get schit-canned over the past few years and it is ALWAYS for a lack of courtesy and customer service, never over a technical error or omission. Technical accuracy is important and if you're blowing that constantly you shouldn't be in practice in the first place, but nobody expects perfection 100% of the time. Mistakes happen. Clients get that. It's about how you handle the situations when the mistakes do happen. . . and how you handle your relationship with them even when things are going smoothly.

It's easy to get so obsessed with producing PRODUCTS like drawings or models or studies or reports (which are instruments of professional service) that one loses sight of the fact that the most important thing you bring to the table is how you service your customers. They can get the PRODUCTS from any one of a thousand other firms. Why they choose YOU is because of how you take care of them and provide them SERVICE along with the instruments of that service (the products).

It's almost inconceivable how otherwise smart individuals can totally blow it on this simple concept. Simply being there for your clients and giving them the reassurance, feedback and comfort level they need to know everything's going fine (without being involved in every little detail or nuance) puts you ahead of fully 75% of the others out there. No joke. It really is that simple.