Articles - Page 21 of 48

The Final and Most Important Step in any Relationship

In December, my father went to bed and did not get back out. He was 96—about to turn 97. He was in fairly good health and of sound mind. No, better than that: His mind was still razor sharp. He was a decorated WWII combat physician and a noted pioneer in 20th century psychiatry, his […]

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From Impossible to Loyal: Seven Types of Difficult Clients and How to Win Them Over

Early in my consulting career I had a client who slowly became downright abusive. When we first met he was relaxed, confident, professional, and even charming. But underneath that veneer he was a mean-spirited tyrant. As time passed, he became every-more demanding and even vicious. One day, I walked into his office with a three-page […]

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From Impossible to Loyal: Seven Types of Difficult Clients and How to Win Them Over

By Andrew Sobel Early in my consulting career I had a client who slowly became downright abusive. When we first met he was relaxed, confident, professional, and even charming. But underneath that veneer he was a mean-spirited tyrant. As time passed, he became ever-more demanding and even vicious. One day, I walked into his office […]

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This Move Can Transform a Client Relationship

On November 26, 2008, Citigroup executive James Bardrick was having dinner with the CEO of a major client at the Royal Oberoi Hotel in Mumbai, India. At the time, Bardrick, an old client of mine, was one of the heads of Citi’s European and Middle Eastern banking business. He and the CEO had traveled there […]

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The Seven Deadly Sins of Client Advisors

Executives tell me it’s not easy to find an advisor with the right balance of experience, expertise, relationship skills, and client orientation. That’s not surprising. It’s a difficult role to pull off well. There are also lots of bad habits that professionals fall into when it comes to serving clients. Here are seven types of […]

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Should You Trust First Impressions?

A large body of research shows that when we meet someone for the first time, we make judgments about their trustworthiness and competence in a fraction of a second. We do this based on a variety of clues, including physical appearance, facial characteristics, posture, gestures, and so on. This makes sense from an evolutionary perspective. […]

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The Ten Habits of Terrible Listeners

You’re probably not as good a listener as you think you are. Take this test to assess your listening skills. Click here to download the Listening Skills Self Assessment

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The Ten Habits of Terrible Listeners

You’re probably not as good a listener as you think you are. In fact, most people are poor listeners. What’s worse, as we get older and more experienced, it actually gets harder to listen. In any area you may work in, there are a limited set of problems that you will encounter. Once you’ve seen […]

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