An article on the U.S. Small Business Administration’s web site, SBA.gov, reports that 91% of unhappy customers will never again buy from a company they’re displeased with and (perhaps the most disturbing statistic) they will voice their negative feelings to at least seven other people.

Given the above statistics, it is critical to have a sound exit strategy when ending a project, whether it is a long-term assignment or a short-term gig. This philosophy has helped me consistently grow my professional network throughout the years.

Here are a few of the strategies I employ to ensure clients are happy, not just until the very end of a project, but long after they write me their final check.

Wrapping it up

I always conduct a project wrap-up to ascertain the successes and failures of a given project. This often involves putting together some slides which redefine the original goals of the project, pinpoint major project milestones, and provide feedback and recommendations for how to leverage key learnings. I make it a point to schedule a call for the wrap up so I can review my slides and talk with the client about next steps, if any.

Keeping it open ended

I make every effort to maintain client relationships beyond the life of a given project. For example, I let my clients know that I can be reached any time if they have questions about a project a few months down the road, or if they need my opinion about something they plan to do going forward (even if I won’t be involved for the long-term). Clients really appreciate this accessibility.

Paying it forward

When a past or present client needs something done that I can’t do, for whatever reason, I make it a point to refer them to someone who can do it. My goal is for my clients to walk away with a solution, but that solution doesn’t have to be me. This last piece of advice may seem very counter-intuitive to business expansion, but it really works. Satisfied clients pass along my name to colleagues, and people I’ve referred remember me when they move on to new companies.

I think what surprised me most is that my client roster is entirely different now than it was from 2002 through 2006. Part of that is the nature of my work, which is very event driven. Clients launch campaigns and those campaigns end, so I’m no longer needed. Often clients hire me as a stop gap until they can find a more permanent internal solution. This means a fresh set of new clients on a regular basis, and quite a long list of dusty email messages from people I no longer work with.

As I read through my old client emails, many of which contained long strings of correspondence within the messages, I noticed a pattern. I tend to start off new client relationships very proactively, follow through reasonably well throughout the life of a project, then wrap things up quickly after about three to six months – whether the client is ready to do this or not.

I’m not sure if this is some kind of “startup fever” on my part or it’s just, as I said above, the nature of my work. But regardless of the reason, I have to admit that I love the excitement of winning new work and starting off fresh with new clients. Ironically, this is also one of the most stressful and costly aspects of being self-employed.

As my email plainly demonstrated to me, I’m stuck in an unending cycle of starting new things, only to end them when the paint starts to fade, so that I can devote my time to starting new things once again.

I have a strong suspicion that this isn’t entirely productive. Would it be so bad, after all, to work with the same group of clients for more than a few months to a year at a time? On the contrary, I think it might be very nice to take it down a notch and focus on something other than honing my sales skills. It’s amazing what you can learn from some dusty old email. I’m almost sorry I deleted it all.

The book is due out on the shelves on July 15th, so it was kind of neat to get a sneak peak.

I’ll admit I’m a skeptic when it comes to parenting books. I have a 7-year-old and a 4-year-old, so I’d like to think my kids are beyond tantrums. Of course I’m fooling myself.

That was painfully clear today when my husband explained how my 4-year-old had a titanic meltdown in Lowes because her Barbie lost a shoe somewhere in the store. He left without buying anything or going food shopping as he’d planned to do.
But you know, denial is nice assuming one can hang onto it for any length of time. In any case, I’ve been cracking open “I Brake for Meltdowns” more frequently than I’d planned.

Right off the bat, the book set a tone I could relate to. The second paragraph contains (in my humble opinion) the best line in the book. “I think it’s accurate to say that small children sometimes behave as if they are, in fact, crazy.” Amen to that, sista.

The book is laid out categorically with each chapter tackling a different issue (e.g., Meltdowns/Tantrums, Social Graces, Sleep, Eating, etc.) Since my 4-year-old currently refuses to eat anything except chicken nuggets, string cheese, pasta and bologna - I flipped to this chapter first. The advice was sound - don’t give her too many choices, don’t give her a snack if she refuses to eat dinner, serve stuff you know she’ll like.

Truth be told, most of the information is stuff I heard in the past but it was nice to reinforce it. It kind of made me confront the realization that it’s not okay to let her take all her meals of bologna and string cheese on the couch while watching SpongeBob.

Also, while some of the advice just won’t work for my child, that’s ok because every kid is different. For example, there’s no way my child will take a bite out of a cucumber round even if I explain that it will turn into a moon. But I don’t hold this against the authors - my daughter is stubborn as hell when it comes to eating. In fact, I was heartened by the comment included in this section, “Eating, like pooping, is out of our control.” It kind of feels nice to be let off the hook once in a while.

One final note - I liked the index at the back of the book which lists various issues alphabetically. It makes for a handy reference. Stuff like, Fingernail clipping, First-aid training, First-time offense, etc. I live for the day I get to write an index like this in a book. Only mine will read more like: Demonstrating “me-time” by example, Explaining PMS, and (my favorite), Get-the-hell-off-of-me.

I’d done something, however small, to reduce our carbon footprint and I wanted to do more. It made me take a good look at what I could do to become greener at work.

It turns out, as a telecommuter, I was already off to a good start. Last year the Consumer Electronics Association released the results of a study titled, ”The Energy and Greenhouse Gas Emissions Impact of Telecommuting and e-Commerce.”

The study revealed that the estimated 3.9 million telecommuters in the U.S. reduced gasoline consumption by 840 million gallons and curbed carbon dioxide emissions by 14 million tons (this is equivalent to removing 2 million vehicles from the road every year).

But gas isn’t the only “green” issue to consider at work. National Geographic’s Green Guide has a lot to say about the environmental impact of paper, for example. From the toxic byproducts created when wood pulp is bleached, to deforestation and the vast amount of garbage paper creates (paper contributes 30-40% of landfill waste), there are many good reasons for businesses to limit its use.

As a telecommuter who spends all of my time online, I use very little paper, but I could use even less if I really tried. Computer storage is relatively cheap, and most computers come with built in CD burners, so there’s really nothing stopping me from creating a virtually paperless work environment.

In addition to reducing my total garbage output by working from home, I’m also trying to eat less packaged foods and eat local foods when possible.

Last summer, thanks to my husband’s careful ministrations, we had plenty of string beans, tomatoes, basil, cucumbers, peppers and lettuce for home grown salads at lunch time. Picking lunch directly from the backyard garden not only saves money, fuel and reduces garbage, it’s also guaranteed organic and tastes delicious!

These are some of the things I’ve personally done to try and live more conscientiously, but there’s always more to do! Earth Day, which takes place on April 22nd, is a great time to reflect on the impact we each have on the environment and strategize ways to reduce our carbon footprint.

Even though I favor Hillary in the race, I have more of an affinity with Michelle Obama. After all, Chelsea Clinton is a fully grown 28-year-old woman and Hillary doesn’t have to face the same work-family decisions as Michelle, who has two daughters ages 9 and 6.

In a February 28th, 2008 interview with the Houston Chronicle, Michelle Obama was asked how she manages to balance everything on her plate. She replied, “When I’m on the road, I try to keep it to day trips or maybe an overnight. And for the most part, I’m home on the weekends.”

Okay, so she juggles. She also has the benefit of her mother’s help with the children while she travels and does not use a nanny, which I’m sure provides peace of mind. As all of us working parents know, finding good childcare is difficult, and finding affordable childcare is impossible.

But it wasn’t Ms. Obama’s statement about how she manages her own busy life that impressed me, it was her insight into my life as a working mother. “The thing I deal with on a day-to-day basis are the challenges facing working mothers, challenges that transcend race and socioeconomics and class. Women feel guilty all the time.”

That last part about the guilt really hit home, which brings me back to Hillary. She raised Chelsea in the spotlight, and now enjoys the support of her adult daughter. But what does that mean for me, as a working mother today? Can she understand the issues I’m facing as a middle class working mother trying to manage work and family and feeling guilty that I can’t do either very well? I’m doubtful.

For that matter, does Michelle Obama’s inside perspective on the difficulty of juggling work and family mean her husband gets it to? Is Michelle acting as a buffer between Barack and the stress of taking care of the children to the extent that he has absolutely no insight into the difficulties that working parents face?

But whatever my doubts, I am hopeful. I am invigorated. I know they are currently running against each other, but I often speculate that if these two strong women enter the white house together, there could be a very different agenda starting in 2009.
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This article was originally published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, March 8, 2008 under the title, “Campaign spotlights working moms”

For me, the recession has become distinctly personal as my own inner circle is pinched by a job market that’s in a downward spiral. Last week I spoke with a friend of mine who’d been laid off from her job of seven years.

She’s now scrambling to update her resume and try to get back into job seeker mindset. I’ve been where she is now. I was laid off in 2002 after five years at the same job, and I remember feeling just as displaced and out of sorts.

But I’ve learned a lot since then, the biggest lesson being that we’re never really out of the job market, even when fully employed. As a consultant, this is definitely the case. I’m always looking for new opportunities, pitching myself and trying to find resources and tools to help me land new projects and make new connections.

Thus, I think I’m in a good position to outline a few tips for my friend, and for those of you who may be in the market for a new job, during a time when competition is fierce and employers are reluctant to bring on new staff.

A few tricks from a perpetual job seeker

I redo my resume, from top to bottom, at least twice a year. I also customize my resume for each position I apply for, making sure to highlight the experience I’ve had that’s relevant to the specific project, company and industry outlined in the job description. Yes, it takes time, but it’s really worth it.

Likewise I recommend sending a customized cover letter for every position you apply to. Your letter should highlight specific things that set you apart from other applicants. For example if you’re applying for a marketing position at a nonprofit organization, it’s definitely relevant to mention any charitable work/fundraising you’ve done that demonstrates your sincere interest in working with and for a charitable organization.

Another word of advice – don’t be afraid to get help. There are services like ResumeDeli that specialize in preparing applicants for the tough job of selling themselves. Free tools are also widely available online including jobs-only search engines such as Indeed.com. I also recommend building a professional profile on LinkedIn or another job site such as Monster, so employers searching for people with your skill set can find you.

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This article was originally published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, March 15, 2008 under the title, “Successful job hunt takes work”

There were certain things I equated with daddy’s work. Leaving the house, wearing a uniform, coming home dirty from other peoples’ cars and producing a tangible end result – the fixed car itself, all played a role in my father’s story. The consequence of his daily journey to and from the shop was clear. Work meant money and money meant everything. It was simple enough for a first grader to understand.

Is it work or play?

It’s difficult to explain the nature of work to my own six-year-old because what I do is so intangible. Unlike me, she has no frame of reference to qualify (or quantify) my work. I wear the same clothes for work and weekends, I don’t leave the house to “go off to work” and there’s no tangible payoff for the fruits of my labor. At the end of the day, no one drives away in a car that I fixed. That makes all the difference in a child’s mind.

Children are literal thinkers. Even though my daughter is beginning to grasp some abstract concepts (e.g., medicine makes our bodies well), she’s still unable to fully realize how the work I do translates to the things we buy. When I tell her that I need to work so we can eat, she has to take my word for it. I’ve definitely seen some skepticism in her blue eyes.

After all, my work day consists of sitting in front of a computer screen. This is the same computer she uses to play games online, watch fun videos on YouTube and chat over long distances with grandma.

I think bearing witness not just to fruits of my father’s labor, but to the labor itself, helped shape my adult work ethic. My children lack this frame of reference, and so I wonder how they can possibly understand how hard I work, and how this directly translates to the things we want and need.

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This article was originally published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, March 1, 2008 under the title, “To daughter, work looks like play”

But I’ve been down that road before, when my oldest daughter was a year old. Back then my work weeks were dominated by hectic commuting, tearful good-byes, exhaustion and the ever-present feeling that I was somehow selling my both my child and my colleagues short.

The current arrangement, e.g., me working full-time and my husband extremely part-time – both of us from home, is a much happier one than my previous life as a harried, commuting, basket case.

But the flip side is that we’re constantly struggling to survive and thrive on what amounts to one income. Outwardly we have the illusion of success. We have ipods, cell phones, video games and high speed Internet access. We send our oldest child to private school because of her atrocious experience at public school, and we own more than one computer.

On the flip side we only have one decent car, our refrigerator is rarely full and we rely on credit cards way more often than we should. Some months are so tight that spending an extra $10.00 on a toy or book is a big decision.

It seems absurd when I think about it. We’re caught in a middle class paradox of creature comforts and luxuries on one hand, and impending financial disaster on the other. I don’t think two incomes is the solution right now. My earning potential is too great compared with my husband’s. The trick is finding steady work.

In the meantime, we’re all learning to be happier with less of just about everything. Getting rid of cable (an $80/month bill), shopping for food more frugally (which saves us an estimated $150-$200/month) and keeping the heat down during the day (even though we’re home) are just a few ways we’ve become more efficient as a family.

We live with less because of the decisions we’ve made but we’ve also gained a lot from the lifestyle we’ve chosen. Above all, we have a strong sense of family, and that means a lot more than money.
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This article was originally published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, February 23, 2008 under the title, “Preferred work style takes sacrifice”

I used to make every effort to get up, get dressed (in real clothes, not sweats) and dry my hair into the semblance of a style before starting work for the day. But work picked up at some point in September, after a very quiet summer, and the time I spent taking care of myself (including going to the gym three-to-four times per week) diminished greatly.

A lapse in self care is an inevitable pitfall of working from home. This is doubly true because I have kids. The temptation to wear comfort clothes, throw my hair in a pony tail and avoid any and all makeup is strong. It doesn’t seem a worthwhile task to spend my limited time on outward appearances when there are so many other things to do.

But sometimes self neglect can actually lead to self destruction.  According to a recent article in London’s Daily Mail, some working mothers are too busy to eat. There’s even a name for it. It’s called “stressorexia.” According to the article, stressorexia is a condition that affects mothers in their late 20s to 40s who are overworked and trying to be “perfect.”

I don’t know. If I were striving for perfection, I’d probably get my hair cut more than twice a year. Still, I’ll admit I work through lunch at least once a week, and if my husband didn’t love cooking, I’d probably subsist on a diet of cereal and TV dinners. The bottom line is that forgetting (or neglecting) the basics of life (eating, sleeping, getting dressed, etc.) is just really poor self care.

It’s frightening that something as critical as, well, eating can move so far down on a woman’s list of priorities as to fall off altogether.

What it all boils down to is a piece of advice I got from my wonderful hairdresser who tolerates my infrequent visits with infinite patience and good humor, “Get back to the gym, get your haircut more often and take care of yourself.” She probably should’ve added, “and don’t forget to eat.”

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This article was published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, February 9th, 2009  under the title, “Make time to take care of yourself.”

For me, the biggest benefit of self-employment is choice. It beats flexibility, money, challenging work and even success. I cherish my ability to choose, among other things, how I work, when I work, who I work with and when I come and go.

There are a few pivotal moments in my professional life that set the course for my ultimate liberation and I thought it’d be fun to pinpoint them.

The first was a long-ago performance review. I’d been working at one company for about two years when someone was hired above me. He was an excellent writer and had a lot more work experience than me, but he had no idea what I did on a day-to-day basis. Looking back, I realize I was in the wrong department so while it was totally appropriate to hire him for the position I thought I’d wanted, it wasn’t necessarily appropriate for me to report to him.

Nevertheless, when it came time for my annual review he tried his best to evaluate me and he gave me a small raise. I was extremely disappointed. I’d been working very long hours building a new service for the company which they successfully sold to existing and new clients. I expected a promotion and a title change, along with a larger raise. I said as much.

And you know what? I got it. That same manager nominated me for employee of the year. It was the first time I really felt like someone listened. And, though I didn’t know it at the time, it was the first time I made a definitive choice to influence my career myself (beyond quitting a job or applying for a new one) instead of waiting for change to magically happen. I now realize I also had a great manager.

The next pivotal moment was the birth of my first daughter seven years ago. I was driven to find a way to reduce my hours without impacting my career, and consulting seemed a logical path to take.

The final and biggest push for me was getting laid off. This naturally crystallized my lack of control and made me realize that if I worked for someone else, the choice of staying at one job as long as I wanted was never really my own.

Real choice doesn’t happen every day. It’s one of those things you take for granted until it’s taken away.
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This article was published in the Poughkeepsie Journal on Saturday, January 12, 2008.