For an example of a career-switcher’s Can-Do Portfolio, see Karen
Cresson’s in Part 2.Use 6: To Get Consulting Assignments
If you are a consultant seeking to build your practice, a properly tar-
geted portfolio can be a very useful marketing tool during meetings
with potential clients. Brochures and Web sites are excellent vehicles
for making people aware of who you are and what your basic services
are. They can also help you get appointments with potential clients. But
when it comes time to sell your services to a potential client, a target-
ed portfolio can help tremendously.
When you meet with a potential client, two essential things have
to be established if you are to get the assignment. The client needs to
believe that you have the right expertiseto help him or her and the
client must feel a rapportwith you. A properly targeted and presented
portfolio is a wonderful vehicle for establishing both your level of ex-
pertise and a feeling of rapport. Here’s how it’s done.Prepare a portfolio that demonstrates you have the expertise this
person is seeking. A client’s perception of your “expertise”will be de-
termined not just by the technical skills you are perceived to have, but
by assessments of your other P.E.A.K.S., as well. Prior to assembling
your portfolio, try to find out as much as you can about your prospec-
tive client’s problems and opportunities and about what kinds of
P.E.A.K.S. this person thinks a useful consultant should have. To get
this information you can use the same basic techniques described in
“How to Select Items to Include in Your Can-Do Portfolio”in Chapter 3.
If possible, try to have a phone conversation with this person prior to
your meeting to learn as much as you can about the reason why this
person is considering using a consultant and the desired P.E.A.K.S. of
the consultant being sought. Talk to people who either know this per-
son or are familiar with the kind of business and situation this person
is in.
The better you understand the kinds of P.E.A.K.S. that your poten-
tial client believes an expert consultant should have, the easier it will be
for you to select the right documents to include in your portfolio.
Present your portfolio in a way that establishes a feeling of rapport.
A feeling of rapport—a sense that you and your potential client are
“connecting”in a very positive way—is most likely to come if you place
the emphasis, not on your portfolio and not on yourself, but on your po-
tential client. Focus on being responsive to her hopes and fears. Ask
questions. Listen very carefully and with empathy. And then selective-
ly, in response to particular comments made or questions asked, show
some documents from your portfolio. Show enough documents to estab-
lish your credibility as an expert who can help this person. But beyond
that, you run the danger of overselling. You are better off leaving your
potential client with the feeling that you have a lot of impressive things
left in your “bag of tricks”that there just wasn’t enough time to go
through. A potential client who wants to see you again can very well be-
come a paying client.108 Part I: Building, Using, and Maintaining Your Career Portfolio