169
Chapter 7
Odyssey Reflections
Odyssey graduates talk about their experience in the Odyssey program and
the impact it has had on their lives, both business and personal.
John Butler and Getting Out of Your Own Way
Dr. Shayne Tracy, CEO, Executive Strong, Ontario, Canada
The genesis of Odyssey occurred for me in 2005 at the annual TTI Conference
in Phoenix, Arizona. I attended the plenary session to hear the late John Butler
speak on the topic of “Odyssey: The Business of Consulting.”
John Butler was a visionary, a Level 4 Master Practitioner and a “consul-
tant’s consultant.” He saw the need for individual consultants to develop
what he called “the business of consulting.”
He said, “It’s difficult to consult to a business owner if you are not a busi-
ness yourself. If you are not investing in yourself and your business, how
can you expect a business to invest in you and your business?”
I had been consulting since 1990, but on reflection, I realized that I had
not been in the business of consulting. I told myself that I was running a
business, but in reality Dr. Shayne Tracy was practicing what he knew best
from his experience, which was performance management, strategic plan-
ning, assessment, coaching, and leadership development.
Sitting in that session that day, I become increasingly uneasy, not least
because self-doubt and persistent uneasiness had been there in the back-
ground for some time. This self-doubt was a symptom of the “impostor
170 ◾ Odyssey—The Business of Consulting
syndrome.” Those afflicted remain convinced that they are frauds and do not
deserve the success that they have achieved.
As I listened to John that day, much of what he said challenged my
personal status quo. I had been associated with the TTI organization for
a decade or more and was using their well-researched assessment tools
for leadership training, coaching, teambuilding, and hiring in a variety of
organizational development applications. I was making a good living but
the gnawing reality of the moment whispered to me that it was not a great
living.
I would come to know what a great living meant through the Odyssey
process.
John Butler’s presentation was a resounding wake-up call. I was doing
Level 1 and some Level 2 work, but not Level 3 or 4 consulting. John was a
forthright presenter and a forthright person; what you saw and heard is what
you got. He did not mince his words and implored all of us in the room to
rethink our purpose, our so-called consulting business, and what stage we
were at in that business.
I left the session with mixed emotions. I knew that I had to change some-
thing, but I was not quite sure what that was. I knew that I was doing good
work, for the most part, and that I was having an impact on my clients. I
knew that I delivered results and that I had creative solutions. However, the
key thing I took away from John’s presentation was this: I realized that I
didn’t feel that my clients really appreciated what I had to offer. In fact, the
underlying emotion, to be completely honest, was one of rejection. I felt my
self-worth was constantly being challenged, and that was reflected in my
fees and billings.
I thought about why I had chosen consulting as a career. I had many of
the perks that most people would give anything to enjoy. I had freedom of
time, opportunities to work on my own without a boss, and good open-
ended income opportunities. I had been given the opportunity to learn new
practices and techniques, I’d met a wide variety of interesting people, and I
got time off to enjoy treasured vacations and travel, time to manage family,
and personal affairs. Last but not least, it gave me the passion and purpose
to make a difference in the world.
Not long after John’s presentation, I bumped up against him in the con-
ference hall. I said politely, “I enjoyed your presentation; it gave much to
think about.”
He immediately said, in his assertive Irish brogue, “So what are you going
to do about it? You need to get with the program!” I mumbled a couple of
Odyssey Reflections ◾ 171
words without a committed answer. He said, as only John could say it, “Talk
is cheap. Actions make things happen … Get on with it!”
This was more powerful input for me to think about and, more particu-
larly, to feel about. My head said, “Let me take a rational approach to this.”
My heart said, after I had overcome the inner critic who rears its ugly head
when one is most vulnerable, “Stop thinking you know it all. It’s time to
seriously examine what you are doing. It’s time to stop feeling less than who
you are, and above all, it is time to ensure your clients pay for the value you
provide.”
I debated with myself about the cost-benefit of signing up to Odyssey,
and in the end said—somewhat arrogantly—“I am doing it! I must invest
in myself to be the best I can be!” I hadn’t known that there was a way
to develop, build, or grow my consulting business. I was loaded up with
academic credentials but not a speck of consulting education or training. I
asked myself the question John had posited during his talk, “If I don’t do
this, how can I ask others to invest or pay me for what I do?”
So, I signed up for the Odyssey program.
A client was referred to me when I was working on the second module.
The company was a small biotech. Among other things, they wanted me to
conduct an organizational review and deliver findings on position descrip-
tions, performance appraisal, organizational charts, staff engagement, and
leadership development. I conducted my first M1 and M1r and had an abbre-
viated BMR with the CEO and board chairman.
When I reached the REC stage, I wrote up my proposal and began setting
out the fee structure. As I did, the old emotional reminders resurfaced: “You
need the money, don’t lose this opportunity … you will feel really bad if
you lose this contract … other consultants out there will charge less … you
might need to lowball this fee to get the work … they don’t really need you
to do this … do you think the CEO and board chair really like you or know
what you can do … or really care?”
With the strength of what I knew and had experienced from my short
time with the Odyssey process, I gritted my teeth and doubled my fee. As
I wrote the numbers into the proposal, as tough as it was, I said, “I am
worth every dollar because I know I will deliver ten times the value to the
organization!”
And that’s exactly what happened. What a rewarding affirmation that
was! I was now in a different place, with an entirely different mind-set.
As I reflect today on my Odyssey experience, it has changed both my life
and my work. As a consultant, there must be a conscious integration of who
172 ◾ Odyssey—The Business of Consulting
you are and what you do. To be successful requires a full appreciation, under-
standing, and, above all, an opportunity to combine and integrate being
with doing. Odyssey is my true opportunity for life–work integration.
Harking back to that day in Phoenix, let me share the eight lessons from
John Butler that continue to resonate with me to this day:
1. Get yourself out of the way. You must be courageous and a risk taker
to have life–work integration. Your talent and solutions are worth more
than most consultants believe they can charge for them. Most have feel-
ings of low self-worth and tend to leave money on the table.
2. You are a business and a profession that makes a difference. Your busi-
ness must show profit, and your profession must deliver results for you
and the client.
3. Give up the “commodities” mind-set in providing services; the client
can’t buy it from anyone else if you have developed a value-based trust-
ing relationship.
4. Be prepared to “fire” some clients because they waste your time
and provide low tangible and intangible rewards for you and their
organization.
5. Strive to become a Level 3/Level 4 Trusted Advisor–Master Practitioner.
Strive to be in the top 10% of consultants in terms of value delivered
and value received.
6. Define your personal and professional purpose and connect with the
clients that are like-minded. Use the Odyssey Arrow consistently to
advance the relationship.
7. Design your business model and be able to describe it—who you are
and what you do—on the back of a napkin.
8. Build your business with trust and integrity through talent-driven results
and added defined value for the client.
My life, work, and experience in consulting has been and continues to
be a journey, as the term “Odyssey” implies. We each approach consulting
in our own way and to the beat of our own drum. Yes, the individuality of
our expertise, approach, and application defines the consultant personality,
business model, and brand. The Business of Consulting creates a consultant
career path, with a proven client-focused methodology and process. Above
all, it creates a community with consistent standards of practice, a set of
common values, and a passion that will make a world of difference for each
one of us and our clients.
Odyssey Reflections ◾ 173
Nothing Happens until Somebody Does Something
Art Boulay, CEO, Strategic Talent Management, Brunswick, Maine
I first heard John Butler speak in 2005 on “Odyssey: The Business of
Consulting.” John filled the room with his presence, and I was equally
taken by his message. He pointed out that the difference between consul-
tants making a million dollars a year and those making $50,000 a year is
essentially … nothing. It is very much like a horse race where the first-place
winner captures the lion’s share of the winnings, and the rest of the top fin-
ishers share a fraction of the purse, even though they lose by a “nose.” The
real difference in financial results is in the hearts and minds of the consul-
tants, the difference between a Level 3 or Level 4 Master Practitioner and a
Level 1 or Level 2 Competent Warrior.
While the message was powerful, my income from consulting had
started a serious upward trajectory in 2000, and by 2005, I was doing well
financially. I felt I had no need to write a check to Odyssey or to any other
program. This upward momentum continued through 2008, and I still did
not consider signing up though I was aware of the program and trusted
colleagues had completed Odyssey. Then came the economic collapse, and
though 2009 was not a bad year financially, for the first time in nine years,
my income went down instead of rising by double digits.
I signed up with Odyssey in November of 2009.
As you will note from my reflection so far, it was all about money. I
thought Odyssey would help me get back on track with the income growth
I had come to expect, and that the money train would continue. In the back
of my mind, however, I knew there was more to this story than just money.
I began my consulting career in 1991 as a TQM consultant, and by 1993,
I had “discovered” coaching. I really enjoyed it. I loved the interaction with
my small-business clients. They were very bright technically, but they still
benefited from my corporate management training, including TQM. During
that time, Bill Maloney (my business partner) and I were introduced to
assessments that were instrumental in my first wave of business growth. My
business expanded, and I found myself doing more and more hiring selec-
tion work and relatively less coaching.
By the time 2008 rolled around, the majority of my income was from
hiring selection, and all of the business growth was in that area. In fact, I
was telling my business acquaintances that I was thinking of getting out
of coaching altogether because it wasn’t working. Coaching clients did not
..................Content has been hidden....................
You can't read the all page of ebook, please click here login for view all page.