Flawless Consulting, 4th Edition

CHAPTER 8Some Agonies of Contracting

SOME PARTICULARLY ROUGH SPOTS in contracting are worth highlighting. The first is what to do when you get stuck at Step 5: Agreement. Another is the difficult situation in which the client is willing to go ahead with a project, but you know the client's motivation toward the project is low.

There are ways to move forward through either difficulty.

When You Get Stuck

So, what happens if agreement is difficult? In Figure 8.1, this is called Step 5‐S (S for stuck).

Step 5‐S: Stuck on Wants and Offers

There are two phases to dealing with being stuck. First, you have to know that you are stuck. Second, you have to do something about it.

Knowing When You Are Stuck It is possible to feel that you are just having a reasonable discussion with the client about the pros and cons of the project and not realize that you are at an impasse. However, there are several clear operational signals that you are stuck:

Figure 8.1 Navigating the Contracting Meeting When You Are Stuck

1. You are stuck when you hear yourself re‐explaining something for the third time. The first time you explained why you want something, you might have not quite been clear enough. Jargon or clumsy language might have been in play. The second time you explained, you might have felt the client wasn't really listening. When you are struggling for the third time to express something ...