giving Archives - John Hayns - The MAGIC Formula

Being Kind is your business super-power.

How do you Be Kind in Business? By applying the MAGIC formula:

Moving
Attuning
Giving
Inspiring
Connecting

It applies to:

Yourself
Your clients
Your team
Your prospects
—

Giving to your clients is a surefire way to better business.

We are all customers or clients at some point.

Bring to mind a time where your service provider or vendor exceeded your expectations or did something special for you. They gave something extra. It sticks in your mind, doesn’t it?How can you do the same?

Obviously, we can’t give everything away for nothing to our clients. We have to make a living. It has to be sustainable, we have to give within our means. But, if we can find the balance, there are big benefits to being generous to our clients, and we can probably afford to give slightly more than we think.

Sometimes it will repay in the long run, sometimes it won’t. And even if it doesn’t, it’s a good thing to do because it makes us better, both as people and as businesses.So how can we give to our clients?

More Than They Were Expecting

Firstly we can exceed expectations: under-promise and over-deliver. Surprise them by how good we are, by giving them more time than they were expecting, or more attention.

My accountant’s bill, especially in the early days, often had the phrase “exceeded but not billed” next to his tally of hours. He obviously thought I’d be rich one day and was happy to encourage my loyalty!

Maybe you can offer something other than time? Can you provide extra add-on resources that your clients will value? Downloads, videos, links to useful services?

We All Love a Present

I buy magic tricks from a magic dealer who often encloses a little packet of sweets inside the package. It makes me feel good. Another one sometimes includes a small extra trick as a pleasant surprise.

Could you send a special gift to your clients?I signed up for a course last week, and was sent the course materials. They came in a blue sparkly padded bag. It could have been a regular padded bag, but the sparkly blue effect made me feel valued.

Can you package your delivery in a way that will make your client feel like a VIP? How can you roll out the metaphorical red carpet?

Say Something Special

An easy way to give something is to say something positive and unexpected.

You can simply offer encouragement to your clients, say thank you for their business, say well done when they achieve something. Tell them that they are special and that you value their business.

Why not go a step further and send a card, or buy them lunch or coffee?

Have you Met…?

You can share your network with your clients, help them to plug into it to increase their range of contacts. You can provide them with recommendations, and you can recommend them to other people.

Not giving something physical, but giving them a leg-up and new opportunities.

Work For Free??!!

Can you offer pro bono work?

“Pro bono” literally means “for the good of the people.”

This is a common practice in legal and accountancy practices. I wondered why they did it. Then I read this enlightening blog post on the business case for pro bono work: http://www.a4id.org/policy/business-case-for-pro-bono/

In a nutshell, graduate lawyers are increasingly keen on including pro bono as part of their professional offering. If a firm offers pro bono work, they will attract better graduates. Better graduates will earn more money in the long run. It makes business sense.

Could you do some pro bono work? If it works for lawyers and accountants, why not for coaches and other kinds of client services? I know magicians and other entertainers who have decided to do a percentage of charity gigs each year.

Think about how you can be generous in your client work. How are you giving to your clients?

Make them feel special. You will stick in their minds.

—

Download my free eBook “Be Kind to Yourself” and learn how to:

Adapt to new ways of working
Harness the power of habits
Optimise the use of space in your home
Use clothes to boost productivity
Focus on what matters
Plan for the future amidst uncertainty

Be Kind to Yourself – Free eBook

Being Kind is your business super-power.

How do you Be Kind in Business? By applying the MAGIC formula:

Moving
Attuning
Giving
Inspiring
Connecting

It applies to:

Yourself
Your clients
Your team
Your prospects

Giving to Yourself

This whole idea of giving to yourself might seem selfish or frivolous, an unnecessary luxury.

However, business people need to give to themselves so that they remain effective.

We need to give ourselves:

– the necessary resources,
– time for recharging, and
– recreation and inspiration.

Eat, Sleep, Break

To flourish, we have to give ourselves permission to sleep enough. We require the right nutrition. We need to give ourselves adequate breaks.

Leadership and sales are taxing occupations. We need time for thinking and reflecting on our work.

If you are a creative, you need time to brainstorm, to dream, to come up with new ideas.

I was once told that you can always spot the Chief Executive. They are the ones with their feet up on the desk. Not resting, thinking.

Modern life takes its toll. To be effective, we need to be healthy, both mentally and physically.

Come Apart…

I love the saying “Come apart before you come apart”.

Do you take enough days off? Do you take proper holidays? We need to be intentional about time off in the always-on age. Give yourself permission to be switched off sometimes.

I once heard the now Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, talk about the “radical unavailability” of Jesus. Jesus, at the height of his ministry, used to take himself off and become unavailable for days at a time. He would recharge, reflect, and be all the more effective when he got back.

Soul Food

You need time to feed your soul. Time to inspire yourself, to relax, to feel good. Time to build your self up.

What hobbies are you engaged in? Hobbies that are not necessarily related to your work, but enable you to nurture another side of yourself.

Do you get to the theatre, watch films or good TV that lifts your spirits? Do you regularly escape into a good book?

A couple of decades ago, I read “The Artists Way” by Julia Cameron. One of the things that stuck with me from that book was the concept of an “artist’s date”, taking yourself off regularly for a treat. It might be going to a museum, a walk in nature, or cinema by yourself in the afternoon. One of my favourites is taking myself off to a posh hotel and having afternoon tea. Maybe you’d prefer a spa day? You get the idea.

If we’re giving all the time, we need time to recharge, to build our energy back, to bolster our self-worth.

Gold

The Golden Rule is, “Love your neighbour as yourself”.

If you’re not giving to yourself, then you won’t be in a position to give to your team, your prospects or your clients.

—