Maintaining Personal Brand Stewardship as an Independent Training Consultant (cont.)

Be Flexible: Make conscious efforts to guarantee that your client gets what they want without them having to deal with any issues or delays along the way. Though it's easy for your ego to be bruised during the creative process, don't attach yourself too closely to your work. Maintain a sense of flexibility by taking into account that the project is a team effort. Service your client by making professional recommendations for changes, listening to and incorporating client feedback and working alongside the client to produce an optimal product.

Be Tactful: Make certain that the discussions you conduct with stakeholders are appropriate for a business environment. Rather than being boastful, use appropriate business language during interactions and avoid being wordy or long-winded. In addition, do not discuss contractual information, matters of finance or personal information with other parties during a project, unless they are directly responsible for administering those deliverables.

Be Polished: Your wardrobe, mannerisms and gestures send just as powerful a message as your work and your words. Always appear confident and controlled, and take into account the subtle messages that your non-verbal behaviors may sending, whether intentional or not. Make a conscious effort to modify these subtleties to send the message geared towards client satisfaction, and leave your emotions at the door, especially during situations surrounding conflict or confusion.

Being an independent training consultant involves a refined form of professional representation. Clients want to know that the work will be done well, but they also need to preserve the integrity of their own brand. Taking a proactive customer service approach will double up your impact when a project is successful. By taking a few steps to ensure that you are upfront, prompt, proactive, tactful and polished, you will surely end up in that "exceptional" pile.