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Appeal To The Reader's Ego #3

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KENNETH M. EVANS
2133 Kipling Street | Wheat Ridge, Colorado 80033
H: 303-889-0098 | C: 303-809-7544 | kevans@gmail.com


August 26, 20––

Mr. William S. Frank
President
CareerLab
10475 Park Meadows Drive, Ste. 600
Lone Tree, CO 80124-5437

Dear Mr. Frank:

I would like to thank you for your informative and helpful column which appeared in The Rocky Mountain News on Tuesday, August 24. If it is not too much trouble I would appreciate hearing your thoughts on a problem I have been having in implementing one of your suggestions. Specifically, suggestion number 30 is difficult for me in that no particularly helpful answer presents itself to the most predictable and relevant question that I hear in interviews.

To briefly fill you in on my situation: I have been admitted to the Bar in Colorado for approximately one year. I also have a Bachelor of Science in accounting. This is a double threat which should make me very employable given the conventional wisdom. The problem is that in today's tight job market I find myself competing for entry-level positions against attorneys and accountants who have three to five years experience. The question which is always present, spoken or unspoken is: "Why should we hire a person with limited experience whom we will have to train, when for the same money, we can hire a fully-trained experienced professional?"

Being a rational, economic man I can see their point. It is difficult to justify not hiring an experienced person, especially if they are to be paid an entry-level salary. Many of my friends are facing the same sort of problem. We are very interested in how to run the race when the starting gate won't open.

I fully realize that there may not be any adequate answer to the experience gap question. In any case I would be interested to hear your thoughts on this issue. If you don't have time to write, please feel free to call me at 303/889-0098.

Very truly yours,

Kenneth M. Evans

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William S. Frank, M.A.,
            President/CEO
25 Reasons I love consulting.
by William S. Frank
  1. Brand. You are your own brand, and you can define it any way you want. For many years, I provided outplacement to the ex-employees of Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield service corporation. When departing employees left the company, they didn't request outplacement in their severance package. They said, "I want Bill Frank."
  2. Demand. The world will always be full of terrible problems that need solving.
  3. White Hat. I can be a helper and get paid for it.
  4. Pay. I can be paid to do things I'd gladly do for nothing.
  5. Variety. Every day is different.
  6. Happiness. At this stage of my career, I only work for people I respect and care about. If a client micromanages me or is otherwise no fun, I complete the assignment and replace them.
  7. Talent. I'm using 110% of my talents and stretching myself to the max.
  8. Change. I can change my focus any day I want. If you're a McDonald's franchisee, you don't say, "Hey, I've got this great idea for a meatball sandwich—let's try it out today." In consulting you can adjust your focus hour-by-hour, as long as your clients still understand and appreciate what you do.
  9. Income. No one else would pay me as much as I pay myself.
  10. FUN. I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing.
  11. Retirement. I can write and consult as long as I am physically and mentally capable. Peter Drucker worked into his 90s, and when asked which book was his best, he said: "My next one."
  12. Job Security. Although clients come and go, no one can come into my office and say, "Pack up your stuff . . . You don't work here anymore." In 29 years, I've only had one employer: ME.
  13. Travel. I don't have to travel unless I decide to. I travel if it's both FUN and profitable—or at least FUN.
  14. Commute. I live five minutes from my office, a corner office in an upscale six-story tower. In winter, I leave a heated garage at home and drive to an underground heated garage at work. There's seldom time to hear even one song on the radio.
  15. Vacation. Consulting is more fun than vacation (except on Wailea Beach in Maui).
  16. Friends. I have developed hundreds of close acquaintances and several lifetime friends.
  17. Time. I can work as much or as little as I like: four-hour days or 18-hour days. (Of course, my income will reflect that.)
  18. Employees. I can work with employees, subcontractors, partners, or alone—I've done it all.
  19. Passive Income. I've developed several products that provide "mailbox money." I earn while I'm sleeping.
  20. Ethics. I've never had to violate my values or personal code of ethics. I've never had to lie, purposely deceive or harm others, or promise things I can't deliver. I go to bed with a clear conscience. That doesn't mean there's never any conflict. But the conflict is conducted according to generally accepted business practices.
  21. Virtual. My career is fairly portable. With the Internet, e-mail, cell phone, and FedEx, I can work nationally, even internationally from my office—or anywhere in the world.
  22. Purpose. I make a difference in peoples' lives every day. I see it in their faces, hear it in their voices, and read it in their thank-yous.
  23. Experience. Every painful or joyful life experience makes me a better consultant. So does every person I meet or book I read. Grey hair can be good in consulting.
  24. Structure. I have to work very hard, and the clients expect superb results—but I get to structure my days, weeks, months, and years.
  25. Boss. Most of the time, I love my boss.
As I was posting these letters online, I realized I want to communicate my love for consulting. It's just a great business. The single letters, taken together, may create a picture of enjoyment, but in a burst of creativity I listed some of the reasons consulting is such a good fit for me—and perhaps for you, too. They are not prioritized; this is just how they came out.