How many of you record your calls with clients? Why not?
You can say it feels awkward, invasive, unethical. Yadda, yadda, yadda. Yes, using the recording as a weapon is problematic, then again if so many of us did not hit record these days, change would not nearly be as afoot as it is. We are recorded every day in some form so why not make it so for your creative business?
I record all of my work with my clients and listen back regularly to what we spoke about. I want to make sure that I was clear in the conversation, listened well all in an effort to learn how I can be better in achieving the work we have set out to do together. I record all of The BBC Collective calls for members to go back to whenever they like. Most do. Oh and I record a podcast every week as do so many of you. Again, why are you not recording your client calls?
There is not an athletic coach on the planet that does not watch “game tape” to learn how to be better for their team. Since you are the “coach” of your creative business, do you really not need to see how you and your team are performing in real time? Instead of rehashing the story from your memory (which is always colored by your version), how about seeing the reality as it is?
If you do choose to hit record, what will you look for?
Nuance and effective communication. Authentic building of trust and resonance with what is actually being received as opposed to what you think is being received.
You are not having a conversation when you talk to clients. Conversation requires active listening and speaking with an open mind as to what is being discussed. There is a power equivalence. Not so much with your creative business — you are the professional in the room and every interaction is meant to build your power by the willing dispossession of it by your client. You seek to have your client trade power for trust with the promise of what can be. “If I say yes to your idea, give you money to manifest that idea, and then get out of your way, my expectation is that you will transform me in the way I seek.” A willing transfer of power.
When you listen to the recording of your conversations, you will discover whether this transfer is based on an illusion (“just trust me”), force (“we have to do it this way because”), or, hopefully, faith (“you get what I imagine and now I will make it happen for you”). If you see illusion and/or force, you will know you have work to do. It will mean that the power of your art is overwhelming everything and your business is only along for the ride. The path then will be that the ballast in the balloon will only grow until the balloon cannot fly no matter the hot air. Double down on faith and lose the illusion and force.
Next is clarity of the three W’s. Can everyone involved in the conversation see where we were, where we are and where we are going on this journey? How will was that discussion received? How can you improve on that clarity. See above — if you rely on illusion and force you will believe the three W’s are unnecessary. Good luck with that. You can do better and you know it. Now you will see and hear exactly what needs to change.
Here is what you are not looking for with recordings: No gotchas. No catching an employee misspeaking or a client being a bully. Who cares. The whole point of listening is to ensure that you are communicating the underneath. Earning permission every day to do better work than you did yesterday. You do not do that by punishing your dog for eating your shoe yesterday. She has no clue what you are talking about. It is about establishing behaviors to make sure that the choice to chew the shoe is not one she will make when offered the opportunity tomorrow.
Your creative business is about effective communication. Effective communication in the requires nuance and idiosyncrasy, context and contextualization, hope, humility and grounded confidence. Now that you can easily study your ability to continually reach for this level, make the time. Performance matters in the genesis of intimacy. Live there.
