A few years ago, I tried to start a new consultancy in the USA called “If You Don’t Ask”
We registered it in Delaware, built the proposition, wrote the plan, designed the deck and all the usual startup stuff.
And then… nothing.
It never took off. It’s still sitting there quietly, waiting to send its first invoice.
Why?
Honestly, I don’t really know. But I suspect it’s because I tried to launch it within an existing business with people who were already comfortable doing what they were doing. I use my big fish team, and asked them to take the leap instead of finding totally new people with nothing to lose and everything to prove.
Still, the name stuck with me and I still have plans to make it work in the not too distant future
If You Don’t Ask wasn’t just a consultancy. It was a mindset and a philosophy
It was built around three key behaviours that I believe are crucial in any consulting process.
Intelligent observation.
Constructive provocation.
Useful recommendation.
In plain English, if you want to be a great consultant then you must look hard, not be afraid of asking difficult questions, and then offer up practical solutions.
This morning I saw this clip of Steve Jobs explaining that the people who achieve things are the ones who aren’t afraid to ask. He was spot on. Asking is everything.
Because people who don’t ask never get the answers.
They never know if they might have achieved something.
They never manage to do anything bold.
They never move forward.
People who don’t ask live in a world of “if only” instead of “do you remember when we…”
If you don’t ask, you don’t get…
The most out of life.
To know what’s possible (or what’s not).
To grow.
If you don’t ask, you’ll look back one day and wish you had.
Because not asking is the slowest form of failure. It’s the kind that doesn’t hurt at the time but leaves a bruise that lasts a lifetime.
So here’s the simple truth…
The world can’t says yes to those who never bother to ask.
Ask for the sale.
Ask for the meeting.
Ask for the truth.
Ask for help.
Ask why not?
The worst that can happen is you hear no.
The best that can happen is you change something, maybe even yourself.
If you don’t ask, you don’t get.
And if you don’t get, you don’t grow.
So go ask today and see what a difference it makes!
Just saying.
