Getting Naked: A Business Fable About Shedding The Three Fears That Sabotage Client Loyalty

Fantastic bedtime story from a guy you feel like you know and trust (if that's OK to say about a book called Getting Naked). One reason you relate to and remember the lessons without writing them down. Make the tea first, you will read this in one sitting. Reads like The Alchemist, in that it is a self described fable but with the core theme of Emo-nomics or should I say Ego-nomics as it deals with reconciling human nature (vulnerability) in corporate culture. Falls back into life lessons a bit and affirmation, or rather 'allows' you to. Like a foreign correspondent on the evening news wearing a suit & tie & boxers on a balcony in Beirut, you become embedded. Refreshingly Non preachy. Read Getting Naked in tandem with Change by Design show more as both are rooted in religious reverence (one for his wife and the other for himself, respectively) and balance each other like a feather and an anvil..... with a very lopsided balance beam. He ain't heavy, he's my author :-J show less

A book about using transparency and vulnerability to earn clients' trust and loyalty. Ideal for those in consulting and B2B sales. You'll learn:
• The 3 fears that hinder client trust and loyalty: Fear of losing the business, Fear of being embarrassed, and Fear of feeling inferior.
• Specific strategies and practices to overcome each of the 3 fears, including how to: show your sincerity in building a long-term relationship, serve your clients' interests even if it means risks/effort on your part, have the courage to speak up or point out hard truths, and be willing to shoulder your clients' burdens and share their passions/struggles.

Book summary at: https://readingraphics.com/book-summary-getting-naked/

Great statements and illustrations about being vulnerable

Worth the time to read for those who are coaches and consultants. Easy read.

Enjoyed this look at building loyalty through vulnerability. Some of my favorite quotes include:
“Vulnerability. It is one of the most undervalued and misunderstood of all human qualities. Without the willingness to be vulnerable, we will not build deep and lasting relationships in life. That’s because there is no better way to earn a person’s trust than by putting ourselves in a position of unprotected weakness and demonstrating that we believe they will support us. “
“Yet society encourages us to avoid vulnerability, to always project strength, confidence, and poise. Although this is certainly advisable in some situations in life, when it comes to important, ongoing relationships, it stifles our ability to build trust. show more “
“For those who provide service to clients, vulnerability is particularly powerful. Those who get comfortable being vulnerable—or as I call it, naked—are rewarded with levels of client loyalty and intimacy that other service providers can only dream of. “
“At its core, naked service boils down to the ability of a service provider to be vulnerable—to embrace uncommon levels of humility, selflessness, and transparency for the good of a client.“
“As obvious as that may sound, it is more difficult than it seems, because humility and selflessness and transparency often entail suffering. And suffering is not something most human beings, especially in our modern culture, understand or welcome. Most of us live our lives trying to avoid awkward and painful situations, which is why it is no surprise that we are susceptible to the three fears that prevent us from building trust and loyalty with our clients.”
#1: Fear Of Losing The Business
“Naked service providers refuse to be overly concerned about the possibility of losing a client or, for that matter, being undercompensated or having their ideas misappropriated by a client. In fact, they willingly put themselves in positions of exposure in each of these areas, knowing that by doing so they will earn the trust of their clients. They understand that in the end, more goodwill comes about even if there are setbacks along the way.”
#2: Fear Of Being Embarrassed
“Naked service providers are so concerned about helping a client that they are willing to ask questions and make suggestions even if those questions and suggestions could turn out to be laughably wrong. They readily admit what they don’t know and are quick to point out—even to celebrate—their errors because protecting their intellectual ego is not important to them.”
#3: Fear Of Feeling Inferior
“It is completely natural for service providers to yearn for respect and admiration, and to have a disdain for being overlooked, condescended to, or treated as though we are inferior. And so it is no surprise that, as consultants, we try to achieve and preserve a certain level of standing and importance in the eyes of our clients. But sometimes we forget that the word ‘service’ shares the same root meaning as ‘servant’ and even ‘subservience.’”
Always Consult Instead Of Sell
“Naked service providers transform every sales situation into an opportunity to demonstrate the value of what they do. They avoid, as much as possible, telling clients what they would do if they were to be hired; instead, they just start serving them as though they were already a client. And they don’t worry about whether the potential client will take advantage of their generosity; they know that for every client that does, nine others will appreciate their generosity and start to see themselves as a client even before they formally decide to become one.” show less