My grandmother’s uncle Harvey was a professional golf coach and mentor to several prominent golf pros in the 80s and 90s.

I only met him once, late in his life, but he offered me a piece of advice I’ve never forgotten.

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I was just a 10-year-old non-golfer then, so unsure what to say, my mom suggested I ask him if he had any advice for left-handed golfers. (I’m a leftie.)

Without hesitation, Harvey said, “Play right-handed.”

I was a bit stunned by the seemingly automatic response to conform, but he continued…

“You’ll have a strength in your left arm that others won’t, and that will give you an edge in your backswing.”

Ahh, so it wasn’t so much about conforming to a mold, but rather about leveraging my inherent differentiator.

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Now, I never picked up golf as a hobby, but Harvey’s insight is just as relevant to the solo consulting arena I play in today.

I’ve spoken to dozens of new and aspiring solo consultants in coaching calls who feel stuck on niching or differentiation.

They have a world of experience and deep expertise but just don’t see what their edge could be.

Then, somewhere along the line, it slips out:

• “I write novels on the side”
• “I want to work with people who care about sustainability”
• “I try to incorporate mindfulness practices into my client engagements”

I usually say, "Why didn't you mention that before??”

The response is usually a verbal version of: 🤷

As the conversations continue, we explore opportunities to leverage these unique skills and interests into their consulting offer:

• A writing hobby can be translated into a core strength when helping your clients with their messaging
• An interest in sustainability opens the door for a unique ICP and a path into client conversations
• Mindfulness as a feature of an otherwise dry strategy engagement will speak loudly to the exact subset you’d be best to serve

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Somewhere along the line, we’ve been conditioned to tuck away anything that breaks the mold of what we think we want to be.

My guess? A decade or two on the corporate conveyor belt has trained us to keep our personal interests out of the conversation.

But you’re on your own now — designing a business that needs to showcase how you’re not like everyone else.

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So, that interest you think makes you weird?

That quality or skill that you think has nothing to do with your business?

Pull it into the fold as you design your offer.

You might be surprised at the edge it provides you in your backswing.

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💡

-Wes

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Photo credit: The New York Times, "A Golf Teacher With A Lion's Instincts and a Dove's Heart" (paywall)

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