When I quit my corporate life four years ago to become an entrepreneur and set up my consulting business I had one overwhelming concern: I didn't have anyone close to me who had done what I wanted to achieve. I didn't have anyone I could call. I had plenty of cheerleaders encouraging me from the sidelines. I had plenty of new clients wanting to hire me, but I lacked an enviable inner circle of advisers and that became my first priority to fix. 

If today you got promoted, made an acquisition needed to prepare for a tough board meeting, who would you call? Do you have five people on speed dial who would return your call within the hour? That is how I define an enviable inner circle of advisers. People who are where you want to be, who have achieved what you want to achieve, who act with your best interests at heart and will tell you exactly what you need to hear not what you want to hear. 

For successful executives who get promoted fast, it is easy to forget to upgrade your advisers around you. If you are the most senior, with the largest role, greatest challenges, and often the one giving the advice, not asking for it, just like your 2010 Mercedes, it is time for an upgrade. 

One of the most common reasons I hear my new clients say they want to work with me is that they want an adviser who can be an independent sounding board, to share new approaches to rapid growth and bring different ideas that are proven. 

I pinpoint my own success as a leadership and innovation expert on the advisers I hired, the mentors I work with, and the remarkable colleagues I have a phone call or a text away who will give me the reality check, the encouragement or the wake up call I need just when I need it. 

Who do you have on speed dial?

Dedicated to growing your business,

Val