The Business Development Story That Changed Everything for Andrew Cogar, Bonneau Ansley, and John Tigh

Mo asks Andrew Cogar: Tell us a business development story that you are particularly proud of.

There was one project that stands out for Andrew, where he and the founder of his firm, Jim Strickland, had the chance to not only create an awesome property but also restore and support the local ecology as well.
During the meeting, Jim and the client discovered they shared a mutual friendship and instead of talking about the project they started geeking out on chicken coops. That kind of interest was exactly what the client was looking for, a firm that was completely authentic to themselves.
Andrew set the table for that approach that allowed Jim to be Jim to the fullest.
It’s all about being true to yourself, listening, and then connecting.
The way that you win work is to actually start doing the work. The right thing to do is to start adding value.
When you do those things, you aren’t competing anymore. This gets the client excited about the person who is facilitating their vision. It takes them from a leap of faith to “When can we start?”

Mo asks Bonneau Ansley: Tell me of a business development story that you are deeply proud of.

When Bonneau started the business, he made sure that he was selling for a reason. Even when they weren’t making any money, he made sure that every sale gave back to Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Hospital and it’s become the most rewarding business activity he’s ever done.
Having clients is not about a single transaction. Bonneau wants to grow with his clients and for the company to have a footprint beyond real estate. By pairing sales with a noble endeavor, he makes the mission of the organization more than just profit.
Visiting the hospital in addition to donating money is part of the company culture.
When things get hard, the charitable aspect of the business helps but he has a deep desire to win that keeps him going. Overcoming his natural weaknesses and leveraging his strengths also allows him to stay motivated.

Mo asks John Tigh: Tell me of a business development that you are particularly proud of.

During John’s time working as a consultant while working for a top-10 pharmaceutical company. He had a chance to meet another top-10 pharmaceutical company and help them implement a new technology.
John had a productive initial meeting but hadn’t really heard from them for two years. Eventually, John was contacted to pick up the project after another consulting company dropped the ball.
Disaster struck and the leader that was meant to guide the project left the company. John put his hand up to help them move the project forward as long as they were willing to trust the team to get things done. Over time, the team grew and John ran that project from the outside for three years and grew the business to the tune of multiple millions of dollars.
All of that came from one initial meeting and building trust by offering some expertise and help with no strings attached.
He was the one who wrote the strategy that transformed the business as well as the leader and operations person who helped make that happen.
John’s biggest achievement during that time was in overcoming his own inner critic. By learning about and practicing meditation each day, he learned how to get out of his own way.
Having a moment at the start of each day to throw off the doubts and the worries and focus on doing what he can do has changed the rest of John’s life.
One of the biggest blessings of a high performing team that has your back and believes in you is that they can help you manage your own inner critic.

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