Meddlesome

Rate Setting

Sun, 05 Apr 2026 10:02:00 GMT

So you're an independent contractor or have a firm with hundreds of employees. How do you set the rates you charge your clients/customers? Too low and you'll go out of business. Too high and you won't get any business. Do you care about competitor rates? Do you just spitball? The answer is within reach.

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Consultant Lingo Bingo

Sun, 22 Mar 2026 10:01:00 GMT

In this episode, Jim and Ken investigate the pervasive use of jargon in the consulting industry and how it obscures effective communication.

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Making Decisions

Sun, 08 Mar 2026 10:02:00 GMT

In this episode, Jim and Ken share their journey through the complexities of decision-making in both business and life, highlighting our struggles with indecision and analysis paralysis.

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Is Chaos a business strategy

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 10:01:00 GMT

Jim and Ken examine the relationship between chaos and business strategy, questioning if chaos can drive productivity within organizations

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Conflict Management

Sun, 08 Feb 2026 10:02:00 GMT

In this episode, we discuss strategies for managing the inevitable conflict that occurs as a business owner or consultant or employer or...

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Hiring Interviews

Sun, 25 Jan 2026 08:00:00 GMT

We discuss the complexities of hiring interviews and all the mistakes we made!

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Clients who love their problems

Sun, 11 Jan 2026 08:00:00 GMT

Why some clients cling to their problems instead of seeking solutions

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What our mom's though we did

Sun, 28 Dec 2025 08:00:00 GMT

In this episode, we delve into the humorous yet poignant reflections of a management consultant grappling with the challenges of explaining his career to his mother throughout the years.

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Branding

Sun, 14 Dec 2025 08:00:00 GMT

We had a lot of trials and tribulations over branding. From lawyerly to simple our brand evolved. But ultimately, it's the company's product that matters. Also, we can't figure out logos.

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Report Writing

Sun, 30 Nov 2025 09:00:00 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss the value of consultant reports. You get a few tips on how to improve your reports.

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Loyalty Programs

Sun, 16 Nov 2025 08:00:00 GMT

Jim and Ken talk about loyalty programs. Airlines, stores, hotels, and online services all offer some form of them. Is it worth the effort?

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Silver Bullets

Sun, 02 Nov 2025 08:00:00 GMT

SCRUM, GTD, Object-Orientation, Seven Habits...All have some value but rarely do silver bullets cure all. Take the best parts and leave the rest.

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Dress Code

Sun, 19 Oct 2025 07:00:00 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss how a consultant (or entrepreneur) should dress in front of clients or prospective clients. Client +1 is the take away...though we both admit we have no fashion sense.

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Smart People Dumb Procedures - Addendum

Wed, 15 Oct 2025 20:46:35 GMT

A few minor clarifications to our Smart People Dumb Procedures episode

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Smart People Dumb Procedures

Sun, 05 Oct 2025 08:00:00 GMT

Our philosophy was people are smart and will do the right thing...except when they don't. Smart people can, and often do, dumb things, particularly when it involves mindless tasks. We talk about balancing people doing the right thing and corporate policies and procedures.

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Origin Stories

Sun, 21 Sep 2025 08:00:00 GMT

Listeners demanded to know how we became consultants and entrepreneurs! Well OK, one listener asked politely if we'd tell this story. And he was related to Ken.

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Who's In Charge?

Sun, 07 Sep 2025 08:01:00 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss what behaviors and rules an organization needs to thrive.

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Move Fast!

Sun, 24 Aug 2025 08:01:00 GMT

Jim and Ken talk about change initiatives in a company. How fast can you move?

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Season 2 Promo

Sun, 17 Aug 2025 08:00:00 GMT

In this special episode, Jim and Ken tease changes in our approach for our new season starting September 21st, 2025. It's a bit of a "sausage" being made but we thought you might enjoy it and hearing about some upcoming changes to our podcast. Hey we're learning here...

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External Company Communication

Sun, 10 Aug 2025 08:01:00 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss external company communication. Hopefully entrepreneurs will take some of this advice to heart.

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Internal Company Communication

Sun, 27 Jul 2025 08:01:00 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss internal company communication - is there anything useful that comes of it?

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Managing Your Consultant

Sun, 13 Jul 2025 08:01:00 GMT

Advice for clients. Jim and Ken talk about how to manage your consultant.

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Inspiration

Sun, 29 Jun 2025 08:00:00 GMT

Jim and Ken explore their sources of inspiration.

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SWAG

Sun, 15 Jun 2025 08:00:00 GMT

Jim and Ken hit another critical topic: Swag. Ultimately we tried to decide if it's Art or Garbage.

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Presentations

Sun, 01 Jun 2025 08:01:24 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss their approaches to presentations. Ken gives Jim glowing reviews for his approach. Both discuss their philosophy and a few tricks behind their success.

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Roles on a Project

Sun, 18 May 2025 08:02:35 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss the roles performed on a project to make it successful. This is not the same as positions (like manager); think of it as "starting a project" or "ending a project." Roles can be fulfilled by one person wearing many hats, but more often, the skills needed mean different people performing different roles.

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Work From Home

Sun, 04 May 2025 08:00:53 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss their "work from home" rhyme and reasons...spoiler: everyone loved it.

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Managing Underperforming Employees

Sun, 20 Apr 2025 08:00:05 GMT

Jim and Ken take a fairly deep dive into dealing with employee issues. This was not fun for anyone, employee or management, but it was always necessary. We didn't get to all we needed or the depth we'd hoped for in the allotted time, so we'll revisit this topic in the future.

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Work and Politics

Sun, 06 Apr 2025 08:03:22 GMT

Jim and Ken talk about work and politics—not workplace politics but Politics with a capital P. Can and should a company take political stances? What pressures are placed on businesses to do so?

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Moving Goal Posts

Sun, 30 Mar 2025 08:00:59 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss having the goalposts moved on you and moving the goalposts on others.

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Customer Alienation

Sun, 16 Mar 2025 08:01:59 GMT

How to make enemies and alienate customers.

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Utilization

Sun, 02 Mar 2025 09:00:30 GMT

Jim and Ken discuss the end-all and be-all of a professional services firm: utilization.

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Interstitial Time

Sun, 16 Feb 2025 09:00:17 GMT

What do you do while waiting for an airplane? Make money in the shower, of course! Jim and Ken discuss how they use interstitial time.

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The Changes in Client Sites

Sun, 02 Feb 2025 09:00:13 GMT

We talk about the cities our clients are headquartered in and how those sites changed.

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Corporate Culture

Sun, 19 Jan 2025 09:00:48 GMT

Following on from our talk about mission, Jim and Ken talk about corporate culture, how it develops, and what changes it, not always for the better.

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The Public Business Call

Sun, 05 Jan 2025 09:12:59 GMT

Jim and Ken talk about conducting business calls in public. Really?

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Work Yourself out of a Job

Sun, 22 Dec 2024 09:12:10 GMT

Do your job, do it well, and then move on. It paid off for us in the long run.

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Unstructured Time with the Client

Sun, 08 Dec 2024 09:11:36 GMT

We're amazed most consultants don't get to know their clients on a personal level. We're not talking about schmoozing but developing an honest friendship with them.

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Support Staff

Sun, 24 Nov 2024 09:10:59 GMT

Support staff are slowly vanishing as a concept. It's too bad because they made us successful.

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Low Tech Tools

Sun, 10 Nov 2024 09:10:19 GMT

Once again, tackling the tricky question: What pen do you like? And the benefits of low-tech tools.

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Sense of Mission

Sun, 27 Oct 2024 08:09:28 GMT

Why do companies have a mission? How is it developed? Is it a written document? How is it best developed?

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Jury Duty and Time Off

Sun, 13 Oct 2024 08:08:35 GMT

Sometimes, going against the grain in a business has unintended consequences. Here we discuss time off and vacation policy.

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Worst Client Ever

Sun, 29 Sep 2024 08:07:15 GMT

What makes a "bad" client? Sometimes, we make our own bad clients; sometimes, they come that way. Either way, Ken still has issues.

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Workpapers

Sun, 29 Sep 2024 08:06:47 GMT

Carefully documenting your work is an important part of consulting...or is it?

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Why Hire a Consultant

Sun, 29 Sep 2024 08:06:07 GMT

Why on earth would someone hire a consultant?

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The Perfect Bag

Sat, 28 Sep 2024 17:05:04 GMT

Jim and Ken dive right into the important stuff - selecting a briefcase, well really something to cart your stuff around.

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