Two firms. Same client. Same opportunity.

One spent most of its preparation time running profit models and checking its pricing against internal benchmarks. Version after version of the same spreadsheet.

The other built a competitive price and spent the rest of its time on something entirely different.

One of them understood what it was actually competing for. The other was still checking its math.

My latest article is about where proposals are really won and lost.

Dave's team served the same client for five years. They completed their work accurately and on time. They showed up to every meeting with reports and data. 

They lost the account long before they even knew it was lost. The client send out an RFP, Dave's team responded, but the client had decided to move on before the RFP ever went out. 

The reason had nothing to do with the work.

My latest article is about what a team gets wrong when it confuses delivery with relationship management. 

There is a reason comedians save the punchline for the end. The audience came for it. The setup is part of the experience. The wait is expected.

A client meeting is not a comedy show.

Your clients showed up with something on their mind, a decision to make, a problem to solve, or a nagging question about whether the firm sitting across from them is the right one. They did not come to enjoy the buildup. They came to get to the part that matters.

This week's article starts in an orals rehearsal where everything was right except the order. What happened next is something I have seen change the outcome of more client presentations than almost anything else I coach.

When a professional services team loses a competitive pitch, there is often a common reaction: "the other firm bought the work," or "they'll never be able to deliver what they promised".  It is a comforting explanation. It is also usually wrong.

AI is changing what it costs to deliver certain kinds of work, and the firms paying attention are pricing accordingly. They are betting on themselves, telling a confident story, and then running hard to make it real. The firms calling that reckless are the ones watching their pipeline shrink.

This week I wrote about the difference between those two firms, and which one you want to be.

A senior partner I coach, started a client meeting with a question she had clearly used before.

The client answered. The presentation was relevant. Everyone left happy.

Shortly thereafter, the client put the work out to bid.

The question wasn't wrong. It just wasn't good enough. And in today's environment, good enough is exactly the gap your competitors are walking through.

Article 4 of "The Builder Mindset: Winning the War for Clients in Professional Services" is about the questions that actually work, and what happens when you finally ask it.

This is a series of weekly articles I’m releasing throughout the summer of 2026, mid-May through early September. They’re written for partners, principals, firm leaders, and BD professionals who want to grow their practices. The series shares my observations about how successful professionals (builders) approach BD, how they show up with existing clients, and how they pursue new ones.

The habits that earned you your credentials may not be the ones that grow your practice. That's what this series is about, winning the War for Clients.

I was brought in to help a professional services firm prepare for a competitive proposal. They had been working with this client for years. Good work, no complaints. When the engagement went out to bid, one of the partners told me they weren't worried. They had a great relationship.

They lost.

The debrief was polite. The official explanation was vague references to delivery approach, technology, and price. I had a sense there was a deeper story. There was one.

Here's the part that struck me: the incumbent team never saw it coming. And in my experience, they rarely do.

This is a series of weekly articles I’m releasing throughout the summer of 2026, mid-May through early September. They’re written for partners, principals, firm leaders, and BD professionals who want to grow their practices. The series shares my observations about how successful professionals (builders) approach BD, how they show up with existing clients, and how they pursue new ones.

The habits that earned you your credentials may not be the ones that grow your practice. That's what this series is about, winning the War for Clients.