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Ian Benjamin - Trainer, Facilitator, Speaker, Writer Associated site
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Ian Benjamin - Trainer, Facilitator, Speaker, Writer Associated site |
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M 0419 593 167 T 1800 266 266 T 03 9593 1678
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Book Reviews - Ian Benjamin The following reviews for Consulting Contracting & Freelancing Be Your Own Boss have been written by readers and critics. .. Gday Ian Thanks for your newsletter. I became aware of your services after I purchased your book. I purchased it in June last year and started my business in August. I found it extremely useful and full of practical and pragmatic advice (I used the proposals example for my tender application I have only written one and was successful). I am a consultant ecologist, specializing in ecological management (i.e. a more holistic ecological approach to conservation, rather than just focusing on an individual plant or animal I focus on the landscape that the thing sits within as a focus for management it seems more practical to me to manage the threats that surround a beastie rather than manage it as if it was a zoo and not connected to the outside world). I look forward to your newsletters. cheers - GM (name and address supplied) .
Your book is fantastic and I
am already 2/3 of the way through it. The marketing chapter was particularly
useful as it is the area I struggle with. Having spent 31 years in the army
you dont have to worry about marketing! We dont really sell our services
in Defence, we just do what we are told. . Vogue
Australia, Vogue Business, August 2003, page 15 Ian
Benjamin has distilled his 12 years of experience in training independent
consultants to create this excellent handbook. Designed to help you navigate
the processes of becoming a successful consultant, the book provides step by
step plans supported by case studies. The
most important chapter is probably Are you ready for this?, where
Benjamin look directly at the effects of making such a huge change in your
life. If the answer is yes,
then this is the book for you. .. "I'm
not usually moved to write to authors to congratulate them on I'm
about to leave my company and become what you describe the
first one I came across in a bookshop in Wellington. I doubt So
thanks .... as a writer and publisher myself, I appreciated too My
plan might turn to custard, I realise, but at least I feel a measure
of confidence now that I didn't have before. With
very best regards" Bronwyn
Sterling, Wellington, NZ .. "I bought your book! Thanks to your book I
have a clear idea of everything I need to do to get my business up and
running. Now I just need the time. I've been flat out with work since I
started up 3 weeks ago! I have an appointment to have business cards and a
website designed tomorrow, so progress in working ON the business continues
slow and steady. Your book saved me six months of trying to figure out what
I needed to do
. Ingrid." .. 17/11/2004 Hi Ian Thanks for your email I received the book last week and have read it for the second time, it is plastered with post it notes! I recommended it to a colleague the other day and will continue recommending it. I see the key difference between being a consultant and an employed solicitor as being linked to the point you make in the book about the difference between a consultant and a contractor essentially whether you lead from the front foot or whether you follow, whether you set the agenda or whether you follow the agenda already set for you. After 20 months or so in business for myself I am only now getting my head around this idea (albeit after 10 years as an employed solicitor). Being a consultant requires me to be far more entrepreneurial than I was as an employed solicitor and being in business for myself gives me the opportunity to find out that I can be!. Lawyers can be quite creative and have a lot of flair, however the traditional practice of law does not give many the opportunity to pursue those skills and talents. That opportunity is one of the most attractive and frankly challenging aspects of working for myself. I have found David Maisters book Managing a Professional Services Firm very instructive (I particularly like the fact that he is quite blunt and doesnt dilly dally about his advice), however I found its limitations for me lay in his American and large firm focus. Your book left an impression with me when I read it for the first time earlier this year because of its very Australian perspective and the fact that it is more relevant for me as a small firm. Warm regards, ED (name and address supplied) .. 23/07/2004 Hi Ian I bought your book the day I went into the Smartlicence office to register my name. I was still working full time at that stage and working for myself was only a dream at that stage but registering the name was the first step. I went home and got stuck into your book and after a week started talking and planning about my business and securing my first contract. I'm four weeks into being an SSP and I love it. I probably didn't go about it the right way in that I should have read the entire book first but as I was planning the book was helping me and confirming the steps along the way it was an incredible experience. Since being an SSP I have confirmed another three contracts and even have a friend helping me out with some admin work. I can completely vouch for the effectiveness and relevance of your book and tell everyone I meet about it. The fact that you made reference to Qld made it not so scary for me and for some reason you gave me confidence. Just wanted to let you know that if I had not have picked up your book that day I'd probably be frustrated and not enjoying the freedom and strength that being an SSP provides. I have subscribed to your newsletter and am going to keep my ear out for any presentations you do in Brisbane. I'd like to know your fee as there could be an opportunity for you to do a presentation to my local Chamber of Commerce. The Gap Chamber of Commerce has the highest ratio of self employed people and I have no doubt they could benefit from your presentation. I look forward to learning more and one day meeting my superman who has helped me find happiness and strength in my life. Kind regards, TT 19/07/04 Thanks Ian, I read your book over the last couple of days. Great read! I picked up some valuable information and tips. I have been doing a mix of contracting/consulting in my own entities (with various partners) over the last three years. I have decided that I work better on my own and hence as of July 1st I divested myself of partners and employees and have set up Technology (rest of the name deleted). I specialise in assisting organisations with contracting software, hardware and services vendors for large-scale technology projects. I have done dozens of negotiations with large scale vendors and have a good understanding of their negotiation strategies, pricing models and behaviours. I utilise this experience to aid my clients to reduce their project risk and maximise value by achieving a better balance of risk between client and vendor. In doing this I often act as the interface between legal, technical and commercial representatives for the client. So, in summary whilst I work in IT, I really bridge the gap between IT, legal and the business when contracting for high risk projects. I do a lot of work in the financial services and government sectors, due to the high IT spends there. Very interested in being part of your network. As a great reader of Maister it is excellent to see some local IP in this region being published! Regards, CK "I came across your book today, bought it and read it in one go...this is not unusual for me, although it only happens with books that are worth reading from cover to cover and are interesting enough to do it in one go. Congratulations on the job well done...the most interesting sections of the book for me were examples and case studies about pricing, quoting, marketing and similar issues and experiences...I got 3 - 4 potentially valuable ideas, so investing in the book should prove a shrewd investment." Igor Popovich, Director and Principal Trainer, Career Professionals, International Management Consultants, Trainers and Educators .. "A brilliant book. It has sorted out so many issues. It has changed my life. It is brilliant." Jacques Planche, Sunshine Coast, Qld .. "Great book got it last week almost completed. I am in your terminology a High Profile SSP!, specialising in Recruitment, Outplacement, Management Services, Database Design and Modelling and Web Based Applications. Right down the middle with what I am doing, started business this year! Completed my business plan with the assistance of your book. Lots of good stuff Thanks for the great info! Hope to keep in touch from time to time." John Duffield - UMACS - Uverdale Management & Consultancy Services VIC .. "I
bought a copy of your book shortly after it came out - an excellent read -
thank you! I then went into your website ...Thank you for the newsletter -
it has motivated me even more to pursue consultancy work in the longer term
- I have no doubt you will see me at one of your workshops in the future!" ..
"Thanks for your Newsletter just like your book, it is full of helpful and instructive information. I came across your book on the shelves of Collins a few weeks ago...I thought I would give it a read. It really hit the mark for me and I wish I had read it from day one. Many of the fears, concerns, doubts and uncertainties that I have just experienced are all there in the book and I thought it was just me! I have just about completed my business plan based on chapter 3 and I will certainly be recommending your book to people I meet in similar situations...I am excited at what lies ahead and terrified at the same time...thank you for your book and you might see me at one of your networking evenings in Sydney soon." Mike Roberts, Crystal Ball Management, 2003 .. "I'm a new Marketing SSP. I recently purchased your book and found it wonderfully informative and relevant to my situation - refreshing to find a self-help book written for the Australian SSP. Thank you." Tania Davis Grey Wolf Marketing Vic .
"Thanks,
Ian. You should feel very proud of your book -- it's inspiring without being too
starry-eyed, and amusing to boot. Cheers" . The book has also been reviewed in the Courier Mail, The Age, The Sun-Herald, SMH. Ian has also addressed the National Press Club, been a guest on Tony Delroy's nightlife on Local ABC and on Peter Switzer's in-flight program Talking Business on Qantas (October 2003). He has addressed many other forums and is happy to discuss addressing your organisation. Please email.
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Click here to receive Ian Benjamin's Newsletter 2009 Public engagements - PMI (Project Management Institute) Sydney PWC - December 9 - Successful Consulting - Chartered Secretaries Australia - Melbourne December 1 - Successful Consulting - Chartered Secretaries Australia - Sydney November 19 - Successful Consulting - Mercure Sydney - November 16 & 17 - Successful Consulting - Chartered Secretaries Australia - Brisbane November 5
Recent Public Engagements - AAAC (Australian Association of Agricultural Consultants) - Consulting business skills, Melbourne - October 29; Adelaide - September 23; Toowoomba - September 8; Wagga Wagga - April 7 - Successful Consulting: Sydney - July; Melbourne & Brisbane - June - PMI (Project Management Institute) Melbourne - May 26 Recent engagements by Ian include conducting needs analyses, course design and delivery for:
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