Securing $20,000 Speaking Engagements with Chester Elton

I’m very pleased to be joined today by Chester Elton, a recognized expert in business and leadership. Chester has worked together with his partner, Adrian Gostick, for over 20 years to create networks where people feel engaged, enabled, and energized. They are the authors of several leadership books, including the newly released The Best Team Wins: The New Science of High Performance. Known as “The Carrot Guys,” Chester and Adrian believe that as you motivate and recognize passionate people in the right positions and create a culture they connect with, business success will naturally follow. In our conversation, we dive into the importance of writing the best books, ways to successfully grow your consulting business, and how to increase your expertise so that you can increase your consulting fees, all on this episode of The Consulting Success Podcast with Chester Elton. Writing The Best BooksBefore becoming a world-renowned author and cultivator of successful business culture, Chester worked for his college newspaper at Brigham Young University in Utah. After graduation he worked in advertising in New York City, selling both ad space and ‘air space.’  Soon he started down the path of selling recognition programs, where he worked for 19 years to help businesses understand the importance of valuing and recognizing their employees. His first book was the genesis of his relationship with Adrian Gostick, as well as his positioning as a thought leader of recognition in the business world. 11 books, 1.5 million copies and 30 languages later, Chester and Adrian have clearly set themselves apart in exactly the ways they set out to.Any consultant who has ever considered writing a book recognizes the mountain before them.  It can seem entirely overwhelming to even know where to start. For Chester, there was little trepidation when faced with the daunting task of writing his first book, and he gives that credit to the support system that he surrounded himself with. Just as you’ve heard me say many times before, his network was the key to his success. His network became the critical link to his success. Between his partnership with Adrian, their editor, publisher, and the many mentors who supported them along the way, the partners were able to confidently conquer their first book, as well as the many other books that have followed. If you can surround yourself by people that will encourage you along the way, you will be able to conquer the mountain of expert writing as well, and you will enjoy the benefits that follow soon after.The quality writing that you produce, whether it be as monumental as your first book or as simple as a white paper or blog post, will be beneficial the success of your consulting business.  Writing helps to solidify your why — not just what you do and how you do it, but why you are doing it and why other people should listen to you as a thought leader in your industry. Charging Fees Like An ExpertOnce you have established yourself as an expert, you can charge the fees that accompany expertise. Chester and Adrian started their speaking engagements at a mere $1,000 per event.  But their success quickly escalated as they became more accomplished writers. As they charged more for their speaking events, they found that more important people started attending their sessions. When they started charging upwards of $20,000 per session, the CEO started showing up. As a result of their successful writing and speaking engagements, people began inquiring about the training options they offered. So once again the team tapped into their network, surrounded themselves with smart people and created a very successful training practice.Along pathway to success, Chester and Adrian have always been sure to keep their focus...