Sorry, but if I’m a client and you are too *important* to deal with me directly, you’re not getting my business.

Be selective about clients. Have standards. Have systems and processes. Employ pre-qualifying so that you are reserving your most important asset–your time and personal attention–for only the best clients and prospects.

But beyond that, don’t herd them through your “team.”

That’s NOT relationship-building nor is it partnering.

This always brings me back to Geraldo Rivera’s wise observation in the documentary Unforgotten: 25 Years After Willowbrook: “Assembly lines are for cars, not people.”

“Teams” should be there to support you behind the scenes, not replace you in your direct dealings with clients.

They should be freeing your time so that you can give that one-on-one direct attention.

This is also one of the things that allows you to charge higher rates–that more personal and personable one-on-one, higher quality attention and partnering.