You’ve heard the expression, “It’s not personal; it’s business” (popularized by one of The Godfather movies). I don’t buy that.

The CEO of a company I work with recently did something unexpected when he stopped by the class I was leading on Being a Trusted Advisor.

Last week’s tip focused on practicing improvisation as a true test of your ability to walk the talk of a trusted advisor.

You’d probably agree with me that great client relationships require planning, preparation, and deliberate effort. And I bet you’d also agree that great relationships are determined by how we handle the stuff we can’t anticipate.

If you’ve been reading these tips for a while you’ve probably noticed my tendency to focus on the “squishier” aspects of trust-building, like intimacy and self-awareness. I do this not because they’re more important (remember, all four variables of the trust equation matter) but because I think the “soft stuff” needs more attention than business people routinely give it.