<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?><!-- generator=Zoho Sites --><rss version="2.0" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"><channel><atom:link href="https://www.thebusinessoctopus.com/blogs/Uncategorized/feed" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml"/><title>The Business Octopus - Blog , Uncategorized</title><description>The Business Octopus - Blog , Uncategorized</description><link>https://www.thebusinessoctopus.com/blogs/Uncategorized</link><lastBuildDate>Sun, 26 Apr 2026 07:14:40 -0700</lastBuildDate><generator>http://zoho.com/sites/</generator><item><title><![CDATA[Why keep a dog and bark yourself]]></title><link>https://www.thebusinessoctopus.com/blogs/post/why-keep-a-dog-and-bark-yourself</link><description><![CDATA[Most consultants: &quot;Yes, I can build what you're asking for. Here's how much it's gonna cost.&quot; Us: &quot;Why the f**k would you want to do tha ]]></description><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="zpcontent-container blogpost-container "><div data-element-id="elm_aXD-I7yMTYeuzTqBvuM4Sg" data-element-type="section" class="zpsection "><style type="text/css"></style><div class="zpcontainer-fluid zpcontainer"><div data-element-id="elm_LGDyaYgiSBWRZzAhwbvsPw" data-element-type="row" class="zprow zprow-container zpalign-items- zpjustify-content- " data-equal-column=""><style type="text/css"></style><div data-element-id="elm_aAB9IU8bTO6cD6abXfOCsQ" data-element-type="column" class="zpelem-col zpcol-12 zpcol-md-12 zpcol-sm-12 zpalign-self- "><style type="text/css"></style><div data-element-id="elm_gOwrsJfnR1WHWMtSFxOwVQ" data-element-type="heading" class="zpelement zpelem-heading "><style></style><h2
 class="zpheading zpheading-align-center zpheading-align-mobile-center zpheading-align-tablet-center " data-editor="true">Consultants come with experience</h2></div>
<div data-element-id="elm_IbmvetLvQfyJZurlme_Kag" data-element-type="text" class="zpelement zpelem-text "><style></style><div class="zptext zptext-align-center zptext-align-mobile-center zptext-align-tablet-center " data-editor="true"><p></p><div><p></p><p style="margin-bottom:12pt;"></p><p></p><p></p></div><p></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>Most consultants: &quot;Yes, I can build what you're asking for. Here's how much it's gonna cost.&quot;</span></p><p></p><div><div><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>Us: &quot;Why the f**k would you want to do that? Why don't you do it this way instead?&quot;</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>That's the difference right there.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>See, here's what happens with most consultants: You go to them with a problem, they quote you on building exactly what you asked for. No questions asked. They take your specs, build it, collect their fee, and walk away.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>Six months later, you're back to square one because what you asked for wasn't actually what you needed.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>We're not the cheapest by the hour. But we're cheaper in the long run because we do a better job.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>We'll save you a thousand hours of mucking around by telling you upfront</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>“This approach won't work. Here's what will.”</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>Sometimes that means saying no to projects that don't make sense. Sometimes it means pushing back on requirements that'll water down the outcome below its success threshold.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>Because at the end of the day, we want to double your operations, not just tick boxes on a project spec.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;margin-bottom:12pt;"><span>That's consulting. Everything else is just expensive implementation.</span></p><p style="text-align:left;"><span>P.S. I created a weekly session to workshop your digital strategy with you, we only have a few spots left for the month. Go here to claim a spot:</span><a href="https://relevate.mysamcart.com/digital-strategy-breakthrough/" target="_blank" id="52eb4f71-f43e-478f-9ee7-26e30cbdeb01"><span>relevate.mysamcart.com/digital-strategy-breakthrough/</span></a></p><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><p style="text-align:left;"><span>P.P.S. Don’t be offended if I tell you your approach won’t work…</span></p></div></div></div>
</div></div></div></div></div></div> ]]></content:encoded><pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2025 20:48:24 +1000</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Value your expertise]]></title><link>https://www.thebusinessoctopus.com/blogs/post/why-keep-a-dog-and-bark-yourself1</link><description><![CDATA[When a client says jump, do you say how high? or do you demonstrate value and stick to your guns?]]></description><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="zpcontent-container blogpost-container "><div data-element-id="elm_o2xgpmuKQ3G8fMscAxba0g" data-element-type="section" class="zpsection "><style type="text/css"></style><div class="zpcontainer-fluid zpcontainer"><div data-element-id="elm_YZY_c_zfRwGDROO0YBpQYg" data-element-type="row" class="zprow zprow-container zpalign-items- zpjustify-content- " data-equal-column=""><style type="text/css"></style><div data-element-id="elm_NutHGhgAT8W1QKpsT8KZ9A" data-element-type="column" class="zpelem-col zpcol-12 zpcol-md-12 zpcol-sm-12 zpalign-self- "><style type="text/css"></style><div data-element-id="elm_EqsD0qSMS6G4CVJmTqstQw" data-element-type="heading" class="zpelement zpelem-heading "><style></style><h2
 class="zpheading zpheading-align-center zpheading-align-mobile-center zpheading-align-tablet-center " data-editor="true">Saying No</h2></div>
<div data-element-id="elm_3-5U673DT1SBLGhwfLfvrg" data-element-type="text" class="zpelement zpelem-text "><style></style><div class="zptext zptext-align-center zptext-align-mobile-center zptext-align-tablet-center " data-editor="true"><p></p><div><div><div style="text-align:left;">A $100M company called wanting help with CRM selection and business process review.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">&quot;We need five days of consulting,&quot; they said. &quot;Analyze our workflows, interview staff, create a software comparison matrix, and give us recommendations.&quot;</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">I quoted $2,000 per day for five days total.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">Their response: &quot;We were thinking one to two days. Maybe $2,000 for the whole project.&quot;</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">They were asking me to understand a complex business in 16 hours, interview multiple departments, and deliver strategic recommendations that could impact their entire operation. For less than they pay their current consultant for half a day.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">I politely declined.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">Not because I'm difficult to work with. But because clients who undervalue expertise from the start rarely respect your process or results later. They'll micromanage every decision and blame you when their shortcuts don't work.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">I referred them to their existing consultant who charges more, they'll get the same outcome but pay triple.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">The lesson isn't about being stubborn.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">It's about understanding that some projects aren't worth taking. When a client's expectations and your reality are that far apart, walking away protects both parties.</div></div><div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;">The right clients understand that expertise has value. They know the cost of getting it wrong exceeds the cost of doing it right the first time.</div></div></div><p></p></div>
</div></div></div></div></div></div> ]]></content:encoded><pubDate>Mon, 22 Sep 2025 20:48:24 +1000</pubDate></item><item><title><![CDATA[Welcome to the Relevate Defence Community]]></title><link>https://www.thebusinessoctopus.com/blogs/post/welcome-to-the-relevate-defence-community</link><description><![CDATA[There are a lot of industry communities that are all aimed at driving membership revenue or supporting a particular audience subset. These are often s ]]></description><content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="zpcontent-container blogpost-container "><div data-element-id="elm_DZQeahtxTmyJjlKJFHz0Uw" data-element-type="section" class="zpsection "><style type="text/css"></style><div class="zpcontainer-fluid zpcontainer"><div data-element-id="elm_ysRmOeHERx2Sr4sjWf60fQ" data-element-type="row" class="zprow zprow-container zpalign-items- zpjustify-content- " data-equal-column=""><style type="text/css"></style><div data-element-id="elm_LEbwU-WQQWy3XDY9pvPikg" data-element-type="column" class="zpelem-col zpcol-12 zpcol-md-12 zpcol-sm-12 zpalign-self- "><style type="text/css"></style><div data-element-id="elm_396g-uy1S4-TEylzvVSNPQ" data-element-type="heading" class="zpelement zpelem-heading "><style></style><h2
 class="zpheading zpheading-align-center " data-editor="true">The Relevate Defence Community makes it easy to join the dots.</h2></div>
<div data-element-id="elm_KENINSFeT46tdqi-N46Urw" data-element-type="text" class="zpelement zpelem-text "><style></style><div class="zptext zptext-align-center " data-editor="true"><p style="text-align:left;">There are a lot of industry communities that are all aimed at driving membership revenue or supporting a particular audience subset. These are often social gatherings of major Defence Primes but rarely hold value for the wider Defence Industry network.</p><p style="text-align:left;"><br/></p><p style="text-align:left;">The Relevate Community aims to educate and provide a community platform where we can collaborate and work together on dealing with the complexity of Defence</p><p style="text-align:left;"><br/></p><div><div style="color:inherit;text-align:left;">Getting into the Australian Defence Industry is hard, but worth it. It can take years understand, prepare and enter the Defence industry, particularly if you are just getting started. And although it is challenging, the payoff can be very much worth it with contracts in the 7 or even 8 figure+ range.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;">There is a ton of information out there but no-one to guide you where to start. There are hundreds of government agencies, information sessions, websites and flyers but none of them Show you how to get started or guide you through the process. They just point you in the direction of even more resources and wait for you to figure it out on your own.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;">You need a guide to help you get into the defence market sooner. With the right guidance you can shave off years of time and hundreds of thousands of dollars of employee time cost and investment in getting into the defence industry.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;">If you are new and don't know where to start, then we can help.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;">The relevate defence community is a group of people that come together to help eachother understand the operating environment, keep on top of trends and help you figure out how to get into the defence industry one step at time.&nbsp;</div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;"><ul><li style="text-align:left;">There is an online course that can help guide you on understand where to start&nbsp;</li><li style="text-align:left;">There are experienced professionals than can help you at various stages,&nbsp;</li><li style="text-align:left;">There is a community forum where we crowdsource answers to your questions</li></ul></div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;">You can get the TLDR of the Defence industry and fastrack your way to the critical information rather than sifting through 500-page whitepapers to figure it out.</div><div style="text-align:left;"><br/></div><div style="text-align:left;color:inherit;">It can take years understand, prepare and enter the Defence industry. So join the Relevate Defence Community and accelerate your Defence Journey.</div></div></div>
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</div></div></div></div></div></div> ]]></content:encoded><pubDate>Wed, 14 Aug 2024 15:15:48 +1000</pubDate></item></channel></rss>