Stop Asking for Work. Start Solving Problems.

Most notaries approach a new relationship with one question:

"Can you send me work?"

Successful notaries ask a different question:

"How can I make your business run more smoothly?"

It sounds like a small change. It isn't. It changes the entire relationship.

When you ask someone to send you work, you're putting the burden on them. You're asking them to think of you, remember you, and take a risk on you — often before they know much about how you operate. When you ask how you can make their business run more smoothly, you flip that entirely. You're no longer a request. You're a resource.

Instead of asking someone to create opportunities for you, you're looking for ways to create value for them. And value, unlike a single signing, tends to come back around.

A Lesson I Didn't Expect

A couple of years ago, an attorney called me to handle a single living trust signing at her office. I assumed it would be a one-time appointment.

After th...