Yes, he tried to bully me into taking his business.
A potential client connects with me and says he is a leadership expert.
He has no academic credentials or even a high school diploma (he told me he was kicked out of high school for disruptive and discipline issues).
Although education and qualifications are important to the media, I decided I could offer some of our services but not all based on what I could see of his experience on his website. I could offer him a strategy that would build up his media experience and media bio that would be a good start for him.
But what I could not offer was the big breaking news, high-profile style media outlets because the client did not fit our booking profile for those outlets. But that’s what he wanted. The biggest of the big media.
The media is careful with who they use as an expert. They like to see credentials, experience and proof of concept that the candidate is indeed an expert in their field. Then they decide.
And he got mad.
And he started yelling and screaming.
He turned in a maniac. He ranted for at least 10 minutes. I let him get it all out.
Then I politely told him I was hanging up.
He told me he would get his revenge; that this was a small world.
BINGO. His action revealed his true lack of expertise in leadership.
Does this sound like a bonafide leadership expert to you? One that if he can’t get his own way, he will bully, berate and insult you until you give in?
Offering a contract to someone who falls outside of our area of expertise would be unfair to our firm and to the client, not to mention the media and it’s audience.
Now, this ‘gentleman’ has the negativity of the internet, of trolling etc. to enact his revenge.
But my warning is not to believe everything on the internet especially when you get that gut feeling that what you are reading is wrong.
Could the person be lying, going after revenge or have an ulterior motive? I hear some people even make a living trolling. They target someone and then ask them to pay thousands of dollars to take the trolling down.
Would a professional ever act this way?
Would a leadership expert ever act this way?
Would a professional expert even have the time for vendettas against a total stranger?
Are this person’s actions consistent with a leadership expert that YOU would want commenting and offering his insight in the major media?
You can trust our firm to do the right thing.