Protect yourself with the pen, not the sword

 When he was alive, my father used to be fond of re-telling me one particular story about his friend back in Spain.

Angel, as he was called, worked in the building trade like so many southern immigrants who had come to Barcelona seeking to make their fortune.

For a male growing up in the poverty-stricken parts of Southern Spain, working the fields from a very early age was a way of life. 

But he was different…

Or rather, he did something that made him different.

What made Angel different from his peers was a small piece of paper.

Angel guarded this piece of paper fiercely. He may have even fought to the death over it had anybody tried to take it off him.

It was worth that much.

Back in the days when money was cheap and work was plentiful, Angel had beautifully outmanoeuvred his landlord into an agreement that would last until the day he died.

As it turns out, life wasn’t too kind to Angel.

• ill fortune struck and he lost his wife
• he himself did not enjoy the best of health
• for a long time he suffered and was unable to work

But the piece of paper kept Angel safe throughout the bad times, despite countless attempts by his landlord to undo what was in that piece of paper.

Angel became a living legend amongst his peers and his tale was passed on by his friends. And so it is that now I am able to pass the lesson on to you.

Here’s what Angel did, that made such a huge difference in his life:

Angel asked his landlord to draw up a contract for his tenancy: not just any contract but a long-term contract… a contract spanning the rest of his life.

What Angel did was to offer the landlord twice as much rent as anybody else would pay back in those days.

He had wisely foreseen that prices would eventually rise. Clearly he had been watchful enough to see this happen and to think about how he could use this phenomenon to his advantage.

The landlord had fallen for it. Blinded by greed, he had been truly shortsighted enough to fail to see Angel’s long-term plan.

Or perhaps he had sensed it all too clearly. Either way he was swayed by the thought of all that ‘rent money’ coming in each and every single month – twice as much as any other landlord was making anywhere else.

This is perfect example of short-term gratification completely clouding somebody’s vision. The promise of having access to all that money in the short-term was more alluring than having to wait longer to eventually earn more.

But Angel’s idea in itself is not fool-proof, nor is it the point of this story.

Angel’s real masterstroke was to get it in writing.

Once the agreement was down on paper and signed the fate of Angel’s tenancy was set and his bottom truly covered. For life.

Soon enough Spain became a popular tourist attraction and prices soared through the sky – especially in the housing sector as visitors bought up the cheap property around for themselves.

The landlord’s life became an ongoing battle of expensive solicitor fees, empty threats and much regret.

Whilst landlords everywhere made a killing with inflated rent prices, Angel’s landlord was doomed to receive a monthly pittance for his lettings, well and truly locked in place by his own signature until Angel himself passed away.

And all because Angel got it in writing.

In business, whatever anybody else tells you or promises you matters little – or nothing at all – if it’s not in writing.

If a client promises you x y and z by the end of next month, then all that you can rely on is:

1. the client’s word
2. the client integrity

In an ideal world you clients will be people of their word and of high integrity.

But why chance it?

Much failure in the way of costs, time and stress can be averted by putting this one solid rule in place, and sticking to it.

There are likely a few incidents that you can think of right now where you wished dearly to have got something in writing at the time of the agreement.

Not getting things in writing can damage your business and affect your bottom line

Whenever a situation arises where nothing was committed to paper, it is never a good one. There will be a conflict of objectives, at the very least.

The client will say that they agreed to this, and you will argue that no, they agreed to that instead.

In this case, there are few outcomes available, such as the ones below:

1. reach a mutual agreement
2. you back down in order to retain the client
3. the client backs down

The above points provide a win/win, lose/win and win/lose situation.

However, the fact that you reached this crisis as a result of a conflict will have a negative impact on you and your business.

When you reach a crisis point with your client, trust is lost. They’re no longer your friend, but rather they feel like your enemy. As far as they’re concerned:

• you’re arguing with them
• you are against them
• you’re questioning their judgement and integrity

This can only damage your relationship with the client.

Having a clear agreement in writing will avoid all of the above scenarios.

What if the client rings you and you’re not able to put it in writing at the time?

Many times I find myself in a situation where I have a client on the phone asking for x y and z. Whenever this happens, I always ask the client to send me their request in an e-mail so I have a record of it.

Similarly, if I’m discussing the client’s requirements with them in person, I’ll normally either ask for an e-main confirming their request, or I’ll write them an e-mail as soon as I’m able to.

Some people are somewhat hesitant at this advise, fearing that they may upset the client. Far from it, if you have a good system in place and you stick to it, the client will always be impressed and feel far more confident about doing business with you.

What if the client doesn’t like to use e-mail?

Whenever it is the case that my client doesn’t like to do business via e-mail, I take it upon myself to e-mail them instead. The e-mail will relay the converstaion back to them clearly and to the point.

If any part of the conversation, as relayed back in the e-mail, has been misunderstood, then at this point the client can call back and clarify.

If not, then we have an agreement in writing.

No matter what issues arise from hereon, the agreement can be brought up each time and things can be discussed from thereon.

If after a few days the client’s memory seems a little hazy with regards to some of the points in the agreement, you won’t be getting into a tangle of words or into a situation where a negative light is cast on your business.

Even if the client’s needs change, as long as it is clear that the client is requesting to change the agreement, you’re in the clear.

If nothing else, how flexible and accommodating you are to the client should this situation arise can only improve your relationship with the client.

My dad used to say, words blow in the wind.