In last week's email I shared with you one of the “secrets” of building trust – being open and human with your audience.

Here's the Yin to that Yang: it's being candid and honest. It's not pulling your punches.

It's having a point of view and being brave enough to state it, even if it's not popular or your clients don't agree.

I remember early on in my consulting career being told by a VP I respected not to state my opinions until I knew which way the clients were thinking. “You don't want to risk upsetting them”.

That never sat well with me. I think clients deserve our honesty.

And my experience is that one of the best ways of earning the trust of a client is to disagree with them.  Senior clients have too many “yes men” (and women) surrounding them. The best clients appreciate honesty and candour. They appreciate you telling them the truth, even if it doesn't make you popular.

Of course, there are ways of getting across your point of view respectfully – and you should use them.

But never be afraid to speak the truth. There's great power in it.