Welcome back to the Business Advisor Podcast.

I'm Amanda C.

Watts, and today we're diving into something that will completely shift how you work with your clients.

It's about understanding their behavior through the lens of the six human needs.

Now this is part four of our Special Soft Skills series, and if you've been with us so far, you'll know that technical knowledge alone is not enough to be able to truly advise and move your clients.

What really makes a powerful world class advisor it is your ability to understand what drives them, what holds them back, and why they sometimes behave in ways that can seem confusing or even frustrating.

In this episode, we're going to explore a framework for deeper understanding, helping you lead better conversations, strengthen trust and support clients in making real lasting progress.

So let's get into it.

Imagine a time when you had a conversation that felt completely off.

Maybe a client resisted your advice, maybe they shut down or even started to ghost you.

Chances are one of their core needs wasn't being met, and neither of you realized it in that moment.

This is the kind of thing that can break relationships and stall progress if you don't catch it early.

When you understand what truly drives people beneath the surface, you can work with their real motivations, not just the goals that they say out loud.

One of the best ways to do this is through something called the Six Human Needs.

It's a simple but powerful model that helps you understand the emotions and drivers shaping your client's decisions, actions, and even their fears.

The idea behind the six human needs comes from the work of Tony Robbins, and it's incredibly useful for advisors because it helps explain why people do what they do.

Here is a quick overview of the six human needs that we're going to be exploring.

One is certainty.

They need to feel safe, stable, and secure.

Secondly, it's the opposite.

People need variety, the need for change, challenge, and new experiences.

The third is significance, the need to feel important, valued, and unique.

The fourth is connection and love.

The need to feel close to others to belong and be part of something.

The fifth is growth.

The need to learn, improve, and evolve.

And the sick.

This contribution, the need to give, serve or make a difference.

Every client that you work with will have all six needs, but the intensity and priority of each one would be different for every single person.

That's what shapes their behavior, their decisions, and even their resistance, for example.

If a client has a very high need for certainty, they might resist new ideas simply because they feel unsafe, not because they're actually being difficult.

If a client has a high need for significance feedback, that feels like criticism can trigger a bigger reaction than you need to expect because it touches something deeper within them.

And if a client is driven by connection, they might be people pleasers and say yes to everything, even at their own expense.

When you start to look at behavior through this lens, you start to truly understand what is driving your clients so that you can support them more effectively.

And instead of taking things personally or getting frustrated, when a client resists advice, you can step back and ask, which need isn't being met right now.

And from there, you can respond in a way that rebuilds trust rather than breaking it down.

Here are a few powerful questions you can use in your client conversations to uncover their core needs.

For certainty, you could say.

What would make you feel more secure as we move through this process for variety, you could say what keeps you excited and motivated in your business for significance.

You could say, what kind of impact do you want to be known for?

For connection and love.

You could say, who are you doing this for?

Who do you want to make proud for growth?

You could say, what skills or knowledge do you want to gain through this work?

And for contribution, you could say, what difference do you want to make in your community or industry?

It's very important to recognize the subtle, but telling signs that a client's needs are not being met.

For example, a client with a high need for certainty may avoid risk and struggle with decision making, and may constantly seek reassurance.

They might resist change, not because they're being difficult, but because they fear the unknown and crave stability.

This can make them cautious and slow to act and prone to second guessing even small decisions.

On the other hand, clients with a strong need of variety often get bored easily.

They thrive on change and new challenges, but this can also make them prone to distraction.

They might jump from project to project resisting routine or lose interest quickly if things feel way too predictable for them.

Their desire for novelty can be both a strength and weakness if it leads them to abandon ideas before they fully take root.

This kind of person does like shiny object syndrome.

Then you've got those who are driven by significance.

These people often seek recognition and validation.

They want to feel important and valued, and when this need isn't met, they can become defensive or disengaged.

They may react strongly to criticism.

Even when it's constructive and may struggle to collaborate, if they feel that their contributions are being overlooked.

Clients with a high need for connection and love tend to take things personally.

They might struggle with the boundaries.

They might overcommit themselves just to please you or become overly reliant on your validation.

This can then make them excellent relationship builders, but can also leave them vulnerable to burnout if.

Trying to make everybody happy, mostly you.

For clients driven by growth, they need to learn and evolve, and this means that they are constantly seeking new skills or knowledge, but this then has the knock on effect of endless preparation.

Without meaningful progress, they might struggle to implement what they've learned because they're always moving on to the next thing.

And then finally, those motivated by contribution are often deeply fulfilled by making a difference.

They thrive when they can serve others and feel that their work has.

Purpose, but when this need isn't met, they become disconnected, lose motivation, or even question the value of their efforts.

Meeting these needs isn't just about understanding your client.

It's actually about.

Actively designing your client relationships to consistently meet their needs.

It means that you need predictable frameworks for clients who crave certainty.

It means that you need to constantly be looking at new ideas and opportunities for those who need variety and how you show up.

Needs to change.

You need to celebrate the unique strengths and achievements of those who value significance.

It means that you need to build genuine human connection, supporting ongoing growth and creating opportunities for meaningful contribution.

It's about being the guide who helps your clients feel seen, valued, and supported every step of the way.

Remember, when a client's needs are being met, they'll feel safer, more confident, and more willing to take action.

But if their needs aren't being met or perceived that they aren't, that's when you'll see avoidance, exclusive defensiveness, or even complete shutdown.

And your role as an advisor isn't to meet every need perfectly.

There's no way that you can, it would be overwhelming for you, and it would be peculiar for your clients, but being aware of what is happening underneath the surface, you can guide conversations more thoughtfully.

Having to use your emotional intelligence here, you need to adjust your approach to help them feel more secure, more empowered, and more capable of making the changes that need to make.

Inside the Business Advisor Academy, this is exactly the kind of work we do with our advisors.

We help you build depths of understanding so that you are giving advice that lands advice that gets acted on, and that genuinely changes businesses and lives.

What I'm gonna be doing next week is talking about the power of active listening and why clients open up when you stop talking and start truly listening.

It is one of the most important skills you can master as an advisor, and I cannot wait to dive into it with you.

And if you don't want to miss it, head on over to the business advisor podcast.com and pop in your details and subscribe.

If you're ready to fast track your skills and join us inside the academy, just drop me a quick message on LinkedIn and we'll arrange a chat now.

Until next time, keep being curious, keep listening deeply and remember, the better you understand your clients, the bigger the impact you are.

I'll see you in the next episode.

This is me, Amanda Sea Watts on the Business Advisor Podcast, and I wish you a good day or night wherever you are.