Consultations with your doctor can be rushed and stressful, and it is common for patients to forget to ask key questions during the actual consultation itself.

While doctors often effectively have an “agenda” of issues to work through in a consultation,such as taking a history, performing an examination and ordering tests, issues of importance from a patients perspective can often be left out, so patients need to think about their own agenda, and what they would like to get out of any consultation. It is important to work out what are the most important questions to ask your doctor to make sure you get the most out of your consultation, and consequently receive the most appropriate treatment, and make sure that your own agenda is addressed?

How can you make sure that you remember to ask the questions that are of most concern to you?

As a practicing physician, here are my suggestions:

1. Do as much research as possible before you see your doctor – let’s face it you don’t go and see your accountant to do your taxes without collecting information beforehand, and thinking about the issues you want to discuss. Do the same with your doctor. The Internet is the easiest source of information to use, and the US Government Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has an excellent site where you will find a comprehensive series of questions on many different health topics.

2. Write down your questions – and if necessary take a list with you, including a second copy for your doctor.

3. Prioritize your questions – ask the most important ones first – don’t waste time asking about the payment process when you are really worried about whether you have cancer or diabetes.

4. Take someone with you if you have questions that are really concerning you – two sets of ears are better than one – and make sure you have discussed your needs with your friend or family member before the consultation so that they can help you get answers if necessary.

5 Write down the answers – even if this is just a rapid note. Research has shown that only 20% of the information given during a medical consultation is remembered one week later – but if it’s written down, the percentage recall is much higher.

Asking good questions is essential in any medical consultation, and it is incumbent on patients to take responsibility for their health and find out as much as possible of relevance so that they can make good decisions in partnership with their doctors.

If you are thinking about becoming a home party consultant there are many benefits. The benefits include the type of income and possibilities, the freedom in your job, meeting new people, and having a lot of fun.

The income possibilities of being a home party consultant are unlimited. You can hold a party everyday if you want to. This could give you the opportunity to make hundreds of dollars a day. If you are looking for a supplemental income then you may only hold a party once a month or so. The potential of income is entirely up to you.

Freedom in your job is one of the biggest benefits of becoming a party consultant. You will travel around to different locations and go to parties. Your job is to hold parties. Not only is that fun but you have total freedom in your job. You are free to work when you want to and for how long you want to. You may schedule parties for entire day events or just for a couple of hours. You are in total control of your time and your schedule. Plus, you don’t answer to anyone at any given time. No one will tell you what to do but you.

Meeting new people is a very big benefit of being a home party consultant. The great thing is that at each party you hold new people will come. As you land new and more hostesses, you will meet even more people. Not only will you build a network of customers and hostesses but you will also gain new friends in the long run. Long term friendships come out of relationships like this all of the time.

The best part about being a home party consultant is that you have a lot of fun in what you do. You get to sell a really cool product. You can choose the products you sell and if you don’t believe in them then you don’t have to sell them. You can have spa home parties, sell jewelry, clothing, lingerie, and so much more. You can design the party the way you want it to be. You are in charge and you are the boss. It may seem as if you have your own traveling store. However, the business is viewed, it is yours.

There are so many benefits of becoming a home party consultant. You get to hold parties for a living selling fun products that you choose. You can have a party selling different products each time you end up at the same person’s house. This will give returning customers a variety of products to choose from too. There is a lot of freedom in a job like this. Your income potential is unlimited and a very big benefit. You will appreciate the fact that you get to work when you want to also. You get to meet new friends and expand your network of customers and it is so easy to do. You don’t have to be an expert at sales when you are a home party consultant. You just have to have a good time.

A search consultant is someone who can help you develop your website and gain visibility through the search engines. The primary methods of increasing business is through Pay Per Click (abbreviated as PPC) and Search Engine Optimisation (abbreviated as SEO). A search consultant should specialise in both SEO and PPC, they should be able to tell you what would be the most cost effective method to gain conversions on your website. Initially it may not be apparent what method would work best for your audience, but through trials and tests your search consultant can guide you.

A search consultant can integrate with your business objectives and provide advice and recommendations on how objectives can be achieved through the search engines. A good consultant should have contacts who can help with your online marketing, and specialise in specific areas themselves.

Often organisations and individuals appear as jack of all trades, consequently they are often specialists in none of their advertised trades. These organisations are great for simple quick services, but when it comes to business critical services a ‘jack of all trades’ is not going to be able to compete with a specialist.

From watching shows like the apprentice we have heard Donald Trump say, “one of the main reasons for my success is surrounding myself with exceptional people”. The same applies to business, if you use specialists instead of trying to find one for all solutions – you will probably pay a little more but will gain more experience and skills.

Similarity’s can be found when employing someone to work within your business, you ideally want someone who has a wealth of experience and can apply it to the new role and your business. Often you find that the new person will quickly become focused on your internal business workings and involved with internal initiatives. This is to be expected but does not always allow for time to be spent in the best way to help your business.

Where an external organisation or individual will always be focused on cutting edge technology and methods to benefit you. Their time will be spent developing their search engine positioning services, ensuring they meet their customers’ current and future needs.

Exceptional people, external experience and specialists can help your business grow. Consultants are professionals who specialise in supporting and providing advice. Always consider what is the best option for each project, and remember that outsourced help can provide long term returns if applied in the best way to suit a business.

Being a consultant means helping people or organizations in improving their performance by analyzing their weaknesses and by developing a plan of action that can take them from point A to point B. Being a consultant is surely not the toughest job on earth especially if you are truly an expert on your chosen niche and if you have people skills.

Here’s how you can breakthrough with high priced consulting:

1. What can you offer? You need to know exactly what you do and what you can offer to your prospects before you sink your teeth into the consulting business. Some people offer services in human resources, sales and marketing, web creation, computer programming, and even in personality development. Knowing your strengths, trainings, education, and skills can help you figure out what type of assistance and information you’ll offer to your target market.

2. Be an expert. If I am the client, I would definitely go with somebody who knows what he’s doing and who is considered the best in the industry. As a consultant, you will need your target market to believe that you have what it takes to serve their needs. So, establish your expertise online by joining trade organizations, getting certifications (if needed), and by hosting seminars where you can share a slice of your expertise.

3. Make it easier for your prospects to find you. Even if you are talented and very knowledgeable on your chosen niche, you won’t possibly convince people to do business with you if you give them a hard time in getting in touch with you. I recommend that you build your own business website and promote it incessantly. It would also help if you can build your online portfolio and if you invade relevant blogs and forums to promote easy recall among those people who are most likely to buy from you.

4. Check on your competitors. Find people who are offering similar services and know how they run their business. How much do they charge? What services do they offer? What are their strengths and weaknesses? Knowing all of these things and more can help you adjust the elements and techniques that you are using in order to outplay these people.

5. Expand your network. Setting up a consulting business is relatively cheap as you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars for your initial investment. After all, you just need to provide information and assistance to your clients. However, if you want to land more work, you’ve got to expand your network. Tell your family, friends, and colleagues about what you do. Give them an idea as to what you can offer. These people may not do business with you but they might know somebody who will.