Networking Is Not Selling

Thanks, Abigail!

Excellent and Plentiful Company

The latest Census Bureau statistics reported 20M businesses in America have one employee – the owner. An additional 6M businesses have fewer than 10 employees, counting the owner. To put those numbers into perspective: 26M businesses are more than the combined population of the 10 largest cities in the USA.*
 
For these small businesses, the good news is they have the ultimate flexibility to change and adapt to their clients’ needs and competition. The flip side is they are probably managing their business in isolation.
 
Reasons for Community
 
Share Knowledge
There is no reason to repeat the same mistakes another new business made. Other owners, even in different kinds of businesses, have a wealth of experience that will balance both scare tactics and rosy promises of an advertising salesperson, as an example.
 
Realistic Benchmarks for Success
Business owners tend to be optimists; it’s a prerequisite for daring to control our own destiny. Sometimes having advisors to push us when we are being too conservative, as well as to add a voice of sanity when we are about to bankrupt ourselves with a poorly analyzed action, can make all the difference to the success of our business.
 
Realistic Analysis of Errors
We are often our own worst critics! Sometimes it’s difficult to have a clear postmortem of what happened, why, and how to avoid a repeat in the future. It’s even more difficult when we are standing amid the fallout to see the next step to salvage our business.
 
Safety Net
People with close ties to a network of friends and family live longer, are happier, and enjoy better health than people who are isolated. Many business owners cannot discuss their challenges with the family without causing alarm. It’s not sensible to discuss your challenges with a competitor or your own clients. Who can you talk to?
 
Develop Your Community
 
Network
I wish network training was mandatory at age 13, with a refresher course each decade afterward. It would make school, the work world, and our communities much easier to navigate. Collecting business cards is not networking. Making and maintaining a true heart-to-heart connection is networking at its best. Research the commercial networking organizations in your community. The newspaper, craigslist, and Meetup all list these resources. It takes time to become known and for people to feel comfortable about referring you. Give any group you join at least six months before you decide you need to move on.
 
Mastermind
Masterminds are a small group of people, usually with non-competitive businesses, that get together on a regular basis to support each other’s growth by challenging the members to stretch into new goals and holding each other accountable for meeting their commitments. Commercial masterminds are usually more successful than voluntary ones, as they have enough structure and financial cost to encourage commitment. Ideally, find and negotiate to join a mastermind of the most successful people you can locate. Mastermind members are often scattered across the country and rely on the phone for some meetings, as well as weekend working retreats in various locations throughout the year.
 
Coach
Coaches are like a personalized Mastermind. They keep you accountable, will stretch you into new goals, and provide third party insights you might not have considered. People can work with different coaches, for different purposes, simultaneously. It’s also possible to work for several years with the same coach. As long as they are helping you grow personally and/or professionally, they are worth the investment.
 
Conference/Seminars
This is an expensive and often inconvenient way to build a network of like-minded people. Once the event is over, a rare individual follows up with the people they met at the conference. It’s difficult to absorb all the content provided and remember to make connections during the breaks or before and after the sessions. I encourage everyone to still network at these events, though it’s usually the hardest way to develop your network.
 
Your Decision
Regardless of how you build your community, it’s important to remember that other people and their opinions have no power in defining your destiny. We can listen to their ideas, but at the end of the day, it’s our business and we make the final decisions.                                                                     

© 2009 Straight Edge News          All Rights Reserved.

I had the opportunity to read the following article, written by Taylor Ellwood, owner of Imagine Your Reality.  I wanted to share it with all of you; Taylor provides some excellent information which can help you with your business and/or sales.  Thanks Taylor!

Today I’d like to share with you five tips for improving your attitude about business. With this economy its easy to lose heart and to develop a negative attitude. When you’re worried about getting clients in the door or are only seeing returning clients visit, instead of new ones, it can be frustrating, and that can lead to a negative attitude. Once we have a negative attitude, it becomes easier and easier to lose perspective.

1. Talk with other business owners or someone else to get some perspective. I finding talking with other people about my situation can really be helpful, especially if what I hear is that I’m not alone. The added bonus however is that sometimes that other person can provide an objective perspective about what you are doing or aren’t doing and give you some ideas to work with.

2. Do something fun. All work and no play makes any person dull. Many business owners (and I’m guilty of this myself) spend 7 days a week chained to their business. It’s true that as a business owner, you’ve got to put some time in, but give yourself a break sometimes as well. Take a holiday for yourself. The break will give you some perspective and renew you.

3. Be realistic. I’m not talking about being negative here, but instead I’m suggesting that you sit down and assess your overall business plan and strategy. Figure out what you are doing well, and look for areas to improve on. And remember that even in the best of times, there’s always an area of your business to improve on. Being realistic can help you get out of a negative rut, because it shows you what you are doing well, as well as where you can improve.

4. Collaborate. Sometimes working with other people on a class or presentation can really improve your attitude. It’s nice to have company, and it’s fun to work together on projects. It can give you a real boost to your attitude.

5. Go out and network. When we start to have a negative attitude, we tend to isolate ourselves. At that time, more than ever, it’s time to get out and talk to other people. Find out what they need, and also tell them what you need. Start thinking of who you can refer people to. You’ll be surprised at how good it makes you feel.

Contributed by Taylor Ellwood, Business Coach and owner of Imagine Your Reality www.imagineyourreality.com

Copyright (C) 2009 Imagine Your Reality All rights reserved.

People, who are building their business through networking, can be some of the most successful professionals, and also some of the most active.  Because of this, I asked Abigial to contribute the following article so we can all gain some benefit. Enjoy.  Thanks, Abigail!

When someone else is managing a project or outcome they will remind you of what is due and when. When it’s your own business, especially if you are a sole proprietor or only have a few employees, it is often extremely difficult to stay focused on the priorities or to feel like you are making progress toward your goals.
 
Tyranny of the Urgent
If you’ve read the Steven R. Covey book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, you already understand the difference between important and urgent tasks. If you haven’t read this book, it’s worth making the time to at least understand the four quadrants and where you are spending most of your time.
 
Taking Action
In addition to understanding the difference between urgent and important, it’s crucial that you understand the difference between an action and a project. What we think is one action might actually be a series of actions required for a result. My own experience and my clients have taught me that business owners often label a result as an action.
 
“Update your website” is a result I often see on my client’s list. It’s usually been on their “To Do” list for months, because they haven’t taken the time to break it down into bite-sized actions. Without breaking it down, they cannot figure out what action is needed, so none is taken.
 
Example
Let’s talk about the steps involved to get to the desired outcome of an updated website. This list is neither comprehensive, nor in priority order. It’s merely an example to clarify the difference between the desired result and the many actions it takes to achieve that result:

• Establish a budget for updating website
• Get recommendations for a web designer
• Hire a web designer
• Establish priorities for the site update
• Call photographer for new photo
• Schedule haircut prior to photo
• Select photo
• Hire a writer to update content
• Hire marketing expert to consult on new brand/content/logo
• Book meetings with designer to review updates
• Proof updates
• Schedule soft launch of new site
• Marketing blitz for major launch of new site

The important point is that most of these steps are easy to do. If necessary, assign them to your assistant for completion.
 
Prioritize Daily
When there is a fabulous vacation coming up, or a crisis, most of us easily prioritize what must be done and what can sit or be delegated. Developing that skill on a daily basis dramatically increases results and reduces stress. Many years ago I discovered that I need to write things down.
 
All that writing meant I spent years with a “To Do” list with 20 to 40 things on it, every day. The pressure of undone tasks was exhausting. Recently, I learned a new discipline – prioritize three daily. I still keep a list in my notebook of all the things that need to be done for my businesses, my health, my home, and my family. The night before, I review the list, and select the three next actions that will have the biggest impact. I write those down and make them a priority for the next day. I might get them all done by noon; sometimes it will take the entire day to get them done. At the end of the day, I know I am moving forward on my highest goals. Occasionally, when I’ve been able to complete the three priorities for the day early, I will take on the next two or three highest priorities in the same day. Some days, once I’ve accomplished the highest priorities, I give myself permission to take the rest of the day “off.”

 © 2009 Straight Edge News          All Rights Reserved.

Contributed by:

Abigail Dougherty
Straight Edge Solutions 503-297-5798

Abigail@StraightEdgeSolutions.com