Networking Is Not Selling

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

You may wonder what Tips for Outlook has to do with Networking Is Not Selling, but if you are trying to grow your business by networking, I’m sure you’ve found, like I have, that you need to stay organized. One of my favorite writers/speakers, Abigail Dougherty, has given us some useful tools to stay organized using Outlook.

 1.  Change Your View

Set up your Outlook page so you see your calendar before you see your email. That keeps you focused on the tasks that must be done for the day, before you risk being sidetracked with email messages.

 On Microsoft Outlook main page click on TOOLS, then OPTIONS. At the top of Options page you have choice tabs:  Preferences, Mail Set Up, Mail Format, Spelling, Security and Other. Click on OTHER.  Under General (the first choice) there are two buttons – select ADVANCED OPTIONS.

 Under “Startup in this folder”:  Browse for CALENDAR
Then OK yourself back to the main screen.

This will prompt the calendar to be the first thing you see when you turn on Outlook.

2.  Turn it OFF!

A. Turn off default meeting reminders – You can manually set this for only your critical appointments. This will save you a long list of reminders for appointments that are passed when you’ve been away from the office for a few hours.

On Microsoft Outlook main page click on TOOLS, then OPTIONS. At the top of Options page you have choice tabs: Preferences, Mail Set Up, Mail Format, Spelling, Security and Other. Select PREFERENCES, go down to Calendar (second choice) and remove the check mark from default reminders. 

B. Turn off all the incoming email notifications

On Microsoft Outlook main page click on TOOLS, then OPTIONS. At the top of Options page you have choice tabs: Preferences, Mail Set Up, Mail Format, Spelling, Security and Other. Select PREFERENCES, go down to email (first choice), click on EMAIL OPTIONS. This opens up Advanced E-mail Options.

The second section “When new items arrive in my Inbox” should ALL be UNCHECKED. You do not need a ding, a ghost, a changed cursor or an envelope to tell you email is there if you get in the habit of regularly checking your email only two or three times a day.

3.  Building Your Contact List
Use your signature block on all new messages.

On Microsoft Outlook main page click on TOOLS, then OPTIONS. At the top of Options page you have choice tabs:Preferences, Mail Set Up, Mail Format, Spelling, Security and Other.

Select MAIL FORMAT, go down to SIGNATURES (third choice) and select your email account(s) that need a formal signature block. Select signature blocks for both the original messages as well as responses to messages. Click on SIGNATURES to see and edit any signature block you currently have set up.

The key is to click on APPLY, rather than OK once you have made your updates/corrections.

 When someone pulls up your message they can easily create the contact page in Outlook to reconnect with you. They will simply drag your message into CONTACTS, which automatically opens a new contact. It’s a quick cut and paste to put the information in the right places in the contacts form.

4. Booking Appointments

Have you ever missed an appointment because critical information wasn’t on your PDA or calendar page?  It’s not even necessary to open the email to turn it into a calendar event.

Simply drag the email message onto the Calendar selection and a new appointment will open – with today’s date and the current time. You will need to edit the date and time to match the actual meeting time. It’s also an excellent time to copy-paste the location or bridge line information into with the subject or the location of the appointment. Now your PDA will show the necessary details. A copy of the email will stay attached to the appointment in your calendar. The original message is still in your in box, so you can file it appropriately.

These simple steps will make your life easier and allow a few more minutes to call that client or talk to that vendor you’ve been needing to meet.

© 2009 Straight Edge News          All Rights Reserved.

Contributed  by Abigail Dougherty

Straight Edge Solutions  

503-297-5798

Abigail@StraightEdgeSolutions.com

 We’d like to believe people pay more attention to what we do or say than how we look. However, people believe what they see far more than what they hear.

Abigail Dougherty - Straight Edge Solutions

My work is talking to business people. Sometimes I hire them. Sometimes they hire me. Sometimes we are peers meeting on a collaborative project or being a support team for one another. The more business people I work with, the more I realize that deal breakers often hinge on how you show up.  Here are five areas that can kill a business deal regardless of the product, service or price.

On time:

Everyone has a different definition of what “on time” means; however, few business people accept a 2:15 arrival as being on time for a 2:00 meeting. Calling 10 minutes before your appointment to let the other person know that you will be on time or are stuck in traffic is more professional than apologizing for being late. Many businesspeople plan to arrive 15 minutes earlier than scheduled to eliminate traffic concerns.

Dress:

We’d like to believe people pay more attention to what we do or say than how we look. However, people believe what they see far more than what they hear. Deals can fail for a number of seemingly petty reasons such as unpolished shoes, unkempt hair or inappropriate dress. Most business people see attention to a professional appearance as a reflection of your attention to details in a job.  Having a dress code for your employees is a basic component of your business brand.

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