We all have amazing gifts and natural strengths in certain areas of our lives, however it doesn’t matter how well we perform in these areas. There are still parts of our lives where we need support and we are not very skilled or strong. These areas where we are weak cause us to reach an abyss in our lives or business, where we cannot move forward without the support of another person. Identify people with whom we can build mutually beneficial relationships, who can help us, and who we can support or help get what they want in return. It will speed up our daily progress and help us reach our goals.
Identifying and connecting with the right people, with whom you can form a meaningful connection, is one of the main reasons for building a successful mutual support network. Trying to build a successful business, without building a support network, using face-to-face networking events or the various social media platforms as tools to support your efforts, is like carrying a heavy suitcase with no wheels at the airport. You quickly feel tired and overwhelmed.
Creating an effective network platform of people who support each other, who really connect and can depend on each other for support, is like walking into the airport in one of those travelators, with a perfectly balanced suitcase on wheels. You have momentum and you quickly reach your destination. The same is true when you engage in effective networking and form a meaningful and mutually beneficial connection with the right people. They support each other and accelerate each other’s success.
The support you get from a carefully chosen and effective support network will make succeeding in both your personal and business life feel effortless. You’ll feel like you’ve got a travelator under your feet, speeding you down the road to success. The mutually beneficial connection with the right people is the catalyst that will accelerate your ability to achieve all your goals and dreams.
meaningful relationships
The Dunbar 150 theory states that we can only have 150 realistically meaningful relationships at any given time. The average Facebook user has around 130 friends. So this theory seems to hold true even with social media. This means that even though you have built huge networks of connections through your social media platforms, you will only be able to communicate with these people on a daily basis; you will never be able to form any kind of meaningful connection with them.
Oprah Winfrey, Donald Trump, and Richard Branson have revealed in their biographies that their incredible success was supported and accelerated by between one and two dozen people. Your life is not different; the energy you are wasting in trying to build a meaningful connection with thousands of people through your various social media platforms is wasted. It would be much better to use your social media presence to support your networking efforts, where you can form a meaningful connection with a smaller group of targeted people.
There are some opportunities that will arise from communicating with a broader base of people through social media. You have the opportunity to constantly communicate with a wide spectrum of different people. This opens up the possibility and people, who you didn’t even think were potential connections, can reach out to you to connect. This has happened to me a few times in recent years.
In October of last year, someone from Dallas, Texas contacted me about coming to the US and talking. I had never thought about going to Dallas, it wasn’t even on my radar. The gentleman in question had been following my daily quotes for about eight months. He enjoyed my work and seeing the consistent quality of work he could produce, he wanted to see me speak in Dallas. I have enjoyed a couple of these windfalls in recent years. However, I have to say that they have all been great experiences, but they have contributed very little to the overall growth of my business. The steady growth of my business is due to identifying target people within carefully selected organizations and then building a connection with them.
The very nature of social networks offers us the opportunity to have thousands of connections. These connections open doors, which would never have opened if we had not had these connections. However, I have to say that if you base your entire marketing and networking strategy on making a connection with thousands of strangers and then expect them to contact you. You are going to fight for your business to grow.
Communicating with thousands of strangers through your social media platforms and then waiting for them to contact you is like waiting to win the lottery before you succeed. Yes, people win the lottery, but the odds are really against you. Use a strategy of reaching out to a broad base of people through your social media platforms to build awareness of who you are, create the perception of a large market presence, create the perception in the marketplace that you are a expert and in the rare case, for people to contact you and do business with you.
There are many ways to expand the number of surface connections you have. To get the most out of this part of your networking and marketing strategy, you can use some really powerful CRM software to help you. By using customer relationship software, it is possible to effectively connect with many more people. Your CRM software, when managed correctly, will help you keep track of your extensive network and communicate with them more effectively. They are by no means a substitute for real face-to-face contact and relationship building. There are great tools available like Gist.com, rapportive.com, and plaxo.com that make managing your social media quick and easy.
Treat everyone you meet as a VIP.
It’s clear from everything mentioned above, that building a successful business is all about developing a meaningful connection with a specific group of people. All other strategies are complementary to this one and in fact only support your efforts to connect with the right people. When you meet the right people, whether through social media platforms or face-to-face networking events, make sure you have their express permission before adding them to any mailing list or newsletter. You will very quickly alienate people if you follow this reckless strategy.
You build meaningful relationships by making people feel special.
It’s crucial that you take a genuine interest in everyone you meet and make an effort to treat them like VIPs. Always try to go the extra mile by looking at their bio on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter, before going into any meeting with them. It’s always nice to have something to tell people when you meet them. Things like, it’s great to meet a fellow engineer, etc. You will find it very helpful in starting a conversation and eventually developing a meaningful connection with them. Even better would be to have an understanding of their interests or hobbies. People love to talk about their interests and will easily connect with you, if you’ve done your research and know a little about their background.
There is one word that people love to hear more than any other: your name. Use people’s first names as often as possible in any communication with them. This applies whether you talk to them in person or communicate with them via email or on any of the social networking sites. By using the sweetest sounding word in your vocabulary, you will build a great relationship with everyone you interact with. Be sure to pronounce and spell people’s names correctly.
connection is crucial
Get out of the idea that you should always be in streaming mode. This goes for face-to-face networking events and on your social media platforms. Nobody likes to interact with people, who only transmit content or information in one way. Reply to as many people within your social network as possible. I try to comment on at least 3 specific people’s blogs every day, communicate with 5 specific people on Facebook every day, and join one or two specific Twitter conversations a day.
Strive to be someone, who always adds value to everyone around you, who helps and connects with people on a daily basis. Someone with whom people can connect with trust, form mutually beneficial relationships, which will serve both parties, leaving everyone better off after making the connection. Successful networking, whether face to face or through social media, is all about finding ways to connect with and support other people. Always try to give as much as possible to the people in your network and they will return the favor.
These contributions should never be made with a hidden agenda. You must be completely transparent in supporting the people in your network; people will know when you’re not being authentic. As you build your social equity, you will attract the right kind of people to your network. The law of reciprocity will surely kick in and you will form great long-term sustainable relationships with the people who matter.
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