It’s Always Been About Showing Up
It’s fun to connect with people who do the same things we do. It’s also great business. But a quick hello and a conversation about what we do doesn’t make a relationship. If we don’t let our new friends know where serious about a relationship things often stop at that point.
Suddenly we can find ourselves with idea, an adventure, or trip somewhere that would be a perfect fit for someone we’ve met but hardly know. We might have a product that would be a perfect fit for their network, but we’ve never gone past that first hello. We’d love to share the benefits with someone that we’ve met, but we’re not so comfortable that we’re not stepping over the line by even suggesting that.
Here are five highly effective ways to power up your power network and bring the people in your network closer to you.
- Be a good surprise. Keep a list of people who have referred you, recommended you, tweeted or retweeted your work, or done something large or small to help you. Write an unexpected email, direct message, handwritten note to one person on that list to say you appreciate the contribution that person has made in your life.
- Be a new encounter of the very best kind. As we travel Twitter and get introduced at meetings, we encounter more than a few people who have skills or interests that compliment are might add value to what we do. Once a week, make an appointment to talk on the phone with one or two people from that group. Ask about their goals for the next two quarters. Explore how you might align their goals with yours.
- Be a sincere fan. Email someone you respect and admire, but don’t know well. Write the email solely for the purpose of explaining the way that person has added value to your life.
- Be on a quest. Make it a quest to request help from someone you’ve never worked with. Every week, decide on one thing you probably would do better if you brought in some other brain, hands, or eyes. You’ll be surprised what you learn simply by deciding on what to request and then by listening to the answers.
- Be an idea explorer. Use a search engine, Wikipedia, books, magazines, and a rare group of friends to seek out new ideas on a subject your network cares about. Then share them generously online, on the phone, and in person whenever you interact.
Make time for all five of these every week and your network will explode with true connection — people you know, people who know you, and who know what you do. Every burst of energy in that direction with be a reminder that the people you’ve connected with are more than contact information to you.
How do you keep the power in your power network?
–ME “Liz” Strauss
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These are very interesting tips, Liz… a kind of ‘networking 101’.
I see that each of them is based on giving overwhelming value to your network – whether it be by giving your contacts support, feeding them new information, acting as a bridge for others to build useful connections, etc.
I guess the key to having a powerful network is to always ask yourself the simple question: “how can I help you do what you do better”. That’s real added value…
Hi Scott,
How sad that a family emergency meant that I couldn’t follow my own advice. Here I am days later answering your comment. I agree. People ARE our networks. It’s powerful to remember they are people not a collection, but individuals with names, values, and ideas. Helping them makes us, them, and our networks stronger together.
Liz, thanks for some recommendations I will now add to my weekly routine [which I am hyper-focused on at this juncture]. I would like to add another. Often we get lazy and fall into the habit of contacting people in our network when we “need” something from them. I would like to add Sharing Ideas, Posts or Articles that you know people in your power network would enjoy. It is a twist on your Tip 5. It is really just paying attention to your info stream and sharing.
Hi Mary Ann,
I so agree that too often we only call folk up to ask for help … because we’re so busy.
That’s how and why this list got started. Thank you for adding your ideas to it!
Great tips Liz, thanks for sharing them with us.
Powering up our power network is our top priority in moving our relationships to authentic engagement by being authentically engaged as we share our feelings and our thoughts -Dr. Rae for The Baum Group.
Hi Dr. Rae!
I agree that staying authentically engaged is the fuel!
Great tips Liz, thanks for sharing. I especially like the quest and exploring concept. I am on it!
Joe
Hi Joe!
Thanks for stopping by to read and staying long enough to leave your thoughts. I like exploring and try to make everything a quest myself. 🙂