Connecting As A Task To Be Managed
One of the biggest excuses I hear from business people as to their inability to get out and meet new people (connect) is the lack of time. We all have busy lives. Personal pressures, professional obligations and a litany of other things which demand our time, energy and attention. At the end end the day who has time to get out and meet new people?
Its a problem even I struggle with. I receive nearly 400 emails per day. I have more phone calls than I can possibly count. I am directly responsible for three companies and a new start-up and have a family to boot. It would be easy to throw my hands up and say, "I'm simply too busy!"
And I would be doing myself a huge disservice.
Connecting with new people and taking the time to strengthen connections with those people you want and need to know better is one of the most most important things I think I do on a daily basis. It's critical to my present and future success and I suspect yours as well.
Getting out and connecting with new people is something I have had to literally force myself to schedule into my day. Whether it be scheduling an early morning coffee or breakfast with a new contact or dedicating a space of time after lunch to simply pick up the phone and have a check in conversation with someone I've recently met. I literally have to manage the "effort" as a task on my very overgrown To Do List. However when I have it committed to paper and it stares me in the face every day, it becomes easier to plug through and just do it. Before long it doesn't end up feeling like a task at all. It becomes something I actually look forward to each day. Without a doubt it breaks up the monotony of the other less exciting or not so stimulating tasks I must complete during a given day.
Try scheduling blocks of time today to get out there and connect. Give it a try won't you? You'll be glad you did!
Ripple On!!!
4 comments:
hi there ~
great reminder. great post.
i am too busy in my job with too big of a project workload.
but even though i have "no time," i feel better when i take a moment here and there and say hello to a new person or spend a few moments with someone new or not new in a brief conversation. makes me feel more human, at ease, and happier to have some little moments like this, too .. not just the work work work all the time for every single moment of the day. the demanding project workload is always there, but these little human moments (yes, the ripple effects) make things feel a little better, too.
great post. thanks, kathleen
Steve,
Here are some of the excuses I hear:
1. But I work in the corporate world or
2. I'm not in sales
or
3. the aforementioned, I have no time.
What's your response to the first two excuses?
Great post!
Thanks for the comment Kathleen. I agree...it does feel good and no matter how busy we are we can always find some time to connect!
Ripple On My Friend!
Cory,
Oh those are good ones and I hear them a lot too.
Corporate World:
What would you do if you were to find out tomorrow morning that your job is being outsourced? Would you have a strong enough network of connections to land in your next position by week's end? If not, then connecting is even more critical for you. As we have seen time and time again, things happen unexpectedly out there in the corporate world and they tend to happen when you least expect them. Building a network of people who know you, support you and will help you if, and more likely when, something happens to your job is one of the most important things you can do to protect and insulate yourself.
As for not being in sales...
See above. (Smile)
Thanks Cory for the questions....keep 'em coming!!!
Ripple On My Friend!!!
Steve
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