BUILD RELATIONSHIPS
You’ve already gone through Phase 1: Assessment and now we are on our way to Phase 2: Build. Build has 2 parts to it. Building relationships and building community. In this post we are going to focus on Building Relationships.
3 Things you can do to build relationships as you become a Brand Inside a Brand at work
Connect With Those Who Can Move You Closer to Your Goals
Once you have a clear sense of self and your environment, it’s time to set goals.
Goals all set? Now you want to ask yourself, “who are the people in and outside of work that can help me move closer to my goal?” Starting with a list of 5 people, start connecting with them so you get a better understand of who they are and what their needs are, so you can be helpful to them. That leads us to the next point. Be helpful!
Be Helpful
This is relationship building, not “how much can I take from you.”
Find out how you can be helpful by asking what they are most passionate about and what is their biggest challenge at the moment. Please note that some may be reluctant to share that information…at first. In that case it’s your job to pay attention to when they do share something you can help them with.
Learn more about what they do outside of work and who they are as a person, not just their title.
Just in case you are feeling like you don’t have anything to offer these people I want you to remember this Acronym that will help you take inventory of what you have to offer. It’s W.H.E.N:
Work: what have you done in your career that may be of interest to someone you meet?
Hobby: what do you geek out on?
Education: what have you learned in and outside of the classroom?
Network: who are the people you are connected to?
Master The Art of Staying in Touch
Sometimes connecting isn’t the hurdle, it’s staying in touch. You run into all kind of questions like, “what do I say?,” “How do I remember to follow up?,” “What did I say to them last time we connected?”
One good tool for you is called Contactually.
Contactually is a platform that allows you to input contacts, put them in a bucket (basically categorize them) and add how often you would like to stay in touch with the people in that bucket (maybe every 30 days).
Contactually sends you an email everyday, telling you who you need to follow-up with that day.
They also have templates and tutorials to get you started on the “what do I say?” part of the equation.
You are getting closer to moving from just being “inside a brand,” to becoming a “Brand Inside a Brand.” Are their any specific questions I can answer for you about building relationships? Let’s connect.
As always, my goal is help you Run the Point (take action) from where you are, with what you have.
Your Ambassador,
Mike Ambassador Bruny
