The spotlight effect has us think that we are the center of other people’s attention

The spotlight effect has us think that we are the center of other people’s attention. We’re not!

—Calm App Reflection

Image from Unsplash by Jason Goodman

Have you ever attended a networking event to promote your business, your product, or even yourself? These are gatherings where you can (hopefully) make a good impression on others by offering your sixty second commercial or a thirty second elevator pitch.

For many people, such events create a bit of fear or trepidation, knowing that all eyes are on you as you speak.

The truth in these situations is that during these moments everyone else is so concerned with what they intend to say that they actually pay little or no attention to you.

EXERCISE:

Where in your personal or professional world do you worry and fret about being in the spotlight?

How can knowing that others are paying little attention to you put you at ease and support your well-being in these social and professional situations?

It’s a real pleasure to earn the trust of your customers

“It’s a real pleasure to earn the trust of your customers slowly over time by doing what’s right.”

Charlie Munger, late American businessman and philanthropist

Image from Unsplash by krakenimages

In the early years of my coaching career most of my time was spent networking and pursuing various business development activities.

Back then the world saw coaching as an activity only related to sports. The idea of a business or life coach seemed weird and a bit too far out to be widely accepted.

To capture my efforts, I used a customer relationship management software called ACT and LinkedIn to keep track of things.

In numerous cases it took years of steady and consistent effort and doing things right to build the necessary trust to eventually establish the partnerships to move forward.

EXERCISE:

What is an example of a relationship you created over time that was built on integrity and doing things right?

Please  email me at barry@dempcoaching.com if you would like copies of my Masterful Networking and Masterful Relationships workbooks.

“You own an army if you know how to win people’s trust and support.”

“You own an army if you know how to win people’s trust and support.”

—Author Unknown

Image from Amazon.com

Social capitalism and masterful networking are cornerstone skills of many successful people. Take a moment to examine the variety of people who have trusted and supported your personal and professional efforts up to this point in your life.

In his book, Achieving Success Through Social Capital, Dr. Wayne Baker documents the fundamentally understood concept that relationships are valuable not just qualitatively, but also quantifiably. When others help us, we tend to reciprocate by making efforts to help them.

With this giving and supportive perspective in mind, we can all build and foster our own armies to support our personal and professional objectives. We can also act as foot soldiers in the armies of our supporters.

EXERCISE:

Consider checking out Wayne Baker’s book, or email me and I will send you a PDF copy of my Masterful Networking Workbook, which can be read in 15-20 minutes.