Whew – I’ve been swamped streamlining TAG’s social networking efforts as well as recruiting. On top of that, I’ve been out and about going to networking events and to add to my chaos, at home, we just started football season. Football is a huge commitment and I’m trying to figure out how to get through the season. I think my biggest issue the last few weeks is figuring out the logistics for practice each night. It’s all about feeding the dudes healthy food, not fast food – I’ve gone way too organic for that! I might actually start blogging about the football food issue and posting all that recipe madness on another blog.
So, to wrap it all up, I’m up on Twitter now - you can find me at Splitworld. I’m sending out our most current jobs and anything else I think is helpful. The company should be up this week Tweeting any new jobs and/or some of Dave’s short rants.
A huge thank you to Andrew Bermudez at Lee & Associates for his insights into these social networking sites. We’ve always had a great network here at TAG and now it’s getting even better.
Taking it to the next level.
Ever meet someone who takes everything to the next level but not in a good way? This person is the worry wart, the pessimist, the “what if?”, and “what scenarios should we play out – just in case” person.
Why go there? Why not assume the positive will happen, that things will go well? The disagreement was just that, don’t escalate it. Your health will be restored, don’t go to a bad place or think too extreme. The kids will behave, they are good kids. Let’s just focus on the positive and assume that everyone, most of the time, means well.
I realize life is not always rosy but if we have faith that most people are acting in good faith and with goodwill I bet things will get easier for everyone. So you. grumpy person, quit picking fights, quit worrying, quit thinking it’s all bad. Try to focus on the good, assume people are good and take it to a good level! We need a bit more positive attitude out there these days!
So, Gramps and I have been chatting again and he sent me another gem -
Working Smarter
Most of us employed in the many small business enterprises that constitute the backbone of this nation are obsessed with the idea that hard work and long hours are the secret to success. Most of us get that idea from the fact that those we know who are already successful tell us that is how they did it. We have a tendency to follow suit simply because we hear so much about role models and setting examples. The truth of the matter is that this is only part of the reason for success. It is a most important part and critical to the outcome, however this is only a step in the right direction when you analyze the action for its basic premise. All you’ve done so far is to implement the old stand-by procedure nomenclature: net-working – or – thinking inside the box. The real secret to success is not in working harder or longer, it is in working smarter.
Yeah, easy for you to say but just how do you do that? You do it by working the old fashioned way, and that is: by working harder and longer – but by making sure you do not do the same old things that put you into this slump you are now in. Isn’t that smarter? Of course it is. How do you do that?
Here is the idea:Get out the information on your last success and read it.
What is the one thing that tells you why you made the sale?
Can you see when things were beginning to jell for you?Can you see what that special acceleration was?
- Something you said?
- Something you did?
- Some product you introduced that enhanced the deal?
- Some unexplored perk that needed clarification?
Can you also see where you could have made a bigger success of the deal if you had altered some words, taken some words out – or –? These are hints – or clues -- for future successes, are they not?
By now you should be thinking again and ready for the next phase:
Plan a new success story using what you have just taught your brain to do using your present client as your chief character. Once you start this process and see how successful it is, you will never stop and you will be so rich you can afford your own health insurance plan and forget Obama’s. In the meantime, remember the key duty in a salesman’s repertoire. Contact your client daily or more often making sure he knows you are there to serve and don’t forget to ask how their family is. Remember: contact, contact, contact!
If you are interested in Gramps writing you can find him at www.josephconover.com
My 92 year old Grandfather sent this letter to Dave, my Dad. Dave forwarded it to me I wanted to share my Grandfathers experience with the Great Depression. This is his response to a email my father sent him about the economy. Thanks Gramps for allowing me to share your thoughts. I think this is a powerful message about how lucky we really are today. ----
Hi Dave,
I am not trying to be a wise guy, Dave. I am one of the few left alive who can honestly say they went through the GREAT DEPRESSION OF 1929. I was 12- 13 years old when the Great Depression hit. I can remember when the NY brokers were jumping out the windows. There wasn't ANY money. The whole world was poor.
The crime rate dropped to zero --- there was nothing to steal or fight about. We had a steady stream of bums and hobos at our door and my mother fed each and every one some kind of a sandwich. Even a mash potato sandwich was appreciated.
I wore the same pair of pants all the time I went through high school. My dad was lucky to be demoted only and held onto his job with a 1/2 cut in pay. Mother finally found a job sewing pajama bottoms for an army contractor who owned a sweat shop sewing factory. She worked 5 1/2 days a week and made $5.00. Dad was making $19 a week laboring in a factory.
I was a big help I had a paper route that started out paying me $0.50 a week after a year I had managed to get another route and with two routes I was making $1.75 a week. It was like heaven.
I could not play sports in high school because I had to carry my paper route at that time each day. In my senior year, I took a chance and quit my paper route job so I could play football. I was the star player. After graduation, I did whatever job I could. Worked for nothing some places just to learn how to do the job, hardware store, grocery store, farm work, etc. Best job I had was filling bags with mothball flakes at $0.16 an hour. The job lasted a week when the plant blew up. I was lucky to be laid off that day but that ended that job.
When I was 18 I whezzled a job in a factory by lying about what I could do. I got a job emptying coal cars for $0.34 and hour. Boy was I riding high. I asked for your mother-in-law's hand in marriage. Didn't get it till two more years passed. Finally the WWII came and we all got money working in defense plants. Things were tough. I think the world will have to go through it all again just as me and my associates and peers did. Obama is a fluke. He ain't never gonna be able or have the brains to do more. Them's my words. Hope I didn't spoil your day but with the right adjustments I think you can do as some did who had businesses already established. Bite the bullet; hang on and save your money.
Dad.
Here is a great article about networking from the TAG archives. I have some great old articles from TAGBits hanging around in our files!
Networking At An Event
Body language -- Don’t fold your hands in front of you. Keep your hands at your sides so when you’re ready to meet someone you can extend your hand quickly.
Ops? Where’s my card? Business cards -- carry lots of them and keep them in an easily accessible pocket. Like your left pocket. Shake with your right hand pass the business card with your left hand.
Keep your name tag on the right side of your body so when you shake hands it’s visible. If you’re eating and networking put your food in your left hand.
The obvious – the handshake. Have an effective handshake. Don’t give a “bone-crusher" handshake – ouch - and why bother shaking hands if you’re a "limp fish." If you don’t have a good handshake find a good friend and practice.
Bored with all the chit chat? Remember always listen with interest even if it is boring. Be polite. The person you’re speaking with may not be your next client but could be your next great lead.
Building --- Remember networking is about building relationships and building takes time. Follow up with the people you’ve talked with – but please, not with one of those typical after the conference “form” letters or emails! Maybe catch them on LinkedIn and being a dialoge after the networking event.
In these times of texting, instant messaging, reality TV, basically information/media everywhere we forget to stop talking and stop texting, just be quiet. Quit filling the silence with chatter. It’s OK to take a moment to think, it’s OK not to disclose all of your quirks, it’s OK not to friend someone on Facebook. Here are a few interviewin/networking tips in this age of sharing too much information:
- During an interview answer the questions asked with a direct, honest and concise response.
- Don’t volunteer excess information. If you have a tendency to talk a lot, focus on keeping your mouth shut in between your concise answers. Actually listen to the question, focus on what the interviewer is saying.
- Don’t Facebook, LinkedIn, or MySpace people you’ve just met. In this instantaneous age not everyone is your friend. “Open networking” is collecting people. It’s OK to be an open networker, but collect quality not quantity. Take a bit more time to get to know the people you are networking with. It’s about relationships, not how many “friends” you have.
- Think before you speak, email, text, etc. Don’t give a knee jerk response when conducting business - you might regret it.
- Don’t use texting jargon when speaking or writing. Always use proper English during an interview and any correspondence during the process.
- Do not write in 3rd person. Remember how we all learned that rule in High School? Stick with this basic grammar rule.
- Keep your detailed job descriptions to the last 10 years. After that, just list the company names, your title and dates of employment. Or if you prefer, you can do a one page resume with just the last 10 years.
- A two page resume is plenty of information about you. There is a reason why companies conduct interviews – to get to know more about you.
- If you list your Facebook/LinkedIn/MySpace, etc. addresses make sure what is on that site is appropriate for your future employer to view.
- Put your home address, email address, phone and cell on your resume.
- Keep your resume format simple and do not use Times Roman type face. It’s a great type face but everyone uses it. You want to look a bit different from everyone else. Once you've picked a type face use just one. You can bold, italicize, increase the font size in places but keep it all the same type face. Keep it simple.
- Make sure each page of your resume has a footer with your name, email address and phone number on it. Recruiters and HR people have occasionally been known to lose the first page of a resume and it’s usually the “perfect candidates” resume. Yes, oops, we occasionally have bad days.
- Always explain what industry your company is in.
- If you had 5 different titles under one employer put the employer, your current title and the total dates of employment at the top. Below the company name, preferably indented, break out the titles and the dates of each of your jobs.
- If you are comfortable listing some of your personal interests put something fun and true, for example - I’m a member of the Surf Rider Foundation, I’m a 20 year member of whatever sorority you belonged to, I coach football. It gives us, the interviewer, something different to talk to you about besides all the rank and file information. But keep in mind, if your interests are unusual, like you eat only bugs, please, keep that to yourself.
- Finally – no embellishments of your work record. List your accomplishments but do not indulge in any creative fictional accounts of your success.
