I did it the hard way, before all the online resources offered out there, before online communities came to be fashonable, I did it the hard way.
No you don't have to applaud me but please think about how much easier it is today to do all the things I did, bit by bit, the really difficult and time consuming way.
What am I getting at? I have a list, see what you think:
- Ring, ring goes the phone:"Mr Wants it all to come easy: " Hey can you help me find Mrs So and So she is really influencial and I want her to do something for me so I thought if you (Mr Influential) could give me her information I could grow my business, get the best clients, and be really successful!" Mr Influential: "Do I know you"? "Mr Wants it all to come easy:" Yes of course you know me, we met 18 months ago at a networking event I attended and I gave you my business card"! Mr Influential: "I am so sorry I have no idea who you are, maybe we could chat over coffee and I can find out who you are, what you do and we could build a trusting relationship". Mr Wants it all to come easy: "No sorry, I don't have time to build relationships, I just need the easiest way to making my first million dollars".
So, someone you met 18 months ago is supposed to remember you, even though you did not follow up, connect with, try to build a relationship with, or even help, and you find that odd? Have you any idea how many people Mr Influential has met and built relationships with over the past 18 months?
- LinkedIn: I read your profile and think you are useful to me, connect with me. I have no reason to help you, or support you or even know much about you other than you might be able to find me a new position as I see you are connected to everyone who is somone.
LinkedIn is not an easy come easy go kind of place, LinkedIn is not about instant gratification and ensuring everyone who wants it to come easy with no work involved get what they want.
There was no LinkedIn to help me and many other people when we started building our business or looking for a new position, we did it the old fashioned way. But you don't have to, LinkedIn is a resource that brings great benefits.
- Content marketing: "I don't have time to be online, write blog posts, or offer tips or showcase me or my business, waste of time" comments heard from the "Wants it all to come easy kind of people". But there are lots of different reasons and ways to do this. Simple way is to write blogs, articles, post content on line, lots of other ways and articles to read the how, where, why, what etc.
Sorry if I sound like I am complaining, really I am not, but if you think about this in the big scheme of things, like attracts like so today more than ever people are going to stick together and people who like and trust each other will help each other. Everyone is busy, everyone is building their success in many different ways, and forming alliances, partnerships, communities that help each other. It is the way of the World today. It is easy to see the different kinds of people online and which ones want it to come easy and which ones pay it forward.
But even if you don't need contacts you like and trust and get to know, at least use the web as a resource and do your homwork, Google the information you need, don't go running to someone who you think will do the work for you and someone who hardly knows you, or you may be disappointed. But, there are people out there, including me who will help you the first time, the second time point you to the wonderful free and simple resources out there, and the third time, well I think you know what the answer is to that one.
Hard work never killed anyone, but seriously, building relatioships, getting to know the people you are connected to, helping each other, what's so difficult about that?
Complacency is evil, don't be complacent be proactive.
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