My First Business Coach – My Father

Long before terms like business coach, networking, pipelines and sales cycles were trendy, my father considered himself the go to guy for anything hobby farm related. He was a horse trader and my mother would swear that he would trade her if he got the right money. My father had all of the natural networking skill needed to be a successful business man. It was closing the deal that was a challenge for him. He would work a room, loved helping others and with just a rotary dial phone, he was The Connector Guy. When people needed something related to an animal, their first question would be “Did you call Randell?” My father knew the value of networking.

THE ART OF NETWORKING

This week I attended a couple of networking events and I couldn’t help but think of him. I watched people who were seasoned networkers and others who were just beginning and I wondered what he would tell anyone who asked how to do it.  As a teacher of business process, we often reverse engineer a task to see what the component parts are. I look at my father to see what that was. He would walk into a room and walk right up to a person he didn’t know and introduce  himself. He had the confidence to do that because he loved his people and he knew it was going to be fun. He would tell a story, make them laugh and set up a time to meet again. When we would get outside my father would pull a pencil from behind his ear and ask me to write a number down. Horse men don’t have business cards.

CONNECTING AFTERWARD

As a connector guy, he provided value add first. He always helped people find the people they needed to connect with. My father would be on the phone most evenings and we would hear him say “I’ll tell you why I’m phoning you. I got a fella needs a ……”  I know he’d tell you to help someone get what they need and the sale will come. I meet so many people who try and sell in that first introduction.

PUT ON A HAPPY FACE

Nobody likes a stick in the mud. We would rather buy from someone who will also give us a light dusting of humour with our sale. My father always made people laugh. It makes people feel good and we remember people who make us feel good. We do business with folks we know and trust.

FOLLOW UP

I can hear my father say “I must give buddy a call.” I’d ask “What for?” My father didn’t need a reason. People loved hearing from him and talking about what they had in common. In the conversation he would be planting seeds about this and that. It wasn’t awkward, the conversation naturally went that way. My father would tell me not to push too hard too early.

Last night I read the poem to him called  “The Race”. We both enjoy it and it’s about getting up again after a fall. Don’t worry about getting it right the first time, get up and try again if it is a flop the first time.

“You’re never going to get good at it if you give up.” Happy Networking.