Friends are Vital to Small Business Success
September 7th, 2007 by Liz Fuller
How engaged do you feel in your business?
Do you get up every morning eager to start the day, or do you find yourself looking for ways to postpone the inevitable email, phone calls and paperwork?
Do you look forward to serving your customers, or feel frustrated that they seem to grow more annoying every day?
Do you find yourself wondering where the fun has gone?
I’ve been reading Tom Rath’s book Vital Friends: The People You Can’t Afford to Live Without
In fact, research shows that if you have a best friend at work you are significantly more likely to:
- engage your customers
- get more done in less time
- have fun on the job
- have a safe workplace with fewer accidents
- innovate and share new ideas
- feel informed and know that your opinions count
- have the opportunity to focus on your strengths each day
Rath’s research focused on corporate environments. But it made me wonder about the implications for entrepreneurs, who many times work by themselves.
Wouldn’t you like to reap these benefits in your own life?
In yesterday’s post we discussed how important it is to have a support system in order to see you through the loneliness and challenges of being in business for yourself. Today’s post demonstrates that a strong support system is necessary in order to give our best to our business, our customers and ourselves.
So, what can solo-entrepreneurs do to obtain the benefits of friendship in the workplace?
One method is to look for creative opportunities to partner with other entrepreneurs in similar professions:
- collaborate with others on presentations, books, and workshops
- swap ideas for marketing and advertising
- create a mastermind group to focus on business development
- volunteer with others in professional organizations
- share publicity on community service projects
What other methods do you use to increase your connection to others? How does partnering with others on projects or presentations influence your mood and energy level?
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This entry was posted on Friday, September 7th, 2007 at 2:48 am and is filed under book recommendations, networking, sales, motivation, marketing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
October 17th, 2007 at 12:25 pm
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October 19th, 2007 at 4:42 pm
Liz
Virtual networking via www.Irishbusinesswomen.com has proved to be a popular and extremely productive way for many Irish women entrepreneurs [with the odd man thrown in for good measure] to make friends. When I set the community up originally it was supposed to be primarily business related, and while the forum is all that, it is also a place where friendships are made, and where we know they make a difference.
Join if you wish, but please post at the same time because most non Irish based people who join do so as spammers and we dump them unceremoniously! We would of course welcome any contribution you, or any of your readers, might care to make.
October 19th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
Hi Frank
What a thoughtful response - I checked out the forum and it certainly appears to be filled with an involved bunch of experienced and knowledgeable women entrepreneurs!
I signed up and put an intro in the forum - so hopefully they realize I’m there to learn and share - and not to spam!!
I’ll certainly recommend to my readers that they check it out!
Liz
October 19th, 2007 at 7:06 pm
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October 20th, 2007 at 4:57 am
Hi Liz,
As a solo-entrepreneur and a member of www.irishbusinesswomen.com I can relate very well to what your saying AND echo what Frank said about the wonderful support and information available on IBW!
It’s very easy to allow yourself to become isolated when you work alone - especially when your work is also your passion! - and takes a bit of effort to make a connection with others.
Having a network - even a virtual one - of people in the same boat really helps!
October 20th, 2007 at 8:06 am
Thanks Eileen
I couldn’t agree more. I’m really enjoying reading the posts in the Irish Business Women’s forum - so many fascinating, energetic and supportive women!
October 23rd, 2007 at 3:29 am
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October 26th, 2007 at 6:12 am
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October 28th, 2007 at 9:29 pm
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October 30th, 2007 at 3:09 am
Business Success Link Love - 10/29/07…
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November 5th, 2007 at 6:52 am
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November 12th, 2007 at 11:02 am
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April 11th, 2008 at 7:30 pm
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