The Network Garden

One of my favorite axioms is the notion of “Lines..not Dots.”

It’s built around the idea that rather than thinking about relationships and outcomes as transactional, there is the basic goodness of building “real relationships.”

How do you do this?

By putting in the work; specifically, by accruing enough dots of connection through meaningful, value add that, over time, these dots connect to create lines of substance and meaning.

As the graph signifies, value add can take many forms. It can be market intelligence, such as educating a prospective client about what you are seeing in the market that might be relevant to them.

It can take the form of solution education, where you share case studies of best practices from similar clients, or product enhancements that are worth knowing about.

It can manifest from periodic needs assessment, where you periodically check in to gauge a prospect’s evolving needs.

The point is that while selling and making sales obviously matters greatly, as it’s the oxygen of the business, it’s not the reason for being.

Building real relationships and creating real value that is durable over time requires an investment in time, energy, understanding and depth, a fact that is as true in our personal lives as our professional ones.

Food for thought.