August 25, 2015
As I was debating about what to write about this week, two colleagues walked into my client’s office for help in resolving an issue. Upon leaving, one said “It’s not what you know; it’s who you know”. I thought this phrase rang true.
Clearly, you have to be competent. However, assuming this basic, success hinges on “who you know”. In my client’s case, he was able to listen to his colleagues and provide direction in 5 minutes whereas it could have taken them hours to resolve on their own. Time is of the essence in today’s marketplace – the Amazon Effect is of utmost importance.
Last week, I leveraged a friend and colleague’s connections to help me sift through buying options. I could have done the same thing on my own; however, what took my connection an hour would have taken me at least 5 or 6 times as long. Also, today I’ve been working on an executive SIOP presentation with a key client. My graphics guru has been assisting and doing what would take me 10 hours in 10 minutes – not a bad trade-off!
One tip to implement this week:
Think about who you know. Are you nurturing your relationships? When it comes to delighting customers, gaining new clients, getting a great, new job and the like, it is not what you know that counts; it is more often who you know that matters. I hear frequently from executive recruiters that most jobs are filled before they go on the market. This concept applies across the board – whether related to a job or a customer interaction. Before you send that angry email or call your key customer or complain to your peer, think about what you would do if you knew that this interaction would follow you – because it will! Stop and think about treating others as you’d like to be treated. All else will fall into place.