BUSINESS BULLSHIT DOESN'T IMPRESS!! Who knew?!
What do you do when you lose a client or things take a turn for the worse?
Do you go around telling everyone how busy you are and that things are going great, or be honest and see if your friends and contacts can help you?
This was my dilemma recently when one of my bigger clients pulled all their external training. Nothing to do with me I hasten to add as they have serious issues of their own, but it caused a significant and scary hole in my forecast nonetheless.
Not great timing either, I’m comfortable admitting that things have been a bit difficult this year as previously discussed! Lots of business have struggled during recent events and the effects are often transferred down to their providers.
So, here you are at yet another networking event or posting on social media and you have a choice to make a) tell people what you think they want to hear “that all is going brilliantly and that business is booming” in the hope this will net you some more work or b) be politely honest and see if anyone has any suggestions or advice.
It doesn’t sound like rocket science does it but there are patterns of established behaviour that way too many people preach or follow in the business world, and when you’re feeling insecure or unsure due to the effects and impacts of stress, it’s difficult to think clearly.
In times like these you need a logical thought process to cut through the fog and help you decide on your course of action, so here’s something to consider:
In standard face-to-face spoken communication, over 90% of the information is transmitted through visual and vocal signals. This means that most humans take the bulk of the message from how something is being said as opposed to what is being said. In other words, people can see and hear bullshit!
If you want your relationships to be built on trust you need to be honest, open and transparent. That means telling the truth in good times and bad! I really value those people in my close network as I consider them friends, and friends share and help each other but they can’t help if you’re not willing to open up!
As a footnote to this post, I have a trusted colleague and friend who knows what, why and how I do what I do, as we have worked together and known each other for many years. Because I thought this might happen, I shared my concerns with her last year and she has since helped me out by offering me more work than I have recently lost!
Maybe if we were all a little more transparent and a little more caring just a little more often, the world would be a better and kinder place? Just maybe! ❤️
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