I am working on keeping these daily blogs shorter so that you do not spend too long reading each day. In order to do that, I will have to spread the discussion over several days. So here it goes...
I have struggled with the question about how to tell people I am in business for the whole time I have been in business for myself. Short of wearing a billboard all the time, you want to let people know you are in business, but you don't want to be a pest about it either. The big question is how to tell them without being a pain.
The best way I have figured out so far is to open a general conversation with the person, do not start with a specific agenda. You can be standing in line at the grocery store and you both see something worth commenting on. I always have trouble starting conversations (yes, really I do) and have to psych myself into opening a conversation with a complete stranger. With practice it does get marginally easier, but you always have to work at it (at least I do).
Once you start the conversation, let it move naturally and watch for an opportunity. The best way to have a constructive conversation is to listen to the other person more than you talk. When you start listening to them, they begin to trust you and are willing to open up to you more. When you have gained some of their trust, you can start asking questions. Just be sensitive to the time you spend talking, the other person may really have something else that must be done. In today's society, we all have a lot to do in a very short period of time.
(If you start up a conversation with a stranger, only answer your cell phone if it is an EXTREMELY urgent call. If you pick up that phone while talking to the stranger and you do not excuse yourself, you just let the other person know that their time was not very important to you. You need to make sure the other person knows that you value their time and opinion, so be careful when and if you answer the ringing cell phone.)
Once you have started an open dialog, you can then ask the other person what they do for a living. They will usually talk a bit about what they are doing, or not doing and whether they are happy doing their job. The next natural question from them is to reciprocate and ask you what you do for a living. Now, if you had been listening to the person up until now, you are in an excellent position to talk about what you do and to tailor it to the current person's needs (if applicable). Do not push your business, treat it casually, but do not talk it down and you may be very surprised how receptive the other person may be to finding out more about what you do.
If you find you are both short on time, you may want to exchange e-mail addresses and/or phone numbers if the other person is remotely interested in what you do for a business. Do not take a lot of their time talking about your business if you are both pressed for time. The most effective route is to exchange information and set at time to contact them when it is convenient to both of you. The other person will appreciate your sensitivity to their time constraints, and you will find you get more qualified people to talk to.
I will continue this thread in the next day or so... until tomorrow...
If you are interested in finding a business opportunity that may meet your needs, please visit www.hawgwash.net or feel free to contact me through e-mail or in comments to this blog posting.
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