Tap Your Inherent Relationship Building Skills by Guest Blogger Jason Jacobshon

Jason Jacobsohn of Networking Insight is the latest blogger who has just written a guest article.

Tap Your Inherent Relationship Building Skills

Whether you know it or not, you were born with the natural ability to meet people and build relationships. Even if you don’t spend much time proactively building relationships, you should be able to point to numerous examples of relationship buildings such as with friends, co-workers, doctors, etc. We are all born with the ability to connect; just some of us utilize this skill more than others.

Don’t Be a Hermit

As long as you are not a hermit, you interact with people every day such as a bus
driver, person at the dry cleaners, and clerk at the local convenience store. However, you may not have a solid business network to draw upon. This is okay because it is never too late to start and chances are that you probably have more people in your network than you think you do.

Take a trip down memory lane and think about the relationships you have built with friends, co-workers, etc. What did you do to develop these relationships? I bet much of it had to do with commonalities such as living in the same neighborhood, going to the same school, working at the same company, or playing the same sports. For many people, building relationships starts by identifying these common elements and building upon them. Having something in common with another person provides a great foundation to build. Relationships are built with people who make us feel comfortable.

Focus on Commonalities

So, if you struggle to get yourself out there and build relationships, then find people to interact with that have something in common. Attend networking events that are focused in your industry, hang out with friends of friends, or interact with fellow alumni. Whatever you decide to do, keep an open mind and try to develop some of these encounters into new relationships that you can integrate into your network.

At the same time, have the confidence that you can meet people and build some solid relationships. You have done it before and continue to do it with new friends. Seek to be friends first with any new contact and then talk business later. You want to build comfort and trust so when business comes up you it is a smooth transition.

Practice Talking to Strangers

If you are still not comfortable carrying on a conversation with new people in a business environment, then practice talking to people when you go to the store, work out at the gym, take a taxi, or stay at a hotel. This activity will get you more comfortable talking to complete strangers in all situations. You have a voice so you need to exercise it. Professional athletes and musicians need to constantly practice before they can perform at the big game or performance.

Keep in mind that people attend networking events to meet other people. So, don’t ever feel embarrassed to go up to someone and start a conversation. Chances are this person feels uncomfortable so he/she will be thankful that you started the dialogue.

So, tap into your inherent relationship building skills and have the confidence that you can continue to meet new people and grow your network.

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