It’s about a 4 min. read.
Who are the 5 people you regularly interact with in your professional life? Michael Veltri asked this key question during his virtual appearance at my company’s Virtual Sales Kickoff. His ideas about connection are especially relevant in a pandemic, where travel is limited, and our worlds can shrink unless we’re engaging regularly with clients, prospects, colleagues, and industry professionals.
Who are your current Fab ~5? These are the people who straddle the line between friend and business colleague. You want each other to win and you watch out for ideas/content/innovative methods that they may want to learn about, and vice versa. You show them what you found for them, and you share conversations about goals, plans, and life. You might text, DM, collaborate, video conference, video chat, enjoy virtual drinks, or create groups and book clubs.
During the pandemic, I’ve also been jogging ‘with’ some of my Fab 5 (well, with their podcasts) 4 mornings a week. With that long-form of listening, I learn a lot, and I rely on their deep knowledge to continue to explore my own interests*.
This network expansion effort is about who you need in your future Fab 5, and vice versa, so that you can drive impact (grow your company’s bottom line, expand your community service impact, realize personal objectives, hire amazing colleagues). Once you identify your future focus, you can make sure that you are investing hours that help bring you to that new reality.
A friend recently told me her personal trainer calls her every Monday morning before 8am to quiz her on her weekend wellness behaviors. The first call, she was irritated, but after three weeks, she’s choosing healthier options and she can’t wait for those weekly chats. He’s unlocking the value in their relationship by authentically engaging and motivating her future wellness by focusing on her KPIs. She said she’s 75% more likely to renew for his new gym at a 20% premium cost. Is it just a sales ploy? No way. He is just being himself, and he is increasing the probability of his success by being human and learning how her needs dovetail with his solution fit. She was part of his Fab 5, and now he is going to be part of hers.
Veltri encourages us to take actions to build our Fab 5. Action has never been easier to initiate, because participating in virtual meetings and events is relatively frictionless (no travel, no fee in most cases). You can enter the room with your video off and voice muted (no expectations from the group), and you can log off and re-charge at will when you need a break. This incredible velocity of content and access to networking will undoubtedly decline after the vaccine is distributed and we begin commuting again.
My recommendation is start today with a commitment to yourself to invest X hours getting to know your clients and industry colleagues more deeply. Pledge some time every week to interacting, to helping our industry peers whose jobs were eliminated during the pandemic, to community service, to personal goals, and/or to improving our understanding of our ever-expanding Insights community. Register and participate in the abundance of free events with Insights Association, Greenbook, Quirks, QRCA, ESOMAR, TMRE, Women in Research, Jamin’s Tuesday Series, university offerings, etc.
For more conversation on Fab 5, message Julie or another colleague to continue the dialogue. Julie Kurd is the VP, Sales & Revenue at CMB.