Yellow Dog Consulting

Sales & Marketing Consulting for solo-preneurs.

My Friend the Expert

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IMG_0323Last week I had a call with two of my clients. One mentioned their current struggle is having meetings with people who want to get into the same industry as my client. You’re right, I did just write about this last month. So we won’t rehash that. But as I was talking to them the other client mentioned “if only I can get my friends to stop taking advantage of my knowledge!”

What a great point – are you the friend taking advantage of your pal’s knowledge? I love helping my friends out – I just talked about this last week on the blog. But are you taking advantage of your friend’s knowledge when your friend would rather talk about ANYTHING but work at the moment?

Quick Test to see if you’re guilty:

1. If you think you are bothering your friend or contact, then you probably aren’t. You’re aware of it, and you can mention it to your friend. But if you think you’re bothering them, my guess is you’re doing all the right things to make sure you aren’t.

2. If you KNOW your friend doesn’t mind, that’s what she’s there for, she loves talking about work at 9 pm while you’re driving home from happy hour and she’s sitting on the couch with her dog watching TV after a busy day. YOU are taking advantage of your friend.

So how do you fix this? Easy: schedule time. Shoot your friend a note, “I’m excited we’re getting together for lunch next week, I have a couple of questions about my business I wanted to run by you, can we chat at lunch or would you rather set up another time?” Offer an out. Don’t call when it’s convenient for you, call when it’s convenient for them. Your friend is an expert in their field, and people pay for that expertise. Make sure you are offering to pay for the time, or pick up the tab at lunch, or offer your service back to them as appropriate.

And when your friend starts to ignore your calls? You’ll know you’re doing it wrong.

Network with Yellow Dog in May!

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wirl-logo-new2Happy Spring!  Wow this sunshine and warm weather is great. I know it’s not July 5th yet, so the rain will return, but for now, let’s enjoy! Go outside and play and then come back and add these fun events to your schedule for the month!

April 29-May 23rd

WiRL Summit

The Women in Real Life Summit is my kind of event. It’s a month long and online, not 3 days out of town! I can listen to webinars without pants OR makeup on, I’m sold! It’s a locally developed event, and I’m excited for what I’ll be learning about in the next month!

May 8-18th

Seattle Beer Week

If we’ve met, you know I love a delicious adult beverage. So much so that a few months back my friend and I started a Meetup Group called Beer Geek Girls (sorry, no boys allowed!) If you are a lady who loves beer and geekiness please join us! There are a ton of great events going on during Seattle Beer Week. Get out and find a new neighborhood spot, drink a new brew, and talk to the people next to you at the bar. You never know what it could lead to! There will be a group of us as the Women in Beer party on the 12th- and yes boys are allowed to that event!

Thursday, May 15th

eWomenNetwork Luncheon

You know my love of eWomenNetwork! This is a fantastic organization for women in business who are looking to grow their business, get education, and have a community of like minded people in their corner. This organization has been instrumental in Yellow Dog’s success!

Space Matters: How to Design a Great Workspace

My pal Jimmy over at turnstone is having another great event this month. If you are a growing business, or have a team and need help encouraging conversation or designing that perfect office, this is the event for you!

Attending other events this month? Make sure to share in the comments!

Taking Advantage of Kindness

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IMG_6058Lately I’ve been thinking a lot about offering up your time, and people taking advantage of it. I spoke to a group a couple of months ago, and a few people asked to have coffee and meet with me afterwards. I said yes, and when I met with one person, he chit chatted the time away, and didn’t take much advantage of the opportunity he had to pick my brain. As we were leaving, he mentioned getting together again in a couple of weeks to brainstorm on our businesses. WHAT? Sorry dude, that ship has sailed. We aren’t at the same stage of our companies, and I have people in my life for that. Plus, you aren’t a good use of my time.

Sure it’s harsh, but let’s be honest: it’s true.

About a year ago I met with someone starting a company as a favor to a friend. Cool company, not a lot of use for my business, but I did refer this company to a client of mine. My client had 2 calls with them, and then they asked to meet in person with my client. My client emailed me and said “I’m busy, I understand their business now, and will refer if it makes sense. Is it Ok to say no?” YES, it’s okay to say no!

Folks, if you need something from another business owner, make sure you maximize the time you have with them. Don’t expect that they want to meet with you more than once, and if all they offer is 30 minutes on the phone, TAKE IT. I mentioned this in my blog post on Tuesday as well, this article explains my sentiments probably better than I am today. If you aren’t willing to pay for it, please assume we aren’t willing to give it away.

Now, this doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy learning about new companies and there will be times when I am looking for a specific kind of company to work with. BUT, I’m busy running my business. And unless you want to hire me to help you with your business, I have work to do!