Commit to having no limits. Do all you can to discover what lies in your blind spots – such as by asking friends and family for their (sometimes brutal) honesty. Then take steps to act upon what you have learned.
Commit to having no limits. Do all you can to discover what lies in your blind spots – such as by asking friends and family for their (sometimes brutal) honesty. Then take steps to act upon what you have learned.
Ever notice how most leaders have well developed networks? That is no coincidence. The fact is that an advantage of any type of leadership position is that it gives you a built-in excuse for connecting with people.
If the thought of a leadership position seems daunting because of the required commitment and the nature of the exposure, there is a way to ‘have your cake and eat it too.’ Take more behind-the-scenes leadership roles – such as being hospitality chair, publicity chair or even assisting a main officer. This can serve to give you some of the exposure of leadership without completely immersing you in responsibility.
AmSpirit Business Connections is venturing out and now has members in Colorado. In March 2010 the Front Range Professionals Chapter launched in Colorado Springs under the leadership of first-year Director Cyndi Stout, a networking veteran with a promotional products company. According to Cyndi, “this is the first of many Chapters in Colorado Springs,” a city about 60 miles south of Denver.While AmSpirit Business Connections is not necessarily a new concept in Colorado Springs, area entrepreneurs, sales representatives and professionals see it as a fresh alternative to many other structured-referral organizations around town. “AmSpirit Business Connections has a unique approach and offers lots of great support material and programs,” Cyndi added.
For more information on the Front Range Professionals Chapter, visit our website. If you know of entrepreneurs, sales representatives or professionals in the Colorado Springs area, direct them to Cyndi Stout (Cyndi@promoz.com) – be sure to write up a cross-Chapter referral if you do.
You can find in many children’s bedtime books a short poetic fable by an unknown author entitled For Want Of A Nail that goes like this:
For want of a nail, the shoe was lost;
For want of a shoe, the horse was lost;
For want of the horse, the rider was lost;
For want of the rider, the battle was lost;
For want of the battle, the kingdom was lost;
And all for the want of a nail.
The point or moral for you and your Chapter is that the little things we do and the little things that we encourage our members to do can and will have a significant impact on the Chapter’s success.
Analogizing the story of For Want Of A Nail to the operation of a Chapter:
· Because the Chapter does not appropriately introduce guests, the guest does not join; and,
· Because the guest does not join, his or her referrals are never given within the Chapter; and,
· Because his or her referrals are never given within the Chapter, a member terminates their membership; and,
· Because this current member terminates their membership, his or her referrals are no longer given within the Chapter; and,
· Because his or her referrals are no longer given within the Chapter, another member terminates their membership; and so on and so forth.
Because the Chapter fails to do one simple little thing – introducing guests appropriately – possibly (and in many cases entirely likely) sets in motion a chain of events that has a drastic impact on the Chapter.
Remember, if you mind the little things, generally big things will follow.