Prospecting on Purpose® with Sara Murray

Season 2 of Prospecting on Purpose has been an incredible journey! In this special wrap-up, Sara Murray reflects on the highlights, lessons, and takeaways that have defined this purpose-driven season. Whether it's building authentic networks, mastering value-driven selling, or learning to walk away from deals with integrity, this episode is all about celebrating growth and preparing for the next chapter.

Key Highlights from Season 2 of Prospecting on Purpose: ✔ Building meaningful connections and mentorships. ✔ Leading with intention, no matter your role. ✔ Selling value over features to make a real impact. ✔ Embracing reflection, resilience, and personal growth. ✔ Staying true to your purpose while walking away from unaligned opportunities.

🚀 Looking Ahead: Season 3 of Prospecting on Purpose is coming in 2025! Until then, keep applying these insights to your journey and prospecting with purpose every step of the way.

👉 Don't miss a thing—subscribe now and turn on notifications to stay updated!

#ProspectingOnPurpose #Season2WrapUp #PurposeDrivenGrowth #Networking #Leadership #SaraMurray #ProspectingWithPurpose

Episodes Featured in This Wrap-Up:

Connect with Sara https://www.saramurray.com/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@saramurraysales LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saramurraysales/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/saramurraysales/

What is Prospecting on Purpose® with Sara Murray?

Prospecting on Purpose is Forbes meets Saturday Night Live - it’s *the* show for everything prospecting, sales, business, and mindset.

As business grows more complex, the biggest opportunities emerge when we learn beyond our own industries. From hospitality and design to technology and travel, this is where professionals come together to exchange ideas, uncover new perspectives, and prospect for business with creativity, authenticity, and intention.

Hosted by Sara Murray, a heart-centric sales champion, each episode helps you raise both your vibes and your game. Sara's playbook is simple - ABAV: Always Be Adding Value. Embrace your authentic self, lean into your unique strengths, and sell the outcome instead of the product or service.

Join Sara each week as she sits down with world-class thought leaders to unpack today's business strategies, mindset shifts, and relationship-driven approaches to growth, giving you practical ideas you can put into action right away.

Connect with Sara: www.saramurray.com IG: @saramurraysales LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/saramurraysales/

welcome to prospecting on purpose

the podcast where we dive in

strategies for successful relationship building

and business development I'm your host

Sarah Murray collaborating with

and learning from

mentors can be a game changer in your career

they provide guidance support

and insights that will help

you navigate the complexities of professional journey

tip 1 identify your goals

understanding where you're going is crucial

because this is going to make it

easier to intentionally find the right people to help

you and communicate to them what you're looking for

No. 2 build your mentor roster

recognize that no mentor is a one size fits all

and may not have experience in

all of the different skills that you're looking for

and even if they did you can't hang a busy person

every time you run into an issue or have a question

so it's going to be easier to ask for help and support

if you spread it out amongst different people

tip No. 3 is leverage your network

one of the

simplest ways to do this is to talk about your goals

with your professional and personal network

tip No. 4 be easy to work with

if somebody makes a connection for you

if you are the person who is the potential meante

or the person asking for a favor

then you need to respond to that introduction

text or email as fast as possible

tip No. 5 is take action if someone offers to help you

you say yes and you take the help quickly

do not lose the momentum tip No. 6

stop the brain picking please

please

please remove the following phrase from your vocabulary

can I pick your brain whether it's a warm connection

or if you reaching out to somebody cold

if that's how you start the exchange

you're already setting yourself up to get nowhere

tip No. 7 is a B

a v

always be adding value you knew it was coming

if you listen to prospecting on purpose

but really mentorship is a two way street

we have to give so we can receive

tip No. 8 express gratitude and report back

this is the easiest way to maintain a relationship

after someone extends wisdom or support

is to obviously say thank you for their help

and then follow up with them

and let them know

the results of implementing their guidance

tip No. 9 you can pay for mentoring

I'm just gonna say it

I know it's not always in our budget

but hiring coaches

and consultants is a great way to collapse time

and get the knowledge and

or connections you're looking for

and then that leads us to our 10th and final tip

which is tip 10 be open to possibilities

you never know

who might show up in your life to support you

and if you remain open minded and open hearted

you may find that a mentor is showing up for you

and they were not what you were expecting

and the best way to build

out a high caliber network is to be a connector

so when you're introducing other people to each other

whether it's a professional introduction

a friend introduction opening your

Rolodex of context to other people in your network

so you're viewed as someone who's thoughtful

someone who cares about other people

and their businesses and their goals

and their personal lives and the ultimate way

that we add value to

others is to establish connections

that basically builds other people's businesses

or impacts their roles in whatever that looks like

so we're helping other people achieve their goals

that is the ultimate emotional bank account deposit

that is the best way to AB AB always be adding value

so the biggest piece of advice that I

can give to become a good connector

is to a

express genuine interest in others

and everyone you meet

so you're asking what are their goals

what skills and strengths do they have

or what are they looking to build

so you're kind of building this memory bank

of different things through your different contacts

and if you don't have a strong memory

find a way to document some of these

high level things that they share with you

so if I'm doing an in person meet up

I usually give both parties a heads up

okay I'd love for you to meet my friend Stacy

she lives in the same neighborhood as you

she's an executive assistant for so and so

and she might be able to use your travel business

when she books trips for her boss

and then I'll give Stacy the same heads up hey

Linda's a travel adviser um

she's a great contact for you

if someone takes this time to introduce

you to someone in their network

they're essentially vouching for you

they're putting their reputation on the line with you

so treating it with um respect

and continuously

find ways to be that person for others

that is gonna be a secret sauce

in your business development efforts

secret sauce in feeling comfortable

asking for help when you need it

and this web of connectivity is really the asset

that is it's something that's really hard to measure

because it's limitless opportunities for revenue

and growth and connection with others

so being a connector is one of the biggest tools in

our arsenal to really

establish ourselves as experts in our industry

experts in our space I think this is the um

the true like

feather

and the cap of a strong business development person

is the ability to connect others

I have had this

theme that keeps reappearing in my life lately

and it's all around my adolescence

and things that are just jarring

memories that I have not thought of in 10

20 or 30 years and it is

been really fascinating to see the parallels between

my interests and passions as a child

and how they're showing up in my career

and also

looking at the people who influenced me growing up

and how those values have translated into

the professional that I am today

I recently found a card box

and I barely remember doing this

but apparently

I saved every card from my First Communion

which I think happens around age 7

all the way up to my high school graduation

and I could not believe how organized little Sarah was

but going through this box of stuff

it took me hours to go through it all

just to read them

to decide which to keep and which to toss

there were some tears from

you know

letters from my grandparents who are no longer with us

but the reason why it was an interesting exercise is

it made me understand that some of

the things that make up who we are

as a person never change

and when we get into the workforce

if we can embrace them and harness them

and play to our strengths

that's when we start to see alchemy happen

and authenticity shine through

so in case you don't have a card box

spending all of your adolescence

I put together a couple of exercises for reflection

so question 1 is

what did you want to be when you grew up

and do any of those skills

translate into what you're doing now

second question

who were the main adults in your family

who influenced you what did they do for work

what did you learn from watching them

third question

who were the main teachers who influenced you

what were the subjects they taught

what was your relationship dynamic with them

why did you enjoy learning from them

fourth question who were your friends growing up

what type of activities did you do

what are some of the fun birthday parties you remember

or plays you put on fifth question

as you got older maybe junior

senior year of high school

what were the elective classes you chose to take

sixth question

what were the extracurricular activities you did

outside of school your parents

friends asked you what do you like to do for fun

what was your answer did you play sports

that taught you how to be a good team player

taking the time to remember

the things that shaped your adulthood

is absolutely worth it

because it's important to remember who you were before

who you were told to be so that's exercise 1

some self reflections on questions about growing up

the next exercise exercise 2

is something you can think about now

but if you were to receive cards from people today

I think what was interesting about this exercise is

I was reading these cards

and a lot of the same qualities

of my strengths were coming up in the cards

and if you take the time to think about this

and you develop kind of a list of strengths

and assets that you have that that people value

this is something

you're gonna have as a tool to look at

when you're feeling down

or if you're experiencing imposter syndrome

or if you're kicking yourself

for not getting something done

understanding these qualities about yourself

serves as a tool of resilience and positive momentum

and then our third and final exercise

it is one of my favorite things to do in a group

I usually do it with card stock

because people like to keep this when they're done

but

you put everyone's names on top of the piece of paper

and then you basically sit in a circle

and you pass your sheet to the right

and

you have about a minute to write something nice about

the person on that paper

and then at the end of the exercise

you receive this piece of paper

that is filled with the qualities

and compliments of what people think of you

especially when it comes to work

I think

it's time for us to start finding ways to get back to

expressing our care of others

in a more analogue or tangible way

I'm gonna share a story of a negotiation that I

was really thrusted into in my personal life

but there's about six really awesome takeaways

that came out of it

some I knew going into the situation

and some I had to learn along the way

but they really worked out

and I've now incorporated it

into my work and I think this is the epitome of

fake it till you make it especially negotiations

most negotiations are very uncomfortable

it's not something that comes very

naturally to most people they're nerve wracking

they're scary

I still get scared when I have to do big conversations

big negotiations

so it's something that most people don't like to do

so let me take you back to the year 2,010

I'm a fresh 23 year old Utah moving to Los Angeles

and I hit the Jackpot with my first apartment in LA

it was a neighborhood called Silver Lake

and the best part about this apartment was that

it was rent controlled

so if you're unfamiliar with the term rent controlled

it essentially means that certain jurisdiction

certain areas of a city

the landlord cannot increase the rent

more than a certain percentage

and over the nine years that I lived there

that neighborhood became pretty pop in very

very in demand so 2,019

my landlord notified us that

she was putting the building on the market

and I started cleaning out my closets

like I knew there was no way we'd be able to stay

and the building sold quite quickly

and then month 3

I got the phone call from my new landlord

so the first lesson is to really

you know you don't have to respond right away

and most of the time if you're

especially

if you're getting hit with something that you're not

expecting it's okay

to ask your client

the other person whoever you're in conversation with

it's okay to take a beat

I asked my neighbors I said you guys

I work in commercial construction

I deal with contractors all the time

are you comfortable if I negotiate on our behalf

and they agreed and that leads me to my second lesson

and I actually think this was one of the biggest

tools in my tool belt that I had

and I think a lot of us have

but we don't always recognize that

it is a position of power

so the second lesson is recognize your power

I knew this landlord underestimated me

and I knew that we were in a position of power

because he needed us to leave

so that he could make his money

and this brings me to Lesson 3

which is be prepared

I did not put a ton of time into this

but I did write out a script

it fit on one page of what I wanted to say

I had talking points

I had facts Lesson 4 is remove distractions

I had turned off all my notifications

I I had two phones at the time

I fully turned off my second phone

because I wanted to focus on this call

this is the most important thing to me at that moment

so I call the landlord and I go into my script

that brings us to lesson 5

I had a base number prepared of where I wanted to land

I knew he was not going to agree to $35,000

I intentionally asked for a number

higher than what I was expecting

so that I had somewhere to go if he said no

and it worked out perfectly

so the last and final lesson I wanna leave us with is

when you have to have difficult conversations

like these where you have to call someone

that you're just really uncomfortable

or you're dreading calling

I always like to have plan

a little something to look forward to afterwards

be confident

know your value and try to have fun with it

because you never know

you might get 25 k and get to move to the beach

we talk about leadership concepts

frequently on this show

but I wanna get into what it means to be a leader

without a title

and influencing from any position you're in

at whatever stage you're at in your career

leadership is not about the position you hold

it's about how you act and influence others

ideally for growth and forward positive momentum

in today's fast paced environment

companies need individuals at all levels

especially at the individual contributor level

who can take charge inspire others and drive results

the ability to lead regardless of your title

set you a partner field it

boost your career prospects

and ultimately

contributes to your organization success

and the core message I want you to take away from today

is that leadership is about influence and behavior

it's not about your title

first we need to take initiative and solve problems

leaders do not wait for others to tell them what to do

they see what needs to be done and they do it

if you notice inefficiencies in the sales process

design and propose a new workflow

that might be able to streamline

your intern operations

if your prospecting efforts aren't working

try something new adjust your tactics

when we're facing a challenging market

victim and whiners aren't leaders

people who solve problems are

and so if you're

giving feedback about a process that isn't working

don't just complain about it not working

come prepared with ideas or how to fix it

our second point here is to communicate effectively

and inspire others

great leaders are great communicators

they articulate ideas clearly

they are good listeners

and they know how to motivate others

so practice being concise

persuasive and empathetic in your communications

the third thing that we need to be

good at is the ability to build a

nurture relationships

your leadership is fundamentally about working with

people so if you can focus on building strong

trust based relationships with colleagues

clients and partners

that's going to be always worth your time investment

and the key here is to really go beyond transactional

interactions

we have to show genuine interest in other success

and then the fourth piece here

is to continuously learn and adapt

the best leaders are always learning and evolving

they know that they're never done

they've never reached you know

their destination they're not ever there

because they know it's an evolving process

true leaders know they're never going to be perfect

continuous improvement in

all areas of our life is really what differentiates

people who impact others

and those who stay stagnant

and so just to wrap up our key takeaways here

leadership is about behavior and influence not titles

take initiative to identify problems

and propose solutions

as opposed to accepting the status quo

hone your communication skills

to inspire and motivate others

build meaningful relationships that go beyond

transaction has to be genuine

and then

commit to continuous learning and adaptability

I am really excited about today's episode

because it covers something that

is very important to me

and I think my my personal success

it's what I teach in my workshops

but it's really what differentiates

I think top performers versus

you know

run of the Bill sales and marketing individuals

and it's really this concept of selling value

over features

and really how in a business to business environment

how to turn our product or service into a profit center

for our clients in a nutshell

one of the biggest ways that we

can stand up from our competition

in a b to B sales environment

is to establish ourselves as a consultative seller

and that's by really demonstrating how our product

or our service adds value to their business

so when we start to frame our presentations this way

it also naturally takes on a storytelling approach

which makes it easier for people to a

say yes to our meetings

b remember what we're talking about and then c

sell it on our behalf when we're not in the room

when you listen to these three sections

we're gonna break down here

I want you to

think about how it applies to your product

your service your business in whatever role you have

so in this example we're selling a fire pit

and I'm gonna give you the product features first

then I'm gonna give you a business to business model

example a business to consumer example

so we're gonna

start with this beautiful fire pit that we're selling

and this fire pit is made of a weatherproof material

it's made out of concrete

so it's a really beautiful architectural design

it's available in a black or a stone finish

it can burn propane natural gas or bioethanol

which is an alcohol based fuel

the heat output ranges from 18,000 to 26,000 Btus

you can use lava rock or fireglass

there's an optional windscreen

if you have a little kids or if you're concerned about

um liability or if you're in a high wind area

it's you well rated for code compliance

at the beginning the product doesn't matter

and if we can shift this to how it's going to

impact their business or their lives first

then everything else in

the sales cycle becomes much more seamless

so

here are two examples of how we can sell this fire pit

and I'm gonna use a couple of product facts here

but I'm gonna weave them into a business model

conversation in a B to be environment

we're gonna be selling this fire pit to a hotel

hey Mr Hotel owner

this fire pit is going to make you money

because it's a marketable amenity feature

you're gonna be able to advertise it on your website

so when people are deciding between

you and a competitive property

they're gonna see hey

this property has fire pits

in a BDC environment

let's say we're selling this fire pit to a homeowner

hey Mr and Mrs Smith

when we first connected

you mention that you're revamping your backyard patio

to truly differentiate yourself from your competitors

you need to start thinking in this lens

how is it impacting their business

how is it impacting their lives

so here are four steps to help you identify

how to lead with this mindset

so step 1 I recommend you just brain dump

everything you can think of around

your product or your service

step 2 is to identify all of the stakeholders

think about all of the different people

who will be interacting with your product

or your service what are their roles

and then step 3 ask yourself

or if you don't know these answers

maybe ask your client or your end user

these questions but start to think of motivations

or business specifics

for their specific business

and jot down for each of the stakeholders

and so then

now we have our three different lists going

we're gonna start to match up the features

and benefits

and how they impact which stakeholder and why

in the end you may have many lists so to summarize

focus your conversations on how your product

makes your client money or saves your client money

how does it positively impact their business

or their lives this comes first

product comes second

and then the four tips to start doing this are

brain dump everything identify the stakeholders

reflect and understand their clients

business or their life motivations and forth

match up those value

messaging to the appropriate stakeholders

and then start to shift your conversations accordingly

today we're talking about the four legged

or six legged or eight legged sales call

this is where two or more people

team up to present to a client or prospect together

hence the leg count but here's the thing

multi

person sales calls can either be massive successes

or a tangled mess and the difference is preparation

and that's exactly what we're breaking down today

how to prepare for a meeting

or more than one salesperson is presenting

we're gonna make it into seven tips on the multiperson

sales call hero

but the first tip is to clarify roles

so to really get an understanding of who's doing what

in the meeting so think about it this way

if everyone speaking over each other

or they're trying to make the same points

you lose focus you lose coherence

it looks like you have two quarterbacks on the field

at the same time

it's really key to play to each other's strengths

so in my past experience I am not an engineer

and often times

if I knew there was gonna be very technical questions

I would bring in my technical colleague

and then I would almost view my role as the translator

between the technical person

and my client and their projects and their priorities

preparation

here is making sure everyone knows their lane

and if it doesn't make sense

to have a certain teammate in the meeting

it is appropriate to ask them to step down

tip No. 2 is to plan ahead coordination

once you understand your roles

it's time to sink up on the details

this may sound simple but the pre meaning alignment

is crucial to making sure that everything flows

smoothly

and that you show that you have your act together

that really leads us to tip 3

is when we're putting together our agenda

what is the actual goal coming out of it

so tip 3 is to be very intentional

that won't surprise anyone if you listen to this show

we must be intentional on the goal that we are

collectively as a team

working towards tip 4 is that we are allowed

to share our roles and the agenda with our client

so when you hop on a call

and there's four teammates and one customer

I suggest doing a quick round of introductions

tip No. 5 now that we have a plan

we have alignment communication during the meeting with

our colleagues is helpful

so the goal is to really just avoid fumbling

and make it seem like your lines throughout

tip No. 6

sometimes your co presenters are actually your clients

or your prospects so

it's the same structure as everything that we laid out

maybe it's us rehearsed or practice

because they're not an internal teammate

but our job is to make

the person who set up that meeting

look good and then

the seventh and final tip is

to follow up appropriately

and following the meeting

you know what's next it's the follow up

if you follow these steps

you'll be well on your way to executing a flawless

multi person sales presentation

and ideally we're leaving our clients impressed

and or ready to move forward

they were diving into a crucial topic

for anyone in sales or business

and then is the art of walking away from a sale

now I know what you're thinking

wait a minute

isn't the goal to close deals not walk away from them

well yes

but by the end of this episode

you'll understand why sometimes

the most powerful move you can make is to walk away

first and foremost it

really comes down to maintaining your integrity

and your reputation both for you as the salesperson

but also for the organization which you represent

in the long run

these are far more important than any single sale

walking away also helps you avoid bad deals

problematic clients and these things can really

sometimes cost you more than what they're worth

it can strengthen your negotiating position

by showing that you're not desperate for the sale

and perhaps most importantly

it demonstrates confidence in your product or service

and you're demonstrating that

you're a consultative resource

for your client even if it means saying

my product isn't a fit for you right now

for this opportunity

if the client is making unreasonable demands

you're not maybe gonna be an appropriate partner

uh there's a misalignment of values or expectations

your reputation and brand can take a hit

you might find yourself stressed out

and heading for burnout uh

it may result in financial losses

from unprofitable deals

potential legal or ethical complications

and then there's the opportunity cost

to the time and resources you waste on a bad deal

that could have been spent on better opportunities

so now you've decided to walk away

how do we do it without burning bridges

communicate clearly what your reasons are

and be honest and tactful

definitely leave the door open for future opportunities

you never know what might change down the road

of course always were respectful

or maintaining a professional tone

and then if possible

we're gonna talk about this a little bit more

at the end offer alternative resources or referrals

so this shows you still wanna help

even if you can't be the one to do it

so the ability to walk away demonstrates our expertise

it builds trust with our clients

and it leaves the door open for larger

bigger next opportunities

if I had pushed that sail through

I don't think

the end user would have been happy with the final

product which makes the architect look bad

which makes our relationship not functional

if you know of a solution

I would recommend offering it

even if it's potentially vendoragnostic

but maybe just pointing your client in a direction

that they can resource on their own

by giving them the right lingo and potential to

how they can execute that

so to wrap this up

walking away from a sale is not about giving up

it's about knowing your worth

protecting your business

and sometimes it's about playing the long game

every time you say no to an opportunity

you're making space for the right one to come along

and you're doing this with integrity

and protecting your reputation

which is our most valuable asset in business

today we're diving into a crucial topic

handling negative feedback at work

and turning it into an opportunity for growth

and this is challenging we have all been there

one day you're called into your boss's office

or colleague pulls you aside

and suddenly you're faced with criticism

or constructive criticism about your work

and it's easy to feel defensive or discourage

when we have this happen to us

but how we handle the speed back

can make a significant difference in

our professional growth and our career trajectory

and the first tip is to just

when you're pulled aside

and you realize what's happening

take a breath and listen

we can just be quiet and listen

and when we

start to receive something that feels negative

our first instinct might be to interrupt

or defend ourselves or just shut down

so instead

I encourage you to just take a breath and truly listen

and allow the person to finish their thoughts

without interruption this not only shows respect

but also ensures that

you're fully understanding their perspective

and tip No. 2 is seek clarity

once they finished with their feedback

try to ask for specific examples or clarification

if you are unclear so you might say something like

can you give me an example of what types of details

you may have expected to see

or could you please elaborate what you mean by that

this helps you

understand their perspective more thoroughly

it shows that you're taking it seriously

and it also puts the honest back on them a little bit

to be clear about where the feedback's coming from

why did they feel the need to to share it with you

I think as a general rule it's from a good place

and that leads us to tip No. 3

which is separate emotion from fact

it is very natural to feel

emotional when receiving criticism

I have definitely been there

I empathize wholeheartedly

I still have to remind myself of all of these tips

but if

you

try to separate your feelings from the actual feedback

and look at the situation objectively

is there truth in what they're saying

even if their delivery wasn't perfect

is there something valuable you can learn

and so that helps us really make a plan

um understand what our next steps are

on how to take this feedback

and turn it into something productive

and so really

do your best to separate the emotions from the facts

the fourth tip is express gratitude

and this may sound counterintuitive

but thanking the person for their feedback

can really go a long way

it demonstrates maturity and willingness to grow

and it could be something as simple as

I appreciate you taking the time to share this with me

your perspective is valuable

then tip No. 5 so you've received the feedback

let's develop an action plan

once you really processed it and sit with it

think about how you can use this constructively

and then develop a plan to address the issues raised

so this might involve setting new goals

changing certain behaviors

acquiring new skills and if this is necessary

you might wanna share your plan with your boss to show

them that you're committed to improvement

and then tip No. 6 follow up

so after some time has passed

don't be afraid to circle back with the person

who gave you the feedback

and really share the changes you made

and ask for their thoughts

this shows initiative and a genuine desire to grow

and remember

while negative feedback is sometimes difficult to hear

it's often a gift in disguise

it

provides us with an opportunity to see our blind spots

and improve in ways we

might not have considered on our own

and the key is to approach feedback

especially if it's coming from left field

with an open mind and a growth mindset

one thing that I think most of us do

myself included

is we compare ourselves to other people's timelines

or we compare ourselves to where we think we should be

on our own timeline so

the first lesson we're gonna cover on this episode is

to respect the season you're in

when I started my business

um I had this image of really what success looks like

and I thought I needed to hit six figures in year one

I had you know

all these people I wanted to hire

you know maybe contractors at first

but how would I scale

I was comparing myself to the energy of entrepreneurs

who have been in business for a lot longer than I have

or in industries where it's a really clear need

that they were feeling so

the

moment that I started respecting my own season of life

and where I was everything changed

I stopped beating myself up

for not matching someone else's output

or income levels I stopped um

really being down on myself

and instead I would ask myself

what's realistic and sustainable for me right now

and this season and when you think about seasons

the best part about them is they are not permanent

when you're going through something that's hard

or challenging this is where true growth happens

because you become more resilient

winter is where you learn to hunt

it's where you become strong

and it's where you cultivate your growth mindset

which makes fear of the unknown less scary

because you know

you're gonna come out on the other side stronger

which leads us to Lesson 2

embrace the unknown so

you just really never know where things are gonna lead

unless you take the steps into the unknown

and it can still be scary

but if you come at it from a mindset of

embracing the unknown versus fearing the unknown

that little reframe from fear to embrace

is going to create some massive ships

here's my favorite way to think about it

the future you know

tomorrow and beyond is like the dark night right

it's dark you can't see where you're going

but luckily you have a flashlight

and this flashlight represents belief in yourself

it represents your support system

it represents everything you've Learned

up until this point you have these great resources

all within this flashlight

and as you're looking into the darkness

the only way that path is gonna reveal itself

is if you just start walking forward

you need to always remind yourself

that even the most successful people you admire

started out with just a flashlight

and a willingness to take that first step into

the darkness and the only way you

ever come out of a season of winter

and into spring is to keep moving forward

today we're diving into

two lessons

that have absolutely transformed my business

and that is the power of networking

and the art of asking for help

one of the greatest joys of my professional journey

has been networking

and you know this ability to connect with other people

build relationships and create meaningful relationship

and the ability to network

whether it's in person or virtual

has really been the single

greatest driver of growth in my business

and I'm not just talking about revenue growth

I'm talking about opportunities collaborations

friendships

the type of support system that keeps you going

during seasons of winter networking

at its core

is not shaking hands or getting business cards

or connecting with people on LinkedIn

it's about building genuine relationships

so you're able to ask people for help

and in return they're able to ask you for help

and the way you do this is to consistently

show up in spaces where your people gather

quick example here I travel a lot for my business

because I truly prioritize in value

face to face interactions

I think that that's where business works best

and a main way to do this is to go to Trader Joe's

in the industries that I want to work in

and where my clients are going to be

and where the people I want to work with

are going to be

and where my past and future network is built

networking in person is really

planting the seeds for future success

and and giving you the opportunity to

deposit emotional bank accounts into your network

something I do consistently

and it's been very fruitful

and I don't always see other people doing it

so I wanna make sure I mention it

is that there's a lot of networking happening online

too so watching LinkedIn live events

just showing up for someone's LinkedIn Live

is such a big emotional bank account deposit

and most of these

people have some significant followings

they're putting out great content

showing up for them and making comments on them

you have no idea how far that will go

and how you're gonna start to be noticed online

the second thing you need to think about is

who knows you who likes you

and who trust you enough jerk a menu to others

and so when you're investing in networking efforts

it's because ideally

you're gonna be able to get that back

in a future state and you have to do it with sincerity

asking for help

and accepting help is not a sign of weakness

it's actually a superpower

and the reason that networking is a non

negotiable for me is that it collapses time

if I am confronted by something

that I've never done before

and when you're building a business

or starting something new

it's pretty much everyday

all day you're

getting hit with stuff that you've never done before

you get really good at asking for help

no one is self made

every successful person has had help along the way

and ideally they feel confident in asking for it

so do not

assume that other people are doing this

all by themselves they are not

they are asking for help and so

what I've really Learned about asking for help

is that it shows wisdom not weakness

it creates opportunities for collaboration

it allows others to showcase their expertise

it builds stronger relationships

it helps us practice active listening

and then it also models behavior

that helps other people feel safe

and asking for help too

there is an art to asking for and accepting help

effectively

you wanna be specific about what you need

respect people's time and expertise

show genuine appreciation

be willing to reciprocate

and then ideally

actually implement the help you receive

the other part about asking for help is that sometimes

people will proactively offer to help you

and if you want their help

say yes and jump on it

so when you are asking for help

you're not just receiving support

you're giving someone

the opportunity to share their knowledge

and expertise

this web of connectivity is really what's going to

collapse time

make you stronger make you more of a resource

for the people in your network

and then it overall

um just helps us grow as professionals

which is something I think everyone's driving to

especially people who listen to podcast

the first thing I wanna cover

and this is someone I've Learned pretty recently

is that the seed you plant

almost always come back to harvest

in one way or another so every action you take

no matter how small it is

has the potential to yield results

and it's really easy to get discouraged

when you put time and money

and effort and risk into something

and you don't see the results

or they don't turn out as expected

your future self is gonna

thank you for those seeds that you're planting today

and then

the second thing we're gonna cover for this episode

goes hand in hand with planting seeds

and it's really looking at every mistake

as an opportunity to learn

and if you're not making mistakes

you're probably not stretching yourself hard enough

and this is really weird

true growth happens is in this time of discomfort

I make mistakes all the time

literally at least once a day

some are big some are small

but the ability

to reframe a mistake as an opportunity to grow

and almost sometimes have

like a sense of humor about it

this is where real resilience is built

and I will tell you

it's a much more peaceful way to live and operate

both in life and business

once you start making mistakes

and you realize that

you can really work through anything

and figure things out because you've done it before

maybe not that particular situation

but you've done problem solving

you've gotten through things

it becomes really easy to embrace the unknown

because you have enough data points to know that

you were able to use your resources

to work through it and learn from every mistake

this simple practice is pretty transformative

it's never losing if you're learning

and then every failure and quotes is just feedback

and it's guiding you towards better decisions

and better strategies in the future

so the final two lessons I wanna share are

fitting with our Thanksgiving holiday

and those are fine

time to rest and then practicing gratitude

you know it's really easy to fall into the trap of

constant hustle especially during the holidays

especially during times of overwhelm

um it is

there's a lot coming at us all the time

all the time and so

this particular concept of taking the time to rest

if we don't do this it almost works against us

and it's kind of productive

because when you start to rest

this is where your brain consolidates information

your body has the opportunity to repair itself

ideally creativity flourishes

cause you free up some space

for new ideas to come into your brain

and without resting you risk burnout

decreased productivity and even health issues

and so if you're not looking at rest as like a luxury

or being lazy or selfish but if

you start looking at it as a

really crucial part of your success strategy

because that's where ideas are gonna flow

you're keeping your body healthy and so on

if it's part of your success strategy

and we're more intentional about it

I have Learned to not view rest as a luxury or um

a way of avoiding something

or being lazy or being selfish

if you have you know other people depending on you

sometimes

it can be hard to take that rest without guilt

but if you reframe this as

taking the rest

is allowing space for new ideas to come in

and to disseminate

all of the information that's been bombarding you

then if

you can look at it as a part of your success strategy

and be very intentional about your rest

and your recharging

then it becomes a lot easier to take that rest

guilt free

so the last lesson we're gonna cover of course

is the power of gratitude

and this is one of the most transformative

and as we approach Thanksgiving

it's the perfect time to reflect on this practice

and really how it can change your life

and this is not new information for most of you

practicing gratitude is backed by science

and improves mental health

it boosts happiness it enhances our physical well being

often times do you make a mistake

if you didn't close the deal

what can you learn from it

what can you be thankful for

the takeaway or the lesson

and then move on and in course correct for next time

something lately that I've been noticing is that

when something doesn't go the way

I thought it would

it either comes back to fruition

you know six months later

gratitude helps me appreciate each milestone

no matter how big or small

it allows me to buy balloons for myself

to celebrate the 100th episode

because I wanna celebrate these wins

and be grateful for

the incredible support system that I have

so from my clients my listeners

my team my family

my friends it is um

nice to pause and look at all of the good in our lives

so to wrap up our episode

we are letting ourselves rest and recharge

we're doing it guilt free

because it's part of our continued growth

and evolution and strategic planning for ourselves

and we're embodying gratitude all along the way