Spring: Seasons in Business

Welcome to another season in your business. Today I’ll be talking about spring!

Each of these seasons allows us to develop a different aspect of our business and provide a healthy balance. While living in, for example, winter may be cozy and comfy spent in front of a roaring fireplace, if our business is always in that season, we’d find other areas lacking.

What does Spring look like in your business?

Our time for sowing! A time for lead generation, making new contacts, and networking. This is the time to plant seeds to nurture that will grow and blossom into something beautiful down the road. This is also a time for personal sowing…so don’t forget yourself in the mix!

Some Spring season business activities

Social media - Sure you can use social media, but don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Believe it or not, many large, successful businesses have grown waaaaay before the advent of social media. But that is a good place to meet people and build acquaintances.

(Please note: if you spend most of your time on social media, it means you are living in spring. And that is really dangerous. Scrolling, trolling, and leaving shallow comments mean that you’re not building relationships and moving them forward.)

Developing strategic relationships - COI/Centers of Influence - These could be lawyers, bankers, bookkeepers, realtors, business coaches, or influencers, depending on what your business niche is. Talk to them and see how you can help each other build both of your businesses!

Traditional networking - And if you’re not into going to events, why not introduce yourself to one or two entrepreneurs, and invite them out for coffee? Encourage them to bring along a colleague and set the tone yourself!

• Spring is about adding value to other people’s lives.

• Spring is about going beside someone to encourage and inspire.

• Spring is about being a bridge to two other business owners and helping to grow a community.

Be a resource - Put together a webinar or short online Q&A or AMA, and invite other people who might need or want the information. You’ll be adding value to others and widening your circle of influence at the same time.

What happens if you spend too much time in Spring?

You might guess it - you’ll get overwhelmed with all these new contacts, but you might not make any more money!

Make sure spring is portioned out in your week, but don’t overdo it! I spend my spring during non-client days, because on those days I’m focusing my energy and attention on clients I already have. Consider scheduling your spring earlier in the week and earlier in the day, when people are more open to new relationships.

What happens if you ignore Spring?

If you’re frustrated that you don’t know anyone or have met anybody new, perhaps you need to spend a bit more time in this season. Remember, by focusing on adding value to others, it can really be fun, and you’ll find that your network grows almost without you realizing it.

Your next step - a take-home challenge!

Inventory time:

• Think about how much time you’re spending in spring.

• Are you seeing any benefits?

• If not, think about your past five clients. How did you find them? Well, then repeat whatever you did and see what happens!

Finally, take a 20-minute break and just breathe and rest. Remember, you can do all this personal development, but if you don’t make space to implement it…it’s all for nothing.

So take time to rest, because, as we know…good rest fuels great work!