EFFORT is the New Capital!

Make the effort to go ‘old school’ to truly connect and stand out today

In a world driven and infected with technology, we’ve all become reliant on getting things done with merely a press of a couple of buttons. Anything remotely involving us doing something a little extra, is too much effort. We’ve collectively become lazy.

If it’s not easy, I’m not doing it!

We order food in, negating the opportunity to meet up with friends and have nourishing conversations. We text instead of picking up the phone to call. We hardly meet friends, family and clients in person…”it’s just too much trouble.”

We don’t talk anymore (you can sing it!) because it takes too much. Texting is easier. I get to disengage and still ‘connect’, so we think. We don't want to turn our videos on in a virtual meeting... I have to get dressed,,, and yet we want to make an impact.

We have become transactional. The world has taught us to merely focus on efficiency- just get it done. We send 10 emails before lunch and we feel accomplished! But no one has replied!? It's like we've spoken 10 times and nobody has spoken back to us, and yet we feel accomplished. We’ve pushed aside the how we get it done.

BUT what this has created is a world of opportunity for those of us who are willing to make the effort to truly connect! You can stand out and be more effective by merely by doing a little extra.

Here are 5 things you can do to truly connect and build relationships with friends, family and clients

1. Meet in Person- Have conversations

Make the effort to meet for a drink or meal. It's a great space for nourishing conversations. You get to sense verbal and non verbal cues. If you're in a sales role, let your first option be to meet the prospect or client, face to face. You have a better chance of making an impression and impact. The connection is faster and more meaningful in person.

2. Call, don’t text or email

We've all trained our fingers to do the talking! We tend to text, rather than pick up the phone to call. For crying out loud, we even text our family members in the next room because walking is just too much! Imagine there's a fire at home, we would probably send a message in CAPS with a burning emoji to the family chat group!! We don't even have to dial numbers today. At a press of a button, we can reach the other person. Take this challenge after you read this. The next text to a friend or client, switch it to a call. It will make a genuine difference. Do it!

3. Do your research beforehand

"Be Interested to be Interesting." If you're meeting someone in the corporate space, it's only professional if you find out about the person or company before you meet them. It creates a very good first impression. In fact, the other person feels valued and will be more open to your suggestions and ideas.

4. Buy a Gift

It's just the right and nice thing to do when you have a little gift for the other person. Our parents have always told us not to go to someone's house, empty handed...they were right! It can be a box of cookies or a cake. It immediately connects with the other person. It's a simple act of thoughtfulness that leads to a little spark of joy. It's always totally worth the effort.

5. Write notes and notice the little things

Make the effort to write things down. Many of us today may attend meetings without a notebook.

Imagine a client talking to you and you think you can remember everything they say. Yes, you will remember the things that are important to you, possibly. But when you write things down, you capture things that are important to them.

Make the effort to also remember the names of people and their loved ones. You can always store it in your 'Notes' page. Practise active recall by repeating the names to yourself throughout the day, When you use their names, the next time you meet, you make an immediate connection. It's a little thing but one that is extremely powerful.

Make the effort to truly connect today. The other person will always value the ‘trouble’ you took. They feel a sense of gratitude and perhaps even a need to reciprocate.

As the world becomes lazier, you have the opportunity to step up and make a genuine impact. It just takes a little effort.