Web Weaving

In business it is imperative that we weave webs. That we connect the dots between communities, individuals, associates, competitors, friends, and family, and really anyone else that is in our own personal storyline.

It has ALWAYS been my belief that we can absolutely without a doubt discover hidden connections to just about any stranger that you may meet in your journey. It’s like a call back to the old “Degrees Of Kevin Bacon” game, where the idea is to connect any random actor to Kevin Bacon in the least amount of moves possible. Sound familiar? If so, you know what I mean. If not, give it a Google, and there will certainly be a more thorough description of how the game is played. The point of this is this: Be a center point. Be a point where all other stands of the web are strung from and connected to.

So many times I have met a stranger and after talking, discovered that we have a common friend, or have been to the same concert, etc. This falls under the category of synchronicity, but it IS still networking at its core.

A web is only as strong as its structural integrity.

When a spider builds a web, it is a miraculous, and masterful thing to witness. The way the spider can manage to keep mathematical precision and flawless symmetry perfectly in balance. It’s just totally awe inspiring.

As people, and as professionals, we take a lesson from our friends the arachnids. I’m sorry to skeeve out our readers that have a little bit of an aversion or phobia to our 8 legged friends. But really, the lessons we can learn from them are priceless. Patience, focus, meditative flow.. These are all things a spider demonstrates.

Be like the spider. Mind your connection points.

It’s All In The Details

When meeting a lot of new people it can be tricky to remember names, faces, occupations and such, so there are several ways to ensure a more prepared approach (for follow up meetings primarily). Little tricks like mnemonic devices and word association exercises can make it easy to recall the details of each interaction, and in doing so, making the person on the other side of the conversation feel important and seen.

Come up with rhymes; they almost never fail.

Keep a book or database of all the details you observe in others, then crunch that data.

It’s really all in the details. Having an acute understanding of the “web”’s stability is tied to how well you know your webbing. It’s tied to the strength of the final creation and how well it will present AND function.

Metaphorically speaking;

How many strands are in your web? How much and how well do you know about each strand?

You have to make it your business to know these answers, or at least if you desire to have a strong web, you will WANT to know these answers.

It’s Not Just The Names And Faces.. It’s Also About The Ideas

Web weaving is not just about working with human resources - people - it’s also about tying together ideas, concepts, and visions. All of these can be strung together in a web just as intricate as one of person to person connections.

The complex beauty happens when the people connection web intertwines with the idea connection web. That’s when the magick really starts to happen..This is how it is for me, at least. I love nothing more than matching people with people, or people to opportunities, or people to resources.. Any combination really that yields a new strand connection expanding the web’s depth and complexity. I absolutely love seeing it all come together.

Have you looked at your people, resources, and opportunities and tried to match them with each other?

If not, then it’s worth trying as a practice. There is a certain feeling that comes about when you find yourself at the center of the web. Personally, I enjoy that feeling. I feel like it’s the best seat in the house to witness the coming together of all the things. That in itself, makes the task of connection everything together totally worth the time and energy it takes. If you are smart in business, you can utilize this skill to generate a profit. Being a Go-Between can pay off big time, especially when you do it for individuals or organizations that seek out such key-connection-people. Car salesmen make a great example. Carsalesman often will offer kickbacks for referrals. In my own business, I reward referrals with discounts, free session time, and sometimes just plain old cash percentage. Payment motivates people, so it’s an effective way to get all of the “spiders” spinning at once. And again, a clever businessperson can turn this practice into a profitable endeavor.

The Itsy Bitsy Spider Went Up The Water Spout…

… And He handed Out Business Cards To All The Other Spiders…

It’s important to ask for and offer business materials such as fliers, cards, promo cards.. Anything you can have on hand. And always aim to have a stash with you. You can leave them on random community bulletin boards you encounter. They can be given to strangers, or left on the counter tops of high traffic stores. It’s a great way to get your info circulating, and it’s easy. Granted that some folks have to contend with their own feelings about 1. Using excessive paper promotional materials if they are Eco-Conscience or 2. They don't have the social skills to effectively engage in this practice, and therefore avoid it and 3. They simply can’t afford it or have the resources and connections to make it happen. Those are really the only reason I can imagine an up-and-coming business owner NOT going out and self promoting every single day. Get out there and make the connections if you are lacking or needing new strands. This can be done on the internet too, by the way, It’s not something that can only be done in person, not at all, actually. It just requires the effort and drive to make it happen. I have made countless connections online , and I’ve made countless connections in the real world. I find strength and power in doing both. Like Nike says, Just Do It. If you make a habit out of sharing info, names, opportunities, connections and all of those other resources, then it is only a matter of time before you become known for it. People LOVE referrals most often than not, it saves advertising and promotion expenses, and it hones a craft clientele that are all IN-Network so to speak. Friends that share with friends, family that shares with family. Family that shares with friends. And that only covers the friends and family aspect.

The Rule Of 3

There is a basic belief and practice in business and it has several names, but some call it the Rule Of 3. The Rule Of 3 states that each person knows at least 3 other people. Say, for example; a friend, a relative, and a co-worker. They are likely to have fairly open and common exchange with these people and so they share their likes, dislikes, their experiences, be they positive or negative.. And those conversations leave impressions. Each of those 3 people are also likely to know 3 people with whom they will have the same kind of open interchange with, and so the web spreads out.. So really, in a way to immediately measure the short term expansion as a result of the Rule Of 3 look at it like this: 3 people each know 3 people and those 3 people know 3 people… if we stop right there, then we can see that the original 3 people have branched off into a web of 40 people.. And that’s just 3 degrees of expansion. Imagine the possibilities..

In Closing

I hope you learned a little bit about web weaving as a result of this blog. I went a little deeper into this topic because I have a lot to say and a lot of experience to share. This is a very important topic, and it deserves a fair amount of focus and exploration, so that is what I’ve sought to accomplish here.

Thanks for reading, and be sure to get out there and CONNECT.. Weave those webs.

Who knows, if you do a good enough job maybe I’ll hear about you through the grapevine someday.. Or maybe you will hear about me.. There’s only one way to manifest such a result, and I think by now you know what I wi;l say...

Till then. Happy trails.