Networking is a deliberately vague term that has many applications. It is all about referals and how to get them. One might be networking in your chosen field of business. For me, that means sharing booth space at expensive shows with other readers and healers so that we can all become more profitable. We also give each other a heads up when a new show is opening or words of caution when another one does not have a good track record. So that manner of networking is very direct. You get useful information from people in the same business and share resources to help each other succeed. Plus, you can refer people to each other. For example, I am not an astrologer or a massage therapist, but I know astrologers and massage therapists if one of my clients requests that kind of service.
Another way of networking is to exchange information and ideas with people in a variety of businesses different than your own. This is a less direct method of referrals, so it may take longer to yield results. For example, someone who is a caterer may not use your services that often herself, but she may know others who are interested. On the other hand, most entrepreneurs could use the assistance of an accountant or book keeper and you could refer leads to them. And perhaps you do not have a dog, but at a networking meeting you met someone who takes care of dogs. So then when you have a friend who needs someone to take care of their dog, you know who to refer them to.
This is a helpful, friendly way to do things, but as an entrepreneur, you also need the kinds of leads that will mature into sales faster than that. After all, who knows how frequently someone will ask you if you know of an accountant or dog sitter?
Generally, trying to be helpful to other people is a good way to set positive energy in motion for yourself.
By far the best networking is through your previous customers. People who have enjoyed and appreciated your work are in position to refer new customers to you who will, of course, be requesting an appointment for the very service or product you are selling.
A combination of all of the above is necessary. Keep your momentum going and eventually leads and clients will come from all of these directions. If you are trying to start your own business or grow your business, you always have to keep looking for new ideas. Networking is a good way to go.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Networking
For some of us, meeting new people is an easy task. Drop us into a room full of people and we have no problem striking up a conversation. Others of us are shy by nature and would rather be home working on their computers rather than mixing and mingling.
Networking is a very loosey-goosey concept. Essentially, you figure some of the people you meet will refer some business to you. It's sort of a cousin of getting referrals from customers, except that some networking contacts are not customers. Maybe they are just people you liked when you met and you keep their business card in your file, then one day, what they do happens to be just what you need. Or what someone you know needs.
Sometimes it may take a while before you see any results from gong to networking meetings and trading business cards. So you make note of where new business comes from and keep in mind where the contact came from. There are lots of networking groups and your experience will let you know which ones are worth continuing with and which are not.
With things like online directories, they all help, but that is where it differs from in person events. At some in person events, you may or may not ever get a bit of business from them, but it always costs something to participate. With some online directory listings, once you are on them they stay out there all year, until you renew. And, of course, there are some things that are out there on the Internet that seem to stay there forever.
When people google your name or your business name, the fact that you are included on a lot of sites, even ones that never generate any business for you, all helps your name float to the top in the search engines.
I always make it a point to ask people who call me how they chose to call me. If they are not a friend of someone I have worked with before, they will mention the name of a website where they found me.
Networking is a part of the strategy for success for any entrepreneur. How you use it, and the most productive ways to use it are things we all discover by trial and error.
Networking is a very loosey-goosey concept. Essentially, you figure some of the people you meet will refer some business to you. It's sort of a cousin of getting referrals from customers, except that some networking contacts are not customers. Maybe they are just people you liked when you met and you keep their business card in your file, then one day, what they do happens to be just what you need. Or what someone you know needs.
Sometimes it may take a while before you see any results from gong to networking meetings and trading business cards. So you make note of where new business comes from and keep in mind where the contact came from. There are lots of networking groups and your experience will let you know which ones are worth continuing with and which are not.
With things like online directories, they all help, but that is where it differs from in person events. At some in person events, you may or may not ever get a bit of business from them, but it always costs something to participate. With some online directory listings, once you are on them they stay out there all year, until you renew. And, of course, there are some things that are out there on the Internet that seem to stay there forever.
When people google your name or your business name, the fact that you are included on a lot of sites, even ones that never generate any business for you, all helps your name float to the top in the search engines.
I always make it a point to ask people who call me how they chose to call me. If they are not a friend of someone I have worked with before, they will mention the name of a website where they found me.
Networking is a part of the strategy for success for any entrepreneur. How you use it, and the most productive ways to use it are things we all discover by trial and error.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Dreams of Dreams
Are our dreams within our reach or are they really farther removed than that? Why is it that when we wake up in the midst of an awesome dream, we lay for a moment savoring the parts we remember?
While still in the thrall of a dream, we can see all the beautiful developments, and then we tell ourselves that it is not real, it is only a dream. Yet, there are ways to make dreams real.
What has been the energy of the other world in our mind is simply what we are stirring up before they have materialized in our daily life. In the in between dream state, we sense that we can reach out and touch the others in our dream. We sometimes find ourselves riding around town or to a little place in the country, along the beach, into the woods or up a mountain road to a place where we just came to enjoy the sensations. And in time we feel those vibrations and discover that some of the clothes from our dream fit real nice and some of the things we thought about doing are now what we are doing.
So as your energy settles down, look at how it is moving and how you would like it to move. Yes, that dream state that is still within arm's reach.
When we give our sleep guardians various offerings to help us sleep, other gateways open, yet these dreams are also within arm's reach of our waking state. And some days we feel like we can reach out and touch them, and live in them. You see, there is not such a great distance between the world of our dreams and the world of our conscious living. We just have to reach for it, and close the gaps between the two dreams, the dream of life, and the dream of dreams.
While still in the thrall of a dream, we can see all the beautiful developments, and then we tell ourselves that it is not real, it is only a dream. Yet, there are ways to make dreams real.
What has been the energy of the other world in our mind is simply what we are stirring up before they have materialized in our daily life. In the in between dream state, we sense that we can reach out and touch the others in our dream. We sometimes find ourselves riding around town or to a little place in the country, along the beach, into the woods or up a mountain road to a place where we just came to enjoy the sensations. And in time we feel those vibrations and discover that some of the clothes from our dream fit real nice and some of the things we thought about doing are now what we are doing.
So as your energy settles down, look at how it is moving and how you would like it to move. Yes, that dream state that is still within arm's reach.
When we give our sleep guardians various offerings to help us sleep, other gateways open, yet these dreams are also within arm's reach of our waking state. And some days we feel like we can reach out and touch them, and live in them. You see, there is not such a great distance between the world of our dreams and the world of our conscious living. We just have to reach for it, and close the gaps between the two dreams, the dream of life, and the dream of dreams.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Inhaling the Scent of Rain
Do you like the way it smells just before it rains? Do you take a moment to appreciate it? I do. I love the way the whole world is transformed when rain is approaching and afterwards.
Water of earth, water of air, water of water, water of fire.
Notice how the world usually smells to us when we first get up in the morning, and how there is a distinctive smell that the water colors into our consciousness just after it rains. It helps us perceive the aroma of the plants around us, projecting a more dense taste of the natural fragrance. The earth itself yields up a pungency that presents our palate something new even though it is very familiar. Suddenly there are tones that speak to our sense of taste as well as smell and offers a renewed connection to the earth itself.
Did you ever notice how there is a particular smell that envelops you when you walk in the mountains among the pines and the streams? Notice how the entire palette of smells that rise up to greet us when we enter a desert area that immediately speaks to us of a change in the environment?
In each case, the change of place is both specific and broad at the same time. Yes, the person who is familiar with the different plants and can readily identify them and distinguish their scent. At the same time there is a general mingling of scents that create the entire environment of desert, mountain, forest or seashore. Altogether, the mingling of the big bold scents with the delicate fragrances create the aura of the entire space.
It is similar to walking into a huge field of flowers, eyes at first not recognizing individual shapes, but rather swaths and splashes of color, at first simply overwhelmed by the visual explosion. Then the excitement calms as individual plants come into focus and sometimes saying their names helps us to feel more at home.
Sometimes we do not know their names and we try and familiarize our senses with them simply through the color, shape and fragrance. Some of them will be memorable to the touch as well.
Inhaling the scent of rain is a very sensuous experience. It signals the return of something to our world that we need. It offers us a gift to remember this by. It encourages us to let our feelings flow, the sense of smell bringing us spontaneous recollections triggered by various smells that stimulate memories attached to them.
The sent of rain also comes with a sound that is cleansing. We can turn off radio and TV and computer and just listen to the sound the falling, running water makes as it cleanses and refreshes. The sound of rain invites us to deep moments of contemplation and relaxation.
Inhaling the scent of rain is an invitation to stop and enjoy a deeper moment, a taste of life, the scent leading to sounds, sights and tactile, touching experiences. Breathe in, breathe out and enjoy the scent of rain. Water of air, water of fire, water of water, water of earth.
Water of earth, water of air, water of water, water of fire.
Notice how the world usually smells to us when we first get up in the morning, and how there is a distinctive smell that the water colors into our consciousness just after it rains. It helps us perceive the aroma of the plants around us, projecting a more dense taste of the natural fragrance. The earth itself yields up a pungency that presents our palate something new even though it is very familiar. Suddenly there are tones that speak to our sense of taste as well as smell and offers a renewed connection to the earth itself.
Did you ever notice how there is a particular smell that envelops you when you walk in the mountains among the pines and the streams? Notice how the entire palette of smells that rise up to greet us when we enter a desert area that immediately speaks to us of a change in the environment?
In each case, the change of place is both specific and broad at the same time. Yes, the person who is familiar with the different plants and can readily identify them and distinguish their scent. At the same time there is a general mingling of scents that create the entire environment of desert, mountain, forest or seashore. Altogether, the mingling of the big bold scents with the delicate fragrances create the aura of the entire space.
It is similar to walking into a huge field of flowers, eyes at first not recognizing individual shapes, but rather swaths and splashes of color, at first simply overwhelmed by the visual explosion. Then the excitement calms as individual plants come into focus and sometimes saying their names helps us to feel more at home.
Sometimes we do not know their names and we try and familiarize our senses with them simply through the color, shape and fragrance. Some of them will be memorable to the touch as well.
Inhaling the scent of rain is a very sensuous experience. It signals the return of something to our world that we need. It offers us a gift to remember this by. It encourages us to let our feelings flow, the sense of smell bringing us spontaneous recollections triggered by various smells that stimulate memories attached to them.
The sent of rain also comes with a sound that is cleansing. We can turn off radio and TV and computer and just listen to the sound the falling, running water makes as it cleanses and refreshes. The sound of rain invites us to deep moments of contemplation and relaxation.
Inhaling the scent of rain is an invitation to stop and enjoy a deeper moment, a taste of life, the scent leading to sounds, sights and tactile, touching experiences. Breathe in, breathe out and enjoy the scent of rain. Water of air, water of fire, water of water, water of earth.
Friday, August 13, 2010
13, the Number of the New Order
Today being Friday the 13, there is a lot of folklore and superstition associated with Friday the 13. Today we are experiencing the only one we will have this year. Last year 9 times the 13 fell on a Friday.
Two of the myths that suggest to a lot of people that 13 is a bad luck number is the story from the Christian myth of the Last Supper where Judas was the 13th guest, after the 12 apostles. In Norse mythology, there was also a huge feast of 12 gods going on when the 13th, Loki, arrived.
Judas gave the signal that turned Christ over to the Romans for his execution, while Loki's mischief resulted in the death of Balder, the sun god. Both were catalysts for great change.
The Judas kiss changed everything. Without it, Christ might have continued being an itinerant teacher and healer for who knows how long. Maybe his followers would have been loosely organized with no centralized authority, like Buddhists. But the crucifixion, resurrection and the merging of politics and religion under Constantine, complete with the establishment of the HQ of the church in the lap of the HQ of the Roman Empire changed the whole trajectory of that story.
For those of you with an irreverent sense of humor, check out Tom Robbins' novel, Another Roadside Attraction, where he speculates that the apostles really stole the body and hid it, then told everybody that Christ ascended so that they would have a more powerful story to build their new religion on.
Another religious story that pivots on Friday the 13 is when King Philip of France ordered the arrest of all the Knights Templar on that date, cementing the place of that date in history and kicking off a whole new generation of secret societies and conspiracy theories.
The story of Balder is also a game changer. Frigg, Balder's mother, and Balder both had a prophetic dream of Balder's death. She asked every creature and plant to agree not to hurt him. She neglected to secure a pledge from mistletoe because it seemed insignificant. At the feast, the other gods were playing a game of seeing how impervious Balder was to all assaults. Loki, however, knew about mistletoe and his mistletoe spear killed Balder. Frigg sent a messenger to Hel, the keeper of souls after death, to ask for his release. She agreed to do so if every creature in the world would mourn for him. All agreed, except one, so Hel stipulated that he could only return after Ragnarok, the battle at the end of the world which destroys everything and kills all the old gods, clearing the way for a whole new world to be born, and with new gods to rule it, led by Balder, the Bright and Shining One.
I do not regard 13 or Friday 13 as bad luck.
Some people refuse to travel on Friday 13, more than 80 percent of high-rise buildings lack a 13th floor. Many airports skip the 13th gate. Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.
Some numerologists consider 12 a complete number. There are 12 months in a year, 12signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, and 12 apostles. In exceeding 12 by 1, the 13 association with bad luck has to do with just being a little beyond completeness.
But remember that there are different ways to do numerology. In simple numerology, the number 13 becomes 4, the number of foundation and order.
13 has as many good connotations as bad.
We do well to remember that before the church changed the calendar to what we use now, we did not have all these months with odd numbered days. We had 13 months that were all equal in length, consisting of a 4 week moon cycle.
Traditional witches formed their covens with a membership of 13, bringing yet another spiritual perspective to the number.
There are 13 stripes on the American flag. In the Great Seal of the United States there are 13 olive leaves (with 13 olives), 13arrows, and 13 stars. These form a triangle over the eagle with the number 13 on each point. On the reverse the pyramid has 13 levels.
A baker's dozen contains 13 items.
Apollo 13 was the only manned spaceflight intended to land on the moon that failed in its mission. However, the courage and ingenuity of the men aboard resulted in all of them returning safely to earth, becoming a story of great inspiration, rebounding from the potentially fatal results of the explosion of an oxygen tank. Its fame has eclipsed other missions in which everything went as planned.
So you see, there is more to suggest that 13 can lay the groundwork for strength and new beginnings as there is to suggest that it is bad luck.
Two of the myths that suggest to a lot of people that 13 is a bad luck number is the story from the Christian myth of the Last Supper where Judas was the 13th guest, after the 12 apostles. In Norse mythology, there was also a huge feast of 12 gods going on when the 13th, Loki, arrived.
Judas gave the signal that turned Christ over to the Romans for his execution, while Loki's mischief resulted in the death of Balder, the sun god. Both were catalysts for great change.
The Judas kiss changed everything. Without it, Christ might have continued being an itinerant teacher and healer for who knows how long. Maybe his followers would have been loosely organized with no centralized authority, like Buddhists. But the crucifixion, resurrection and the merging of politics and religion under Constantine, complete with the establishment of the HQ of the church in the lap of the HQ of the Roman Empire changed the whole trajectory of that story.
For those of you with an irreverent sense of humor, check out Tom Robbins' novel, Another Roadside Attraction, where he speculates that the apostles really stole the body and hid it, then told everybody that Christ ascended so that they would have a more powerful story to build their new religion on.
Another religious story that pivots on Friday the 13 is when King Philip of France ordered the arrest of all the Knights Templar on that date, cementing the place of that date in history and kicking off a whole new generation of secret societies and conspiracy theories.
The story of Balder is also a game changer. Frigg, Balder's mother, and Balder both had a prophetic dream of Balder's death. She asked every creature and plant to agree not to hurt him. She neglected to secure a pledge from mistletoe because it seemed insignificant. At the feast, the other gods were playing a game of seeing how impervious Balder was to all assaults. Loki, however, knew about mistletoe and his mistletoe spear killed Balder. Frigg sent a messenger to Hel, the keeper of souls after death, to ask for his release. She agreed to do so if every creature in the world would mourn for him. All agreed, except one, so Hel stipulated that he could only return after Ragnarok, the battle at the end of the world which destroys everything and kills all the old gods, clearing the way for a whole new world to be born, and with new gods to rule it, led by Balder, the Bright and Shining One.
I do not regard 13 or Friday 13 as bad luck.
Some people refuse to travel on Friday 13, more than 80 percent of high-rise buildings lack a 13th floor. Many airports skip the 13th gate. Hospitals and hotels regularly have no room number 13.
Some numerologists consider 12 a complete number. There are 12 months in a year, 12signs of the zodiac, 12 gods of Olympus, 12 labors of Hercules, 12 tribes of Israel, and 12 apostles. In exceeding 12 by 1, the 13 association with bad luck has to do with just being a little beyond completeness.
But remember that there are different ways to do numerology. In simple numerology, the number 13 becomes 4, the number of foundation and order.
13 has as many good connotations as bad.
We do well to remember that before the church changed the calendar to what we use now, we did not have all these months with odd numbered days. We had 13 months that were all equal in length, consisting of a 4 week moon cycle.
Traditional witches formed their covens with a membership of 13, bringing yet another spiritual perspective to the number.
There are 13 stripes on the American flag. In the Great Seal of the United States there are 13 olive leaves (with 13 olives), 13arrows, and 13 stars. These form a triangle over the eagle with the number 13 on each point. On the reverse the pyramid has 13 levels.
A baker's dozen contains 13 items.
Apollo 13 was the only manned spaceflight intended to land on the moon that failed in its mission. However, the courage and ingenuity of the men aboard resulted in all of them returning safely to earth, becoming a story of great inspiration, rebounding from the potentially fatal results of the explosion of an oxygen tank. Its fame has eclipsed other missions in which everything went as planned.
So you see, there is more to suggest that 13 can lay the groundwork for strength and new beginnings as there is to suggest that it is bad luck.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
In the Flow
Watch what happens once you set a vision and follow a course of action toward that vision. Notice how energy flows with you to support your progress. Opportunities present themselves, doors open and new ideas spring to mind.
Clarity is important. So are friends and mentors who will lend their strength to our visions. Relax into your vision and feel the energy carry you forward. Now you can feel that all of the actions that move you in that direction add to the momentum. If one action does not yield great results, another will.
Keep reaffirming your vision to the universe. Keep taking action steps. Feel the energy fill you. Is your goal or vision stated in a way expresses accurately what you want?
Yes, there are times when we have struggled. Check the three sides of your triangle and see if they are strong. If so, your boat will sail on the waters the moon is moving, and the waters will be traveling in the direction we want to go.
Clarity is important. So are friends and mentors who will lend their strength to our visions. Relax into your vision and feel the energy carry you forward. Now you can feel that all of the actions that move you in that direction add to the momentum. If one action does not yield great results, another will.
Keep reaffirming your vision to the universe. Keep taking action steps. Feel the energy fill you. Is your goal or vision stated in a way expresses accurately what you want?
Yes, there are times when we have struggled. Check the three sides of your triangle and see if they are strong. If so, your boat will sail on the waters the moon is moving, and the waters will be traveling in the direction we want to go.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Owning Your New Year
A person's birthday is their new year. Yes, we have a civic holiday called New Year's Day every January 1, but each of us starts a new year on our birthday.
It is refreshing and clarifying to get a perspective on this every year.
It is a natural time to ask ourselves what we would like to see happen in our next year, and reflect back on various milestones in our life, not just from this past year, but from our life.
We never (or perhaps I should say rarely) get a chance to do over, but we do get chances to do differently.
So if today is your new year, celebrate, look forward and embrace that future.
Maybe relecting on the past, expressing gratitude for the present and stepping into our future would be a lot more powerful on our birthday than all those broken adn forgotten New Year's resolutions.
After all, we don't really own that day, but we own this one.
It is refreshing and clarifying to get a perspective on this every year.
It is a natural time to ask ourselves what we would like to see happen in our next year, and reflect back on various milestones in our life, not just from this past year, but from our life.
We never (or perhaps I should say rarely) get a chance to do over, but we do get chances to do differently.
So if today is your new year, celebrate, look forward and embrace that future.
Maybe relecting on the past, expressing gratitude for the present and stepping into our future would be a lot more powerful on our birthday than all those broken adn forgotten New Year's resolutions.
After all, we don't really own that day, but we own this one.
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