It certainly feels like I’ve spent the whole week networking.

Two breakfasts, two 1-2-1s, a meeting with my PR and a meeting with my life coach.

Doesn’t leave too long for any chargeable time does it?

Especially with the imminent reduction in the work week to Monday to Thursday!

But a part of the conversation with Becki dealt with it – You don’t remember all the other things you need to do to be able to do what you do.

My paraphrase and possibly another one for my cache of good coaching conversations…

Like – would YOU work for you?

Almost led with this but I think there’s a much deeper post with maybe a more serious edge so I might ask myself to write something for my Business Challenges series.

And I’m also a little tired to do anything too sensible – I’ve now been up ten and a half hours and it bl00dy well feels like it.

That touch of tiredness and half an ear on the radio meant that I heard someone singing about the trouser of death a minute or two ago.

Or something like that.

I think one of this morning’s speakers summed up networking very well.

Good networking is NOT selling.

If you work a floor expecting people to buy from you and ask for nothing in return you are seriously mistaken.

Some people never realise this.

But the good ones?

What goes around comes around.

Are you known as someone who always talks about themselves? Someone to listen to and politely move on?

Or are you know as the person that listens? The person who knows lots of people? The one who can say – oh I know someone who may be able to help you with that?

A “for instance”.

I am an accountant. When pushed to admit it.

I know lots of accountants. And bookkeepers. Mostly through networking.

If someone asks me if I want to deal with their accounts I stop and think.

Then engage them in conversation to find out exactly what they are looking for.

Lots of them are not the sort of client I am looking for.

But I’m pretty sure I know someone who they will be a match for, maybe more than one.

And I would MUCH prefer to connect them with someone who wants to do that work rather than do something myself I really don’t want to do.

But the old school way was not to turn work away and certainly not pass it to one of your “rivals”.

This blog is proving very difficult to make funny.

Here am I trying to be amusing and my fecking fingers keep typing “stuff” that’s serious.

I am going to give them a major telling off very soon…

Ah that’s better

• phone call from Lorraine. My prescription meds are all on hold as I’ve not done something I have no awareness of having been told I have to do.
• email from client chasing something that I’m having difficulty concluding.
• oh, and yesterday’s unstable web browser that kept flickering out and ending up on the oldest email open, and
• nearly forgot – the soggy box of beer with 11 full bottles and one not so full. The cap is on but maybe not so well.
• and the idiot wife – yes “I” is for instance but not a for instance. Sigh.

Back to feeling glum again.

That’s more normal.

And where’s the daughter this week one or two of you might ask?

The highlands of Scotland no less on a luxury minibus tour.

So that’s enough for this week.

Looking forward to my FINAL Friday of work tomorrow. What to do about POETS day? POETF day doesn’t sound quite the same.

POETS? For those not in the know – p… off early tomorrow’s Saturday…

Love the English language!

Image of Glencoe by Brian Dowden from Pixabay