In this module, you will examine the importance of relations in shaping your self-leadership journey and how they influence your business decisions. By identifying growth opportunities around you, fostering better relations, and building a strong support network, you can create a more comprehensive, fulfilling, and successful business. Use your Journal to reflect on your experiences and insights as you work through the activities in Module 4.
Goals:
- Identify and pursue growth opportunities around you.
- Learn how to foster better relations.
- Understand what you need to do to create a strong support network.
Complement your skills:
The goal of this exercise is to find a peer partner within your working or training network, within your LinkedIn community, within your Facebook groups of interest or anywhere else you see fit, to complement your skills.
Step 1 | Identify your strengths and weaknesses: No journey of complementarity can begin if you don’t already know where you shine and where you don’t. In other words, what exactly are you looking for in a peer partner?
Step 2 | Define your areas of interest: Not all your weaknesses will become areas of interest. So choose wisely, for 1 or a maximum of 2 areas of interest. Don’t get greedy, and overcome your FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), as you can repeat the exercise, once the first peer partnership is in place and is working well.
Step 3 | Identify a peer partner: You will know when you see the proper peer partner for you. Have faith in your gut feeling, but also do a bit of checking first on their background, good intentions, and availability to help, before considering investing yourself and your time in building this relationship. Write down the name and the contact details below.
Step 4 | Harvest the crops: Perform a seasonal review of the peer partnership, by yourself or with that person involved, to see what benefits specifically each of you obtained. Cross-check them with your updated needs and re-evaluate your expectations. Ask for the peer partnership to be adjusted if needed.
Step 5 | Reach out to your peer partner: Move from thought into action and reach out to your potential future peer partner. Check the communication template proposed below and adjust it as you see fit.
Communication Template:
Hi ____________ (peer partner’s first name)!
I am ________ (your first name) and I am reaching out to you because I believe we have complementary views on the topics of _________________ , _________________, and _________________ (1-2, maximum 3 topics, taken from above, from areas of interest).
The reason why I landed on your page is because I appreciate your _________________ in _________________ , your _________________ in _________________, and your _________________ in _________________ (1-2, maximum 3 strengths you appreciate, placed in specific context of the peer partner profile, like “your unique approach in asking pragmatic questions” or “your bravery in facing the unknown” etc.).
It would be lovely to find out more about you in the context of _________________ (add your business context, your problem, or your topic that you need assistance with).
What do you say about grabbing a coffee or lemonade and meeting up in person (or online, depending on the geographical circumstances) for a get-to-know-each-other?
Would _________________ or _________________ (give out 2 specific days as options, for the current or future week, like “this Tuesday” or “next Friday”) be suitable for you? What time?
Thanks for the openness and for the good-will!
_________________ (your first name)
_________________ (You can add a funny tag for yourself here, depending on the context, something like “a mother in need”, “an entrepreneur ready to dream” or “a woman searching for help”).
Draw a vision board:
This exercise is meant to help you imagine where you would like to be in your professional and personal life, so you know better what you want to achieve in the long run. A vision board is a collection of images or objects arranged in a certain way to help you manifest your goals and your vision. This board can be physical or digital.
The concept is that thought precedes behavior. Or otherwise said, mindset drives behavior, which drives outcomes. They let you visualize success, in a way that you can immerse yourself in a visual representation of what you want or hope to achieve.
Step 1 | Define your vision: You may have already reached your vision through Dilt’s Logical Model from Module 1. Review it and adjust it if the case. Rewrite it here.
Step 2 | Select your inputs & tools: You can get wild when it comes to what to put on a vision board, from images to book covers, movie posters, photos of famous people & role models, quotes, song lyrics, handwritten notes, T-shirt messages and so on. Nothing is off-limits when it comes to a vision board. If it’s feasible to add it to a board and it manifests your vision, take it. Write below a guiding list of what you want to add. Decide what type of board you want to use, for a physical version or where to draw it, for a digital version.
Step 3 | Arrange your materials: Things will start to move in place once you start putting them together. It’s like in a play, where everything either has its own role and position on stage, or it doesn’t and it’s left out of the stage. Do this step directly on your physical or digital board.
Step 4 | Place it in good sight: People who use vision boards usually place them where they’ll see them often. For instance, you can place a vision board on a mirror you use to get ready in the morning. Other people will prefer to hang it on a wall in a room they use often. Write down what you chose and the reason why.
Step 5 | Review your progress: Come back to this Journal in a year and see which parts of your vision board are completed, which are in progress, and which are not, but also what you want to change about it. Write down your insights.
Discover the 3 elements of trust:
Trust is the main ingredient when fostering better relations, as our minds are wired in a way that you will reciprocate (and in turn build ongoing trust) when someone makes a small gesture for you.
But for Leaders, trust becomes even more important in their relations with others, because it is an excellent indicator if they are evaluating these leaders positively or negatively. If they will follow them or if they will ignore them.
In order to better understand the 3 elements of trust for self-leadership, we invite you to read an article that explains these main pillars of collaboration and trust, by Zenger and Folkman. Link here: https://hbr.org/2019/02/the-3-elements-of-trust.
Enroll in 3 events
We invite you to find 3 offline or online events related to your interests, to attend within the next 6 months. Enroll & save the date for each of them!
Set a personal goal for each of them to come back with a specific number of connections.
Do 3-4 follow-ups for each of those connections, in regard to your shared interest. Trust us when we say 3-4 follow-ups, it was proven that this is the number of interactions needed to elicit action.
Reflections on Module 4:
- What insights did you gain about your support network and its importance in self-leadership and business?
- How does your vision board influence your business decisions and actions?
- How was it for you to reach out to someone and ask them to be your peer partner?
Additional resources:
Tools
- Networking strategies: https://www.lifehack.org/articles/communication/10-business-networking-tips-grow-your-professional-network.html
Books
- "Never Eat Alone" by Keith Ferrazzi & Tahl Raz
- "The Power of Who: You Already Know Everyone You Need to Know" by Bob Beaudine & Tom Dooley
Closing Thoughts:
Amazing! You just completed the 4th Module! Getting close to the finish line!
By identifying and creating strong relations around yourself and your business, you are creating a more complex and fulfilling entrepreneurial journey. As you continue to grow and evolve in your self-leadership and business pursuits, remember to revisit and reassess your vision and your peer partnerships regularly.
In Module 5, you'll learn how to effectively align your business & personal goals, to further enhance your self-leadership skills and business success.
