We live in a world of language and instant gratification. Keeping your word show’s high integrity and builds a foundation of instant trust between two people.

“Do what you say you are going to do, when you say you are going to do it.”

This seems like an obvious statement, but you would be surprised at the amount of people who don’t keep their word. Examples can range from being late to a meeting or not calling when you say you will.

Practice becoming aware of where you might not be keeping your word in all of your interactions. Once you become aware of your own personal patterns, you can choose different actions, which will lead to different outcomes.

Always Answer the Call
How do you feel if you call someone and always get his or her voicemail?

If you are chatting with a friend on the phone and don’t recognize the number calling in, answer it anyway. You never know if that person on the other line is a recruiter, client, prospect, or why they are calling.

Everyone wants to feel important so if you click over you can say, “I was on the other line but clicked over because you are important to me and I didn’t want to miss your call. “

Follow-up, Follow-up
Yes, it’s the age-old advice we hear from everyone. But do you always follow-up?

If you tell a prospect, clients, or someone that you will be calling on a certain day at a certain time, do it. If you tell someone you meet at an event you will follow-up with him or her, do it.

When someone doesn’t follow-through on a verbal or written commitment, it can trigger uncomfortable emotions for another person. Some may automatically see the person as unreliable and won’t move forward with a relationship.

Remember thank you notes?
Since the advent of technology, it’s not imperative to send a follow-up thank you after connecting with a prospect, client, or job candidate. People love to be appreciated and know that they spent their time wisely in connecting with you.

However, if you want to stand out, try sending a Hand Written thank you note to everyone you connected with in your meeting. Whether it’s a prospective employer or a sales meeting, people will appreciate the hand written word or card. In todays fast past technology driven society, receiving a simple thank you note is a great way to show gratitude and engage your audience.

Adopt a Give Before Receive Philosophy
In order to give before you get, adopt a philosophy of helping others without expectation of what you are going to get back. In this way you aren’t setting the relationship up to be transactional.

You may not be able to directly work with someone or hire someone on the spot, but you may be able to provide some value that could help them in the now. Provide support or referral to someone and they will remember you. The more you invest in a relationship, the more you will receive when you are in need. Give, give, give, give, and then get.


The Perceived Value Outweighs the Cost
Everything comes down to the Perceived Value of what you are providing to someone. Why would they want to hire you? What makes you better than someone else or another service?

One way to look at this question is by asking yourself, “Why would you hire yourself for this service or job? What value do I bring to the table?”

Not only do you need to provide value, you also need to provide the results others have experienced to back up the perceived value. What results have you produced for other companies? What do you provide that differentiates you in the market place?

Relay your personal value proposition as it relates to saved time and money for someone and you will quickly demonstrate how the perceived value outweighs the cost.

To your continued success,

Stacey