{"id":7085,"date":"2013-09-18T07:00:24","date_gmt":"2013-09-18T13:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tested-neuron.flywheelsites.com\/?p=7085"},"modified":"2015-03-18T00:43:06","modified_gmt":"2015-03-18T06:43:06","slug":"4-steps-to-staying-in-touch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unreasonablegroup.com\/articles\/4-steps-to-staying-in-touch\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Steps to Staying in Touch (Without Being Annoying)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Entrepreneurs are always instructed<\/strong> to network. But what do you do after you meet someone?\u00a0 If you’re raising money, and you meet a potential investor, the steps are clear<\/a>. But what about fellow entrepreneurs?\u00a0 Or anyone else?<\/em><\/p>\n

As one Unreasonable Institute graduate told me, “I’m sad that I’m not in touch with my fellow entrepreneurs.\u00a0 But I know how busy they are, and I don’t want to be a bother.”<\/em>\u00a0 Sadly, this belief is all too common, as are the results.\u00a0 Because you don’t want to bother people, you decide to wait until you have the perfect reason to reach out.\u00a0 But when that time comes, a year or two has passed, and you’re too embarrassed to send the email or make the call.\u00a0 And so another potentially game-changing relationship withers away.<\/p>\n

Here’s a step by step guide to how you can stay in touch without being a bother:<\/p>\n

First, make a list of people with whom you want to stay in touch.\u00a0If you have to rack your brain to decide who to contact, you’ll end up giving up and turning on “Breaking Bad.”\u00a0 Make it easy to reach out to people by having a list handy.\u00a0 For years, I drove around with a printed list (complete with phone numbers) in my car.\u00a0 This was in the days before we programmed names into phones.\u00a0 Yes, I am old. Don’t make the list too long, or you won’t have time to follow the subsequent steps!<\/p>\n

Second, write down the key facts about each person. I use Microsoft Outlook (have I mentioned that I’m old?); you could just as easily use LinkedIn or Evernote.\u00a0The reason to write down these facts is because they will allow you to make your interactions meaningful and relevant\u2014the key to not being a bother.<\/p>\n

Third, communicate regularly *before* you need to ask for a favor.
\nThink about how annoying it is when someone only calls\/emails\/texts\/knocks on your door when they need a favor.\u00a0We all know someone like this.\u00a0And we all resent him for it.\u00a0 Don’t be this person!\u00a0 Make sure you have multiple positive interactions before you ask for anything.\u00a0Here are a couple of easy ways to do this:<\/p>\n

Wish the person a happy birthday each year, using your key facts to compose a personalized message that asks about the family\/projects\/passions in their life.\u00a0 It shows that you care, and it also helps you gather updates and other useful information to add to your profile.<\/p>\n

Whenever you see a useful article on the internet (and by useful, I mean something that ties directly to one of their key facts), send them a link.\u00a0 It takes very little time, yet it helps people remember you fondly.\u00a0 (Imagine how hard this was in the dinosaur days when you clipped newspaper articles and snail mailed them!)<\/p>\n

If you have a good relationship, make sure you call, and not just email.
\nEmail is fine, but it doesn’t convey emotion the same way that the human voice does.\u00a0 Call up your old friend, and say, “I don’t have any reason for calling–I just miss you.”<\/em>\u00a0 That’s a message that’s irresistible.\u00a0 Then catch up on their life.\u00a0They’ll probably ask about yours, and more likely than not, during that conversation, you’ll find a way you can help each other.\u00a0 Make sure this happens by asking, “Is there anything I can do to help?”<\/em> (Note: You actually have to *do* the thing to help!)<\/p>\n

When’s the last time you got a call from an old friend on your birthday and said, “Boy, he’s such a phoney.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If you think that this list seems artificial, and you’re worried that you’ll come across as a phoney, let me ask you this: When’s the last time you got a call from an old friend on your birthday and said, “Boy, he’s such a phoney.”<\/em>\u00a0 Can you remember a time when someone sent you an article that was uniquely useful to you, and you thought, “I hate it when people help me out.”<\/em> Staying in touch works.\u00a0 And as a bonus, you’ll probably feel happier too.<\/p>\n

An Unreasonable Challenge:<\/h3>\n

Make a list of 5 old friends that you wish you spoke with more.\u00a0 Write down the key facts about them (as many as you can remember).\u00a0 In the next week, call each of them and have a catch-up conversation.\u00a0 You’ll strengthen five key relationships…and make five people’s day.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Entrepreneurs are always instructed to network. But what do you do after you meet someone? If you\u2019re raising money, and you meet a potential investor, the steps are clear. But what about fellow entrepreneurs? Or anyone else?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":7113,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[476,1496,1510,1544,1555,1514],"tags":[2247,450,1058,185,461,311,192,156,435],"class_list":["post-7085","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-article","category-balance-tags","category-career","category-mentorship","category-networking","category-relationships","tag-article","tag-career","tag-chris-yeh","tag-communication","tag-how-to","tag-mentorship","tag-networking","tag-relationships","tag-skills-2"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n4 Steps to Staying in Touch (Without Being Annoying) - UNREASONABLE<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/unreasonablegroup.com\/articles\/4-steps-to-staying-in-touch\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"4 Steps to Staying in Touch (Without Being Annoying) - UNREASONABLE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Entrepreneurs are always instructed to network. 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