Are you familiar with the rookie quarterback for the Washington Redskins, RGIII? I love his nickname, shortened from Robert Griffin III. RGIII is just so catchy (no pun intended). We all need something a bit catchy to remember what we need to do to drive sales and expand our networks in the New Year: learn more and leverage LinkedIn.
My phrase for 2012 was Keep Calm and Carry On—actually, I am going to carry it into 2013, I like it that much. And, I like all the variations that come with it, Keep Calm and Snap On (a photographer I know has that on his wall), Keep Calm and Rock On (great for salespeople), and, oh, so many more.
I’m adding a phrase for 2013: LinkedIn, Learn and Leverage or LIII for short. Hokey, maybe but let’s think about the value each brings. This year my reading (The Power of Habit) has provided a deep dive into habits and how they work, and LinkedIn training has provided a deep dive into how people learn and whether they want to or not, and the salespeople I coach continually show me the value of leveraging LinkedIn when they do a deep dive into their current accounts.
Superficial is out, deep dives are in. Most people know a little something about most topical things like social media, selling and LinkedIn. Success is not found in the topical, it’s found in the details, in breaking it down and understanding it. It’s in the second and third level question or click, it’s deep.
LinkedIn is the pathway, the shortest pathway to business success today. Notice I did not say the shortcut. You can’t shortcut relationships, you can’t expect a response when you don’t contribute. So, what can you expect? You can expect to connect-the-dots, find new people and reconnect with your professional past, start new conversations that lead to new opportunities.
I do find people take the profile shortcut and that is now, more than ever, detrimental to your success. Perception is often greater than reality. If you look lame on LinkedIn, people may consider you lame or worse uninterested. What a missed opportunity that is for you. People are becoming increasingly more discriminating about who they connect with on LinkedIn.
- Take notice. When you leverage LinkedIn, engage wisely, tell your story and are a good resource to others, the LinkedIn pathway becomes a super highway.
Learn More for Success in the New Year
Learning is key to a successful career in today’s world. There is far more to know today than yesterday, it’s up to you to manage your own professional development and carry on. Natural curiosity and open-mindedness aren’t buzzwords but barometers for success.
- Carve out time to learn something new, even the most basic things (this week I researched how to best manage my inbox, I am fascinated with how many new things I learned in two well-spent hours, thank you Jamie Swanson).
I actually consider it a lost day or week if I don’t learn something new. It’s the key to being in the top five or ten percent of your craft. When you are genuinely interested and ask good questions, people respond. Learn their business, know something your competitors don’t, understand your customer’s buying strategy (yes, they do have one), what they value the most, and you begin to create a worthwhile conversation with them.
Leverage LinkedIn to Expand Your Network and Drive Sales
Leverage, definitely a buzzword, but I still use it all the time. Why? It makes sense. How can you take what you have, go deep and get more? Mine for more influence, return, advantage, etc. It’s the culmination of the good stuff—your relationships, your successes, your knowledge and mixing it together to offer more to your colleagues, clients and prospects.
- Offer more of your expertise and you will naturally create more opportunity for yourself and others. Expecting to receive without offering first is definitely out these days. Expecting an order because you had it last year, yikes, bad news.
So I want more LIII in 2013. My coaching will center on how to leverage LinkedIn and learn more to drive revenue. My goal will be to share the tools that turn pathways into superhighways.
Where to start?
- Click and order either or both of the books hyperlinked in this blog
- Clean out your inbox
- Leverage LinkedIn to expand your current business with a 20% increase in 2013
Let me know how it goes. Need some help, give me a shout. Happy New Year!
