I recently had an experience that I will share briefly with you to frame my piont about business. About 8 years ago I had the privilege of working for someone that was just a good person. Long story short, he had to let me go (last in, first out following the dot com bust) but I had so much respect for him as a person that we kept in touch sporadically over the years even though we lived in different states.
About 2 ½ years ago we touched based and shared a few laughs but then I was given the news that he had been diagnosed with a brain tumor. We kept in touch over his illness until I tried to catch up with him yesterday. I had a weird feeling so I Googled his name and was given the news by a search engine that this ‘friend’ of mine had passed away in May. He had produced a video in his last days that I was able to watch and I cried. He was a good man and I didn’t get to say goodbye. My fault for not being in touch more.
So what’s this have to do with business? Everything and nothing all at once. First, when you frame business in light of what my friend experienced it has virtually no value. In eternal terms, what you did for a ‘living’ means literally nothing. For us here in the here and now though, the idea of simply being in touch is critical to our success as people and business people alike.
I wrote recently about being in touch with people I had lost contact with and the lost opportunity associated with it. In business, it is critical to remain in contact with customers, prospects and acquaintances alike for the simple reason that you never know what might happen.
Whether it’s the sudden need for your services and you are top of mind as a result of your relational approach to things or it’s the need for someone to reach out in a way that is more personal and probably much more important; we need to be top of mind.
We have all of the tools to be top of mind but we have mutated them into being top of the heap. What kind of a heap we end up on top of often defines who we are whether we like it or not. If your heap is steaming and stinks then what have you accomplished? Maybe you have a few more sales but the end game is all wrong.
I have decided to simply try to be in contact with as many people as I can for the simple reason that I may be of service to them in some way, manner, shape or form. Whether I provide a business service for pay or just a place for someone to seek solace doesn’t matter.
I have no more excuses for not being in touch more. I have more ways to communicate than at any other time in history. Why did it happen then that my friend died before I could say goodbye? Unfortunately, that one’s on me and I will need to learn from this. All I have is today and in today I have chances to help, ignore or even hurt people. I have come to believe that if I ain’t helpin’, then I ain’t livin’.
Goodbye my friend and thanks for helping me in ways you never knew.
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
Thanks for your article Frank.
Just yesterday I was reminiscing with my partner over people we had lost contact with over the years.
To our surprise, so many of them had a presence online – via their own websites, blogs etc. This will enable us to communicate with them again.
I had actually done a search for the same people a couple of years ago – at that time they were not to be found Online.
All these people are 60+ years old and it goes without saying that the internet is a wonderful growing resource for all ages.
As you stated in your article, our communication tools are so good these days – there is no excuse, not to stay in touch.
Cheers,
Kitty.
Mr Reed,
I just read the last two things you wrote. One on Sales and Marketing (connection, or lack thereof), and the other on losing touch. I have a friend who I got pretty close to a few years ago (maybe more than a few…) who then relocated to NC. I truly enjoyed hanging around with this guy and was sad when he an his family had to relo. We too stayed in touch sporadically and the it seems that we lost touch. My fault I’m sure. I kinda suck at staying in touch, just ask my brother! Well, your story made me think – in and of itself a major accomplishment! And I wanted to re-connect with this guy. So, if you run across someone in NC who once gave a guitar with a crack in it to a friend before moving…, well, tell him I said hello – and that we should talk…soon. Because you are right, time flies and life is short. You may as well stay in touch with the folks you like because Lord knows, you sure end up spending more than enough dealing with those that you don’t.
@Coral Springs Guy – Gee, NC is a pretty big place but I think I know someone who fits the description. Not sure about that cracked guitar ….. it looked good when I (ooops I mean the other guy) gave it away
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How are you? Life is too short, my friend.