Super Charge Your Sphere of Influence

Do you know what your sphere of influence is? How to define it and how it can impact your life? In today’s Super Charge Sunday, Ellen Contreras – The Treasure Coast Connector – highlights the importance of understanding your sphere of influence.  As a business development professional and radio host, Ellen’s goal  is to help people to grow in their business. She provides access to resources, such as outsourced services, and forming meaningful connections.

Ellen shared about the increasing necessity of forming alliances and collaboration in light of the fact that people are starting businesses at a higher rate than ever before.  New entrepreneurs need to shift their mindset from employee to entrepreneur. Part of that mindset shift is being able to step out of the proverbial comfort zone and to nurture the concept of having multiple streams of income.  The key is to know what you can offer and what you can refer to others. Create a win-win situation for the people that you are connected to and how you can bring business to each other. Building a sphere of influence involves people getting to know you.

Four main areas where your sphere of influence reside:

1. Friends and Family – let them know what you are doing
2. Social Media pages/platform – sharing what you like and an opportunity to connect with people
3. Networking Groups – Select groups based on who you want to connect with; people who know people; connect via social media
4. Business Cards –  Create a spreadsheet from the business cards you receive by industry, zip code, and alphabetize by company name; set it up so you can query the database; remember that people change what they are doing over time – so who may not seem “a good “ contact today, may be an excellent one tomorrow. Everyone is important –  avoid being dismissive of people 

Here are the five ways to increase your sphere of influence:

1. Review your list of contacts – Go through your list of people to whom you are connected and decide with whom you would like to deepen your connections. Start with 20 people at a time – are there ways that you can help by maybe making  a good referral or introduction
   • Send a personal email to request a quick meeting – via Zoom, outside, or at another location
   • Thank people for connecting via social media and share genuine compliments
   • Put selling on the backburner until you know more about them
   • At the end of the meeting, request their marketing collateral and sign up for their newsletter
   • Ask people what is a good referral for them
   • Make notes of key points that people say, e.g.,  names of pets
   • Follow up with a thank you message with a small call to action – if I may be of service….
   • Keep a tickler file to remind yourself to follow up and reconnect.

2. Organize a Mini Event – Create and curate a group of about three or four people who you think should get to know each and why. 

• Connect people who can benefit from interacting
• Invite for refreshments at a beautiful location
• Hold a mini-mastermind sessions of sorts – think of a problem that you could solve together or work through a particular situation – like a breakout session of a networking event; synergy “chocolate peanut butter” moment – the moment when everything comes together perfectly

3. Become a Board Member – Join the board of a non-profit organization or civic association in which you have interest and are passionate about

•  Join a committee
• Share your expertise
• Identify people on the board with whom you can build alliances and bonds

4. Social media and Facebook Groups and LinkedIn

• Be a valuable resource; answer questions that people post and be known as the subject matter expert
• Be mindful of time management and how you allocate time in these areas

5. Connections

• Create a strategy of your key objectives in connecting with  specific people
• Take inventory of your connections and assess who is connected to whom – e.g., alumni associations; religious organizations
• Facilitate introductions where you can and request introductions to others
• Be mindful of your focus but be open to being flexible

Connect with Ellen:  Ellen Contreras – 772-925-4557 – www.tcconnector.com – tcconnector@gmail.com – on FaceBook @TreasureCoastConnector

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