Tweet

The Golden Rule of Communications

Written by: Cliff Sutton

Article Overview: Treat others as you would like to be treated! This change in understanding can increase the number of contacts and clients you develop by 500%. This is not a misprint. The whole premise of people helping people comes down to this and it takes the stress out of doing business. Totally. Please read on.

The Golden Rule of Communications

This piece came out of a discussion with Nellie Jacobs at 'Igniting Imagination', around how people connect and what communication is all about..... Ultimately this change in understanding can increase the number of contacts and clients you develop by 500%. Read on to find out how.

When we hear expressions like, “It’s a numbers game!”, we have to know this is one of the world’s great half-truths. Whether we are talking about a financial consultant, a real estate agent or a guy looking for a date, the problem is the same. That’s the “Talk to everyone and keep saying, ‘Next’ if it doesn’t work out.” approach and it’s brutal for everyone. The result is a woman saying, “You have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince….”.

Rejection. And a good thing too. Otherwise we’d be jammed up all day with useless meetings and forced polite conversation!

Enter the ‘Golden Rule of Communications’: “Treat others the way you would like to be treated.” © When I ask people ‘how’ they would like to meet new friends or business contacts they say, “I like it when it is interesting, exciting and fun”. So that’s a great place to start. Interesting could mean talking or learning about something or someone I am interested in. Exciting makes me think of adventure, new ideas and discovery. Fun is anything that makes me feel good and smile and makes for pleasant company.

Meeting new people, or old friends, or simply doing business can be like that. It can and it is when it’s done based on “The Golden Rule of Communications”. Basic core principles are like foundations for skyscrapers. They support everything we do and they stand up to the test of time.

BUILDING ON THE GOLDEN RULE The Golden Rule is the foundation, so what do we do with it? How do we build on it? First, ask yourself a fundamental question about any place or situation you are in or plan to be in: “What am I doing here anyway?” It’s a great question for business or social situation.

Once you’ve established that you are in the right place, it helps to understand some ‘people’ facts. Most of us know that in if we look at products, services or relationships, at any given moment some people are actively looking, some will be looking in the next few months, some over the next couple of years and some just won’t be looking.

The numbers used in business can really help: 3-5% Looking 10-15% Looking in the next few months 40-50% Looking in the next couple of years 30-40% Aren’t likely to be looking Exactly what these numbers are will vary widely from one place to another however the trends are the same. At any given moment in the immediate future about 10 - 15% of the people we meet could be customers. Over a couple of years that number jumps to 50 -75%!! That means that by making a good contact and keeping in touch I could increase my contacts and business by 500%!

Fortunately there are some things most of us want:

• Someone who is interested in what they are interested
• To be genuinely listened to
• An injection of positive energy
• An injection of positive energy
• To be given the space they need
• Good information or help when requested

So how do we know who’s looking for what we’ve got? How do we communicate with them and stay true to “The Golden Rule of Communication”. Let me use an example of a business communication.

Here’s how Tom Wood of Mastery TV recommends you do it.

You first meet and introduce each other. “What do you do and how can I help you?” Response is “What do you do?” After a brief description of what you do, ask for more about what they’re looking for. If it’s general then look for more detail – an explanation could be that you know a lot of people & may be able to help them.

The conversation starts and is based on getting to know each other and looking for ways to help each other. This is an example of making contact, no matter how it happens. From there on it is a matter of continuing the contact if you feel it’s a win-win!

It's simple and it works.

Related Articles
  Stop selling! Satisfy the Four Universal needs of Buyers, and They will buy!
  Lesson #1: Live by the Golden Rule
  TRADE SHOW FOLLOW-UP: HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?
  Lesson #1: A Happy Customer Is Your Walking Advertisement
  Practicing the Golden Rule Has Limitations

Article Tags: business contacts, core principles, doing business, expressions, financial consultant, frogs, golden rule, hellip, nellie jacobs, new friends, numbers game, old friends, pleasant company, polite conversation, real estate agent, rejection, rsquo, skyscrapers, style font, test of time



Related Forum Posts
Franchising & Licensing Can Be The Same Thing - FTC Rule 436 defines franchising as anyone offering an Agreement that contains these 3 things: 1. Licensing a "Mark" - which can be a trade name, service mark, commercial symbol, slogan, etc. 2. In the body of the Agreement, there contains, significant controls and assistance. 3. The licensee is paying the licensor in excess of $500 within the first six months of the actual offering of the business. Licensing and Franchising can mean the same thing today. If you do not decide to franchise and comply with FTC Rule 436, you may be in violation of Business Opportunity Laws that exist in 24 individual States.
7 words or less for Structogram - Some "7 words or less" (more or less) for Structogram for your comments: Training to get your message across(6) Secrets to get your message across (6) Training so people will listen to you (7) Helping you get your message across (6) Training to learn to get your message across (8) Communications training for yourself and your team (7)
Re: Is being too connected pushing your business forward or back - My email rule: Don't answer email until evening. My Social networking Rule: Don't go to Social site until I have finished other assignment. Mr forum rule: Post or start a new thread early in the morning and don't spend more than 30 minutes, then comeback in the evening to post more.
Re: Herbert Elwood Gilliland III: I Invented YouTube - [quote:3vele9ih] 1. Herbert's public declarations may get a response from YouTube or Google, but it's very unlikely they will get the response he wants or will like. I do not think this tactic is in his best interests. [/quote:3vele9ih] My friends and colleagues want me to raise awareness of this. As for a response: I expect none from them other than the court documents that have already been filed. Also, Ringo posted this here, not me. And besides: as of today, 2010, 5 years after the incident which I brought before the courts, the media won't touch my story, nor even report on my case because they are partnered with Google. [quote:3vele9ih] - If a person has a legitimate claim and can produce credible evidence to support the claim, then the issue should be given to a qualified legal representative to work through and to provide counsel to the individual. [/quote:3vele9ih] Not with Rule 11. Please read my blog for more information on the "blow to civil rights" that is FRCP Rule 11 in the US. They wouldn't let me get evidence to support my claim. The rule stopped the process of discovery from happening. [quote:3vele9ih] - If the above qualifications apply (legitimate claim; credible evidence), then the issue should not be laid upon the public. I do not see the purpose or value in doing that. [/quote:3vele9ih] In the U.S. it is the purpose of civil litigation to use the public to determine matters when privately people can't work it out. That is what we were trying to do with our case. Unfortunately, those civil liberties have been eroded by the partnership between big business and government. [quote:3vele9ih] THIS IS JUST MY OPINION. I have not taken the time to review the available details to know how legitimate and credible Herbert's claim is. [/quote:3vele9ih] No offense to you, sir, as I'm sure you are "busy", but why share an opinion if you haven't understood, fully, the situation? Kind regards, -h
Need a book recommendation for writing better - I'm always looking for ways to improve my writing skills, so I was just wondering if anyone could recommend a good copywriting or copyediting book? I was actually thinking of reading "The Copywriter's Handbook : A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing Copy That Sells" by Robert W Bly [u:w3cg00nn]OR[/u:w3cg00nn] "The Copyeditor's Handbook: A Guide for Book Publishing and Corporate Communications" by Amy Einsohn. Would anyone know if these books are any good? Thanks


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Living on The Edge of Chaos...

What I Really Want Is...

Attracting Passionate Employees

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.