I  was chatting with a good friend of mine the other day and we touched on the subject of plans for the next 90 days personally and professionally.

She ran through a typical list: get better at time management, reconnect with old business associates, spend more time with her kids, earn more money and hopefully work less, donate more to local charities etc.

“So, nothing about saving for a rainy day then?” I asked. “Everyone promises something along those lines.”

“Nope,” she answered. “Every time I say that. At the start of this year I even went out and bought a whole money management package and loaded it onto my laptop.”

“It’s supposed to make me see, very clearly, what I’m doing with my finances and where I’m falling short so I get motivated to do the right thing.”

“Now, months later, when I see the package on my desktop, it just makes me feel really bad and irresponsible.”

I could relate to some of that and I’m sure you can, too.

Getting the software made her feel like she was doing something to accomplish her goal.

However, just having it didn’t mean she was getting in good financial shape.

It’s the same as just like collecting a bottom drawer full of business cards doesn’t mean you’re networking is getting you any new clients for your service business.

Sure, it feels great to get them. It can make you feel as if you’re ‘connecting with people and doing something to advance your sales.

However, the truth is, leaving your local Chamber of Commerce meeting witha fist full of business cards does not equate to success in any shape or form.

It’s like buying a money management software application and never using it.

Let me ask you this…

If you do actually get a bunch of business cards, how many of them will you actually follow up on? What’s your strategy? Do you pop into your favourite forum and report how many cards you collected so you can have your ego stroked by people telling you what a ‘good job’ you’ve done?

Do you know exactly how many of those cards are actually worth an investment of your precious time? Do you know how many that are a good or great ‘match-and-fit’ for what you offer as an service business?

Actually let’s be honest. You probably took some just to be polite. How many of that kind do you have?

Can you tell me exactly how many of the cards you collected you anticipate turning into paying clients?

If you’re going to be brutally honest with yourself, you know what the answer is…NOT MANY.

So tell me then, why do you collect them?

Maybe because conventional networking wisdom says that collecting business cards equates to a well done job.

It means you attended a networking event and mingled with enough people to consider it to be a success.

From my standpoint of always working to be a better service consultant, I’m telling you that thinking like that is total B.S and it’ll only serve to make sure you’re always chasing after clients as opposed to them chasing after you (OK. Maybe not chasing after you but seeking you out actively) to do business with you.

Collecting and distributing business cards might make you feel good, but in reality, it means jack if either:

• the cards are from the wrong type of prospects or
• they get deposited in a drawer and you do noting with them.

This is why I strongly say that networking is a complete waste of time, the way the majority of service professionals do it.

BAYO

P.S. I’m not suggesting business cards are a waste of time outright. Actually, I’ll soon reveal to you a little-known strategy you can apply to your business cards to transform them into a powerful sales force for your local services.