Value/Weight of social skills in the fast lane approach?

[m1522632]

I am reading this book now.... and I see that many of the things in this book are similar to my perception of entrepreneurship and starting up a business. More over, I was always moving in this direction. I was trying to come up with some ideas about what people really need and build something new around this in parallel with my full time job.

Just one more thing that I waned to add.

The book is really cool and it resonates with my own views. The only thing is I didn't find much in the book about the social part... there is a chapter about immersing yourself into the right environment and mingling among right people… but I think the meaning of your social skills and connections for starting up a successful business may even outweigh hardworking, brilliant idea and implementation.

Most of the existing successful businesses were created by several people. So you definitely need to have business partners. They would help you shape your idea, stimulate and motivate you all the way long. There are also lots of businesses that were based when someone pitched his/her idea to people with money or connections...Out of my experience all my successful ventures were done together with my friends or people that I knew.

 

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[MJ DeMarco]

but I think the meaning of your social skills and connections for starting up a successful business may even outweigh hardworking, brilliant idea and implementation.

In other words, it's not what you know but who? I'd agree this has tremendous value. And to add umph to your post, I think "social skills" are terribly important in a Fastlane. Perhaps I didn't write about it because it is a weakness of mine and I don't have much experiential wisdom to impart. I can tell you that I'd be a lot richer, or more successful, if I was more social and less of a rogue.

Business ultimately is always about sales, and sales, are about relationships. Relationships are about being social.

Most of the existing successful businesses were created by several people. So you definitely need to have business partners.

I think it really depends on the business and the type of partner synergies. I think the larger the market of attack, the more beneficial it would become. Great post!

 

[healthstatus]

Now you need to find a very social partner that has weaknesses where you are strong, but you have the same work ethic and financial mindset.

I would be in the same boat with MJ, I am not really skilled socially, I can sell when I need to, but my idea of fun is to get away from people, not go jump into a big crowd. I have chosen never to have a business partner, but even without that I should be selling my primary website for 7 figures in the next 18 months.

 

[JASpinnato]

In other words, it's not what you know but who? I'd agree this has tremendous value. And to add umph to your post, I think "social skills" are terribly important in a Fastlane. Perhaps I didn't write about it because it is a weakness of mine and I don't have much experiential wisdom to impart. I can tell you that I'd be a lot richer, or more successful, if I was more social and less of a rogue.

Business ultimately is always about sales, and sales, are about relationships. Relationships are about being social.

Up until I read the book I had the slowlane mentality and always loved sales. I started out with Enterprise Rent A Car which is a company that is heavily based on sales and I had so-called success there by being recognized for my high sales and being promoted at a quicker pace than most. But, after a while I fell out of love with this sales job simply because I felt like my sales were not helping people. I've always wanted to help people with my work so I decided to switch careers and try to find a sales job where I sold a product that would genuinely help people so I decided to get into insurance sales. In my eyes I have a somewhat fastlane mentality and a slowlane mentality at the same time. The fastlane mentality is that I am selling a product that has a need and helps people out. The slowlane mentality is that I am selling somebody else's product and the marketplace is flooded with people like me doing the same and I do not have control of the product I am selling.

I always prided myself on having the social skills and building relationships with my clients and I have done alright in insurance sales. I realized my true weakness after reading the book and that is I never had the mindset of a fastlaner in which I would actually try to find a need on my own and create a product that fulfilled that need. I didn't know it but I was always going to be headed down the path of the slowlane by selling someone else's product and think of that as true success. Now I am using my social skills in the market place to talk to people and try to find needs so I can develop my own product and become a true fastlaner. It has not been easy but thank god I read the book because if I had not I would have had the slowlane mentality for my entire life.

 

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[Knowledge Kick]

I agree that being social is a great key to becoming successful. I can't find the post but I remember someone posted an article on here that polled millionaires. Turns out that the majority of millionaires weren't geniuses or even A+ students, but were very good at building relationships. A lot of the article talked about how the millionaires got through college by being friendly and getting their new found friends to help them on tests, etc.

This lends itself to the concept of not "what" you know but "who" you know.

 

[LeoistheSun]

I can tell you that I'd be a lot richer, or more successful, if I was more social and less of a rogue.

That says it all.

Make more friends, join meetups... get out there.

 

[TonyStark]

Psh, as a social person, I can tell you, I value more someone that can get work done, than a non-stop blabbermouth.

I want results!

Too many action-fakers and wantrapreneurs out there. I’m sick of it.

 

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[The-J]

@MJ DeMarco Curious question.

This is an old thread. In fact, this guy asked this question even before I joined the forum.

Now, we usually tell people "use the search function" to find answers. That can sometimes lead to situations like this one, where people bump up a thread that hasn't had responses in 7 years.

It's a bit odd when people bump old threads (can clutter up new, hot conversation and bring up topics that don't need to be brought up), and yet people really should be using the search function.

Not only that, it can be hard to see the date of posting sometimes and people may not give any mind to it.

This happens a lot.

Are you going to allow (and/or encourage) people to bump up old threads like this in the interest of helping new forum users answer questions they might have had... or are we going to leave this one in the hands of 'general forum etiquette' (that is, don't bump old posts)?

 

[MJ DeMarco]

Are you going to allow (and/or encourage) people to bump up old threads like this in the interest of helping new forum users answer questions they might have had... or are we going to leave this one in the hands of 'general forum etiquette' (that is, don't bump old posts)?

I'm OK with it because generally there is a whole new crop of opinions and people who can benefit form the bump. This assumes the content is transcendent and still relevant.

 

[TonyStark]

@MJ DeMarco Curious question.

This is an old thread. In fact, this guy asked this question even before I joined the forum.

Now, we usually tell people "use the search function" to find answers. That can sometimes lead to situations like this one, where people bump up a thread that hasn't had responses in 7 years.

It's a bit odd when people bump old threads (can clutter up new, hot conversation and bring up topics that don't need to be brought up), and yet people really should be using the search function.

Not only that, it can be hard to see the date of posting sometimes and people may not give any mind to it.

This happens a lot.

Are you going to allow (and/or encourage) people to bump up old threads like this in the interest of helping new forum users answer questions they might have had... or are we going to leave this one in the hands of 'general forum etiquette' (that is, don't bump old posts)?

That’s the beauty of TFF, we revisit old threads with new information/insight.

I love learning about something that happened 10 years ago! Nowhere else on the internet can you get a first person experience into what happened during the stock market crash, the internet boom, etc, etc.

They’re like Easter eggs scattered throughout the forum.

You can look at how a person’s views have evolved over time. How they learned and grew their business. All of their failures, they can go back to them with fresh eyes.

 

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[The-J]

I'm OK with it because generally there is a whole new crop of opinions and people who can benefit form the bump. This assumes the content is transcendent and still relevant.

I'd say this counts.

Anyway... social skills in business. OP referred to 'social skills' as well as 'who you know'. Social skills help build 'who you know' but they have way more importance than that. Social skills help you build rapport with anyone. Social skills help you sell. Social skills help you keep your customers and employees trusting you. Social skills help you communicate your vision for a business.

I really don't think there are any successful people without social skills. And no, Elon Musk doesn't count. He HAS social skills, even if he comes off as a stuttering mess on camera.

 

[NanoDrake]

Business ultimately is always about sales, and sales, are about relationships. Relationships are about being social.

This seals the 3D imoh.

Any successful entrepreneur I met always knew that they had to make sales in order to thrive.
Even the most "rogue" ones (I met a legend in our industry and say that he is anti social it's a compliment) forced themself out and do their best to mingle.
Or I remember the story of this guy that started at the flea market in order to get the first sales, hand to hand combat.

My theory is that ANY industry related event is a MUST attend and if you are the average of the 5 people you spend more time with, if you mingle with the kind of people you want to be at this events, eventually you will become one of them.

(this doesn't include a lot of other things that i consider also required such as hard work, good ideas an hard execution)