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Having spent the better part of 2020 and 2021 with Tony Robbins (through his virtual events), one of the main things you learn about - are the circles of your life and where you spend your time. In a nutshell, it breaks down like this .
This is the circle where we focus on "me time". We have the most influence over this circle, but we usually avoid spending time here or put it on hold. We put everything else first, including family, friends, and work and don't consciously take time out for ourselves. But we should.
It's not about being self-centred or superficial. This is the circle where we spend time making sure that we are ready for what comes next, ready to take the hits and run the marathons, and where we look after ourselves. Physically, mentally, emotionally, financially and spiritually.
We neglect and abuse this circle. Seriously, when was the last time you got up and thought - "I'm going to spend time working on my relationships with other people today"? We don't consciously go out of our way to do this, but it is one of - if not the most - rewarding circles of the three.
Building relationships is a part of our day to day life. Everything from your relationship with your morning coffee (or the machine) through to your business interactions, office interactions, engagements, online experiences and so on - this circle is the most important.
If you want more juice out of life, then live here more often and spend the time expanding this circle.
We spend way too much time here. At the least, 1/3rd of our lives. At the most, more than half. Work is a means to an end, but as we spend so much time here, we need to understand the "why" around this circle. As an example;
I am always working. Both businesses now work across more than two continents, across different time zones and our teams are in four other countries. (Thank you to the people who invented the communication platforms we use. We couldn't do this without these tools.)
On top of this, consulting to government takes up most of my day to day time, working with my team most of the evenings, and when the baby arrives, well, we will see what happens.
On the topic of "why", - I do this because I need to contribute and solve problems. It is one of the main drivers for me, and it is what get's me up in the morning. I do this because I choose to.
Let's put this into a marketing context. At Aquafruit, we use the concept of connections and circles every day, and - when putting together marketing campaigns- we look at the problem we are trying to solve from at least five different perspectives.
The perspective of
At least (there are more).
One of the exercises we do is to look at the circles that our clients engage with and look at the connections around them. For example (and by no means complete);
When you look at this from a holistic perspective, you can see that the opportunities are expansive. Not just from a commercial perspective but from the relationship perspective. And everyone in business who is successful knows that connections and good relationships are the lifeblood of business.
Connections to clients, suppliers, influencers, potential clients, partners, agencies, government bodies, competition - all the way through to the postman/woman and people you haven't met yet.
Connections;
And this all leads to a better, happier, more fulfilling life.
Relationships underpin everything you do in business, from the engagements with your clients, partners, family, friends, supply chains and communities.
If you don't focus on time here, you will miss out, but you are also putting your business at risk. If you want to grow and expand your business, you need a relationship strategy as part of your growth kit.
If you want to know how the team at Aquafruit defines, builds and implements a relationship strategy, you need to do two things.
Circling back to where we started, the circles at the top of this article clearly call out where I spend most of my time (at the moment). Moving forward as 2022 will be the year of connections, our focus will be more in establishing and creating connections so we can form relationships and nurture them.
From this comes opportunities. Opportunities to grow. Opportunities to be successful. Opportunities to spend more time - in the circle that matters.
If you need help defining your circles, or looking at a more holistic strategy around your marketing - including the connections you need to build, and opportunities to widen your circles, please reach out. We are always happy to help.
And remember, 2022 is the year of connections.
