One is Silver and the Other is Gold…
After advising you to get rid of some friends, I want to make sure you make some new friends. Susie is a 2009 friend who randomly entered my world of FaceBook. For the first month I debated hiding her as she posts a lot of links. Each day as I looked thru my news feed, I’d think…”Oy Vey…this crazy lady is going to kill me.” Yet each day, something Susie posted would interest me enough to keep her around for another day. Also, because I effectively use Lists on FaceBook (see earlier post), her frequent posts did not negatively impact my news feed. People like Susie keep FaceBook fresh and interesting, she is solid gold.
Along the way, we got together for coffee before work and got to know each other beyond FB. Instead of wanting to hide Susie, I look forward to seeing her around town, like last week at the Imagine Benefit. She stopped by to say hi and make a donation to help save kids enslaved in Nepal. As she met my family, I was reminded of the importance of going out. You will almost always run into people you know and be reminded of activities you should be following up on. Susie took the opportunity to remind me of the local blogger meet up by the Lake Erie Moose Society. I was planning on going, but the gentle reminder was enough to make me verbally commit. Susie is a VERY effective networker and I love the picture above, it really captures the exuberance Susie brings to everything she does.
As you are out over the holidays, keep your business cards handy and make some new friends. Follow up quickly on a network like LinkedIn and make plans to get together in January when all of our schedules slow down. Whatever you do, avoid letting those cards you collect sit in a pile gathering dust. You might put on a few pounds as you lighten the wallet eating lunch or breakfast out, but it is critical to your future that you stay social and engaged with your friends and network. Email, call, text, IM your people and get plans on the calendar. The more you listen, the more you share, the more you will find opportunities for you to help people and work together with people. Be More Social.
The title is a song we used to sing at the Windham Tolland 4-H Camp as we left Time For Thought. I sing it to Olivia today as it is still relevant to me and an important reminder. “Make New Friends, but Keep the Old…One is Silver and the Other is Gold.” I might have lost some of the words along the way, but I always hum a few verses and sing it somewhat randomly. What does this song mean to you???
