Winning Smiles

Lot of stuff goin' on.

Last week my friend Dave Bodner was one of twenty community leaders chosen for the 20 Under 40 Award. As a matter of fact, two other friends made it a trio. Angie Weid, see her Organized Solutions blog and Michael Temple were honored too. I felt like a proud mother hen, because all three are Certified Networker grads. That meant we (they) cornered 15% of the award territory that night.

Just so you know, my goal for next year is to increase that by 5% and have four people from our CN grad community win the award. Dave, Angie and Michael all certainly deserved the recognition. They do many things in the community to set themselves apart from the mainstream. Along with their high caliber comes the fact that they were nominated.

In the CN course we encourage nominations. It is a no-brainer in the way that it helps to develop the relationship between two people, when one person has to sit down and ask the other to divulge all the good things that have not been mentioned in polite (after all, mom said to never brag about yourself.) conversation. It certainly cements the friendship.

So a HUGE congratulation to Dave, Angie and Michael and also to the people who took the time to write and submit the nomination.

Now, what's next?

A Good Guy

I just found out that my friend, Dave Achen, was named Business Person of the Year for the Sylvania (Ohio) Chamber of Commerce. Dave had asked me to nominate him and I was more than happy to do so, as he is truly an advocate of the chamber. My only regret is that I was not able to attend the event where his recognition was announced.

Dave and I go back a long ways. I first met when he asked to have coffee and then proceeded to do a "sales" presentation with charts and graphs, of why I needed to invest with him. Needless to say, I ran from Dave! We laugh about it now. But he was only doing what he had been told to do.

Fast forward a number of years. Another friend, Jennifer Alford, at that time was the marketing director of the company Dave worked for. She realized the value of the Certified Networker class and she put nine people from the company through the course. One of those was Dave.

He was not happy to be in the class. His body language told me that! After all, he had taken every class known to man. What new could we possible have for him.

The rest is history. Dave got involved. He realized the value of developing relationships. One person he met through CN gave him a referral that is still putting big money in his pocket. Dave also gives back.

I am proud that Dave is my friend and am so happy that the rest of our area has recognized his talents.

Please send Dave your congratulations, too.

Nomination Series #2

So many people think that a nomination should be a big secret, that if and when the nominee wins, if should be a big surprise. Sort of like a surprise birthday party.

They couldn't be more wrong!

You see this is all about relationship development. The win is the icing on the cake. The nomination process is the cake.

Having the nominee aware and part of the writing of the application will help you to know that person that much better. Each time I have nominated someone, I find out all kinds of good stuff that I didn't know before about this person. You also get to tell your friend why you have selected them for nomination.

Think about it. How many chances do we have to tell our friend how much we admire them?

Who would you like to nominate for an award so that you can tell them how much they mean to you?

Nomination Series #1

There is no better way to build a stronger relationship with someone than to nominate them for an award. The process of creating the application will reap benefits that you had never imagined.

• You will find out new stuff about the person you thought you knew very well. It will give more marketing material when you advocate on behalf of this person.
• You'll spend time intensely focused on this person. They will feel honored and want to pay you back.
• Others will see you as someone to know, because you know how to promote the good stuff about people.
  

Today is the beginning of a blog series that I will write about how to write winning nominations.

1) Research the types of awards in your community, and also in your industry. Determine if your friend fits within the criteria for one. Read the nomination form carefully to understand what is required. Also note the deadline. You'll want to have the completed nomination ready four or five days before that date. If the form asks for two pages of information, don't give three. Having been on several selection committees, I must admit that I had a bias towards those who stayed within the guidelines. Think of reading a hundred or so entires. Extra length was not a good thing!

I will continue this topic with even more information on how to develop a better relationship while writing a winning nomination.