Right now, I am in the first few chapters of Keith Ferrazzi’s Never Eat Alone. According to my Kindle, I am 15% done (page 42 of 316) and I am loving every page of it. Can’t wait to finish it!

One of the topics addressed very early in the book is where Keith talks about networking vs. connecting. Here’s the specific excerpt I am talking about:

Over time, I came to see reaching out to people as a way to make a difference in people’s lives as well as a way to explore and learn and enrich my own; it became the conscious construction of my life’s path. Once I saw my networking efforts in this light, I gave myself permission to practice it with abandon in every part of my professional and personal life. I didn’t think of it as cold and impersonal, the way I thought of “networking.” I was, instead, connecting—sharing my knowledge and resources, time and energy, friends and associates, and empathy and compassion in a continual effort to provide value to others, while coincidentally increasing my own.

Keith raises a good point. There is a significant difference between networking and connecting. Let me detail it further:

Networking is about…

• Schmoozing
• Being cold and impersonal
• Taking care of you first
• Being fake; posing for others

Connecting is about…

• Finding ways to make other people successful
• Being warm and friendly
• Giving more than you get
• Focusing on others
• Building relationships

I hope you choose the latter.

How are you successfully connecting with others? 

I have spent one too many years writing boring and unmemorable business and marketing plans. Fortunately, a mentor pulled me aside one day and said I should change my approach and start writing Results Plans. Wow! What a difference it made.

What is a Results Plan? It’s a document focused on one thing only: RESULTS! It starts with having you focus on those true outcomes you want to achieve and then forces you to work backwards from that point.

Start using Results Plans!

For example, if your main goal is to lose 100 pounds, your “Ultimate Result” would be something like “I am at my ideal weight of 165 pounds by December 31, 2012.” It’s measurable and it is also stated in the positive. If your goal was stated as just “I want to lose 100 pounds” that is far less compelling so make sure to use “I am” statements where applicable.

Once you determine your “Ultimate Result” then you need to determine the handful of “Key Results” that will make that “Ultimate Result” a reality. Let’s take the above example one step further. You should have something that looks like:

RESULTS PLAN

Ultimate Result: “I am at my ideal weight of 165 pounds by December 31, 2012.”

Now, you write out the “Key Results” the will help you accomplish it…

Key Result #1: I am an active member at a local gym where I workout 5 days a week.

Key Result #2: I am a person who is passionate about my health where I only consume 1,800 calories a day.

Key Result #3: I am a triathlete. I make swimming, biking, and running an important part of my life 6 days a week.

Again, these are all stated in the “I am” format. All are measurable. And, all are stated in the positive.

Next, you must add “Objectives” to support the accomplishment of each “Key Result.”

Let’s use “Key Result #2″ as an example.

Key Result #2: I am a person who is passionate about my health where I only consume 1,800 calories a day.

This is where you starting writing the supporting objectives…

Objective 1: I will throw away all junk food.

Objective 2: I will stop eating fast food. Period.

Objective 3: I will eat six tiny meals a day.

Your “Objectives” then become your action items. That’s it.

It’s simple. It’s straightforward. It produces results.

What approach has worked best for you?

One of Ethos3′s Core Values (#2 to be exact) is “Pursue Growth and Learning.” Why? We strongly believe in continuous improvement and personal growth.

Invest the time to read!

If a person isn’t growing, then there is no reason why we should expect the company to grow as well. Businesses are only as good as its people so we want our team to consistently look for new ways to grow personally and professionally. To help encourage their personal growth we have done 2 important things:

1. Kindles for all.
Growth comes from learning and learning comes from reading. Instead of building an official library at our office, we are simply providing Kindles to each and every employee. One account, many books, and plenty of opportunity to grow and learn. We will be starting with one required reading per month. Here’s a partial list:

As a Man Thinketh by James Allen
Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh
Peak by Chip Conley
Enchantment by Guy Kawasaki
Good to Great by Jim Collins
The Five Major Pieces of the Life Puzzle by Jim Rohn

2. Ethos3 University
We are also creating Ethos3 University where we can mentor and groom future leaders of the organization. One thing I learned early in life is that everyone needs a mentor. In fact, people like Harvey Mackay had 20 coaches at one point in time – a writing coach, a speech coach, a humor coach, and on and on. Finding and engaging a mentor is critical to success. The few minutes you will get to spend to share your struggles, hear their advice, and tweak your vision is priceless. I really love what John Wooden shares about mentoring:

“Mentoring is your true legacy. It is the greatest inheritance you can give to others. And it should never end. It is why you get up every day. To teach and to be taught.”

It is so valuable for the mentoree as well as the mentor.

I hope you are pursuing growth and learning daily. If not, start with a good book. It’s a habit that will serve you well.

What books have changed your life?

I have had the privilege to run 6 marathons in my lifetime, and each time it was a fulfilling and memorable experience. More importantly, the journey to get to each starting line was more powerful than the experience itself.

Run!

Yesterday, I officially invited my entire team to participate in the upcoming St. Jude Country Music Marathon which will be taking place on April 28th here in Nashville. It’s a beautiful course which features live bands and some of Nashville’s best landmarks. If you are a runner, you should definitely check it out.

What’s in it for my team?

A number of things:

• The opportunity to participate in something significant; a memory that will last a lifetime
• The opportunity to focus on health, exercise, and better eating habits
• The opportunity to build self-confidence
• The opportunity to increase mental alertness via better blood flow that results from running
• The opportunity to lose weight
• The opportunity to experience the beauty of compounding with their workouts