Biznik Blog

In the 15 months since I joined Biznik, I’ve watched an inspiring process take root. Bizniks are not just growing, but thriving through their relationships. Starting next week, I’m going to tell the stories of these extraordinary connections, choosing one relationship to interview for each post.

I want to highlight what I call "Double-Jazzed" connections, where each person feels like they’re getting away with something illicit because it’s just so darned good. I believe Biznik is creating a disproportionate number of these super-good connections because of a simple difference of philosophy from the business world at large.

In Biznik, there’s an underlying commitment to the value of giving. Biznik members recognize that by giving more, they tend to receive more, in part because they’re strengthening their community.

My inspiration for this series came from my own recent experience teaching a class. I had decided that night to give all I had, to not hold back and just heap on every last bit of what I had learned in my work. While I was presenting, with the help of the attention and contributions of the participants, a cascade of insights and revelations went firing through my brain, connecting the dots on 12 years of research.

The result was a complete and utter shattering of my professional holding pattern. I knew from the the effusive feedback I received that people in the class felt they received very high value for the time and money they spent. But the value that came back to me was profoundly immeasurable. Out of my Double-Jazzed moment I’ve leapt into a new phase of growing my business, and I’m giddy with excitement about it.

I see all of us having moments like that. Giving from the heart, giving of ourselves, giving until we’re so full we’re bursting. And I see us learning as we go, getting better all the time. For example, we’re learning to cultivate customers in our business that we have fun serving, and dropping those who don’t value us. We’re redirecting our business focus to better serve our deeper passions. And we’re igniting the fire of collaboration by teaming up with peers to provide offerings neither of us can do alone.

Our community is on to something here, and I want us to notice and celebrate that. So consider this an invitation: I invite you to notice your own Double-Jazzed moments and connections. Then tell me about it. I’ll email both you and your Jazz-partner a small questionaire and check in with you by phone as well. And you’ll be featured right here on the Biznik blog. It’s a great way to get some exposure. And it just might inspire someone who’s been sitting on the sidelines to jump in and get involved.

Some Double-Jazzed connections you might consider:

• A conversation at a happy hour that opened your eyes to something new
• A client that thrived with your help and influenced you in return
• A Biznik who teamed up with you to do something cool
• A simple networking connection that led to a big job
• A class you taught that wound up teaching you something important
• An event you attended that led to unexpectedly great results
• A conversation on BizTalk that gave you a new perspective
• A major opportunity that would never have happened without Biznik

Contact me to share your story.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 27th, 2007 at 5:22 pm and is filed under News. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.