Success Defined

I've recently been following the blog and tweets of a national "big name" sales coach.

Are sales coaches 'big names'? Or just 'medium names'?

Well, he's a big name in his field.

Anyways, late last night I decided to try and connect with him on LinkedIn. I'm not sure what I expected; perhaps I didn't have any expectations. But guess what happened: Mr. National Sales Coach accepted my invitation at 6:04 this morning and he sent a personal note to me:

"Thanks for the invite Kathie!  Here's some additional contact information:  (facebook, twitter, etc.) Enough about me, where else can I connect with you?"

How very cool. Nationally-known coaches are past the place where they need to connect with every random person. And he more than connected, in the LinkedIn sense of connecting. He reached out, and in doing so, he modeled an important lesson in sales:  Engage every prospect.

But his final phrase took it one step further. "Where else can I connect with you?" implied that I, a stranger yet, was valuable - valuable enough to try to know in other places and in other ways.

In one brief sentence, he affirmed me.  And he caused me to pause and reflect: Do I affirm my connections, on LinkedIn and in every other segment of my life? Because really, when you get down to it, the way you make others feel about themselves is the most important measure of your success in this life.

So here's to Mr. National Sales Coach ~ thanks for taking that extra step, for validating me as a businessperson. It was such a little thing, and yet it meant so much.