Three Sure Fire Ways to Cultivate Positive Business Relationships

As a small businessperson, you have no greater leverage than the truth.
John Greenleaf Whittier

All lasting business is built on friendship.
Alfred A. Montapert

In the current economic climate, more and more people are looking at ways to create a little income on the side. Yet income creation is based on business and business on relationships. This concept was driven home for me a 2 years ago when I bought a property in a short sale. The property was all-but-abandoned. Windows were broken. The roof was in bad shape. I have several properties insured with a Allstate so I called them to insure this one. The agent agreed to insure the property and set up the policy. about a month after closing, I began receiving letters from Allstate indicating that they were going to cancel the policy because of deficiencies concerning the property. Because I acquired the property in short-sale and because the property was in pretty bad shape, I already had a plan in place to rehab the property prior to close. That plan was underway when I began receiving the letters. I contacted the agent-owner of my local agency to voice my extreme dismay. She told me that normally Allstate would not have insured the property, but because her office's long-standing relationship with me and because I always do what I say I am going to do, her agency decided to underwrite the policy. Unfortunately a producer in the local office failed to communicate Allstate's concerns to me in a timely manner so that I could address their concerns and I ended up finding another insurance provider.

The first sure-fire way to cultivate a positive business relationship is to operate with integrity. The definition of integrity is as follows:
1. adherence to moral principles; honesty
2. the quality of being unimpaired; soundness
unity; wholeness
In short, you do what you are going to do when you are going to do it and you do it with honesty. Relationships are most fragile in their early stages and anything can break or damage a relationship. Integrity must be at work 100% of the time for a would-be entrepreneur to cultivate lasting, meaningful, profitable relationships. Allstate was willing to do business with me on a specific property because of their positive experience with me. Although our arrangement did not work out when I first acquired the property, it has worked out subsequently.

The second sure-fire way to cultivate a positive business relationship is to be timely in what ever you commit to doing. This means that you are on time to business appointments and you meet deadlines. I and several business associates once took a coaching class from a gentleman successful in the area of recruiting in network marketing. We each paid $500 dollars for a total of 4 sessions or $125 dollars per hour. While we all eventually got our 4 hours and the guy had great information when we got him on the phone, catching up with him was a nightmare. He frequently canceled appointments at the last minute and occasionally did not inform his client base that the appointments had been canceled. He acted as though his schedule was more important than his client's. He wasn't timely and his coaching business went the way of the do-do. Surely things happen, though and there must be room for forgiveness when someone isn't timely. Honestly, I am not so sure. When people fail to be timely, they very often believe they are providing a valid reason, when they are simply providing an excuse. Here is the definition of excuse:
1.
a. To explain (a fault or an offense) in the hope of being forgiven or understood.
b. To apologize for (oneself) for an act that could cause offense.
2.
To grant pardon to; forgive.
To make allowance for; overlook.
3. To serve as justification for.
4. To free, as from an obligation or duty; exempt.
5. To give permission to leave; release.
The definition of excuse implies that an offense has occurred and that the person providing the excuse is looking for forgiveness.

Here is the definition of reason:
1. The basis or motive for an action, decision, or conviction.
2. A declaration made to explain or justify action, decision, or conviction.
3. An underlying fact or cause that provides logical sense for a premise or occurrence.
4. The capacity for logical, rational, and analytic thought; intelligence.
5. Good judgment; sound sense.
6. A normal mental state; sanity.
Logic A premise, usually the minor premise, of an argument.

Reason implies the rational use of mental faculties. Would someone rationally and with conviction choose to miss an important deadline or meeting? Probably not. Most people looking who miss a meeting or deadline are looking for forgiveness and hoping that the business relationship will continue. Avoid any potential conflicts altogether and be timely in all of your communications and work. You will distinguish yourself from the bulk of people in business buy being consistently timely and you will set yourself up for quality referrals from people who value your integrity and timeliness.

The third sure-fire way to cultivate a positive business relationship is to offer content or value. I use the terms interchangeably. Value defined:
1. An amount, as of goods, services, or money, considered to be a fair and suitable equivalent for something else; a fair price or return.
2. Monetary or material worth.
3. Worth in usefulness or importance to the possessor; utility or merit.
A principle, standard, or quality considered worthwhile or desirable.

If you expect someone to pay you money, you must offer something in trade that they value more than the money. I drive a Prius because its usefulness to me is more than the cost of the car. Other people drive a Tesla because its usefulness and importance to them is more than the price of that car.

All lasting business is built on friendship and integrity, timeliness and content are the keys to developing friendship. If you desire to break into the business world and be profitable long term, you must bring these three qualities to your business game.