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This is the she's in business podcast, where every week I'll explore topics and have real conversations around what it's like to run a regional business, the advantages and the unique challenges. I'm Donna Han, a seasoned regional business owner, and certified high performance business coach. I'm here to make training and professional development easily accessible for regional business women everywhere. So join me and guest experts as we share tools and insights to elevate your business, boost your mindset, and ensure that you never feel alone on this journey. No matter where you live. I'm fired up. And I'm here to educate you on what it truly takes to grow your business and your mindset beyond what you thought possible. If you've ever felt isolated or limited by a geographical location when it comes to networking, this episode is for you. Were going to explore the solutions that I've discovered as a regional business owner to help you unlock your full potential of your network when you're not in a major city. Welcome to the shaysing business podcast where the topics I cover are all about empowering regional business women to rise and soar towards success. I'm your host, Dr. Han, I'm a certified high performance business coach, and a long term regional business owner. And today, we're diving into a topic that's really important for every regional business, networking, networking secrets that will help you to build powerful connections when you're not in a major city. And I'm diving right in today. Let's start by addressing the elephant in the room. geographical barriers. As a regional business woman, you might feel that you're missing out on networking opportunities that are abundant in major cities, and not so common or accessible in regional, rural or remote areas. But there are ways to overcome these challenges. And that's what I'm going to share with you today. Firstly, by sharing that you want to embrace the power of online networking platforms. So platforms like LinkedIn is a great one, industry specific forums that you might come across online, and social media groups can connect you with like minded professionals from all around the globe. So I want you to take advantage of virtual conferences, as well and webinars to these things, both online networking platforms, conferences, webinars, they're a goldmine for expanding your network without leaving your hometown, without even leaving your home office if you work from home. And the most important, impactful way that you can build your network from these kinds of things is to personally reach out and create a personalized outreach. So when you are wanting to create connections, the best thing I can advise you to do is to reach out to those people. So for example, if you are maybe attending a online conference, and there's someone within that online conference that has really sparked your interest, they might have shared something in the chat box or something like that. And you're like, Wow, that sounds really fascinating. If I make a connection with anyone inside a virtual event, I will go out of my way to figure out where I can find them. You know, I might actually if there's a chat box option, I will actually, you know, send them a message for Hey, what's your email address? Or can I get your social media handle, and I'll go follow them and I'll check out their stuff. And then I will do a purchase personal reach out to them. So make it personal, make it genuine, right? You want to show interest in what they do how they do it. And build start to build that connection and it might take you stepping out of your comfort zone. To do that personal reach out. Now I formed some really great professional relationships, which have become friendships. And that started with me sending a message on Instagram to someone in my industry or to someone who shares similar passion or interest. And let me be clear here this is not like an icky sales DM you know the ones those ones from random people who send you a DM and like I love this stuff. Have you thought Do you need some more eyes on your account? Or do you want to develop such and such within your business? You know, straight away that that's a sales DM right? It's icky. Don't like those ones. First reaction for me is to delete and block. You know what I'm talking about? We're not talking about that. What I'm talking about is a genuine DM, follow their account, comment on the things they're doing, celebrate them, support them. Follow up with a thoughtful message and a gesture that adds value to the relationship that you're building. Building quality connections often will lead to meaningful collaborations and opportunities in the future. And that's been really true for me. So lots of as an example, and lots of the guest experts and presenters, who are coming to the regional business, women's membership and present a masterclass or who come and join me on this podcast. Some of those have come from personal reach outs that I've initiated. And then we've gotten to know each other, we've sparked conversations, and over time, it builds. And I've now got business buddies all over the world, all over the world, different industries, you know, different interests, such a great variety, like a melting pot, and I'm based in regional Queensland, I'm 600 K's north of my nearest big city. So if it's possible for me, then it's possible for you to, and you can leverage things like connections within, for example, the Regional Business woman's membership, like our community is filled with ambitious business women who just like you, they're eager to connect. They're eager to collaborate and support one another's growth. It's your gateway to overcoming geographical barriers and expanding your network in meaningful ways. You know, and we, every month, we have an online networking session. And I think of Carrie, who is located in Karratha. In Western Australia, for those listening who don't know where that is. It's far northwestern Australia 1600 Kay's, I believe, from the nearest city, which is Perth. And she commented just the other day, that she turns up to the online networking sessions, just to meet people outside of her small town because she loves connection, you know, it's one of her highest values, and connection comes down to nurturing meaningful relationships. So building powerful connections isn't just about numbers, it's not about the number of connections that you have. That is irrelevant if you're not nurturing, and turning those connections into meaningful relationships that stand the test of time. So let me share with you some actionable strategies for nurturing those professional relationships. And I've already kind of touched on it, and it is taking that extra step, making the extra effort to make your interactions memorable. So for example, if you happen to come across someone who's attending an online webinar or something like that, with you, make it memorable, make those interactions memorable, by commenting on something that they've commented on, and then reaching out to them via private message, remind them of where you came across, a came across them and why it was so impactful for you and you wanted to create a relationship with them. Follow up like it's really important. send that email, send that message after a networking event or a conversation, be it online or in person, it shows genuine interest in the person that you're connecting with. Right? It shows that you're the type of person that is genuine and will go out of their way to connect really important, find some common ground, then add some value to the conversation, share some insights, share some resources that have helped you and you feel might resonate with them, like you've got to give to building and nurturing that relationship. And I always recommend offering value back into your network. So share your knowledge, share your expertise, share your resources generously, when you contribute value, you become a value, a valuable connection in return that they also want to develop a meaningful relationship with, right? So it becomes a win win for building long lasting relationships that go beyond just superficial networking, right.
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The other thing is, it's important for you to find a hub where you can build relationships that fill your need for connection and fill your need for a sense of belonging to a community. That's really important, right? As a business owner, if you're located in a regional, rural or remote area, it can feel so isolating sometimes. And yes, you might be part of a community, you know, in another element of your life, but to be part of a business community, particularly when you're quite isolated, is so important. And not only is it important for you as a person because you will go through the ups and downs of business ownership, but it's also it can fuel your business growth. Whether that's something like the regional businessmans membership, or it's a group on social media, or you're attending in person networking events, like the one that I run in the Gladstone region, find something Find something that feels good to you find something that fosters meaningful connections and collaborations, it's really important that you don't feel alone in your business journey. Because like I mentioned before, there will be ups and downs. And you will need support. It doesn't matter how long you've been in business, it could be, you know, your first year in business, it could be you're coming to the end of your first decade in business, you need to back yourself with a community of like minded business women, really important, really important. I can't stress that enough. I know for me, I don't think I would have lasted in business as long as I have. If I didn't have a community of women who get it, who get what it's like to run a business, who get what it's like to know that running a business isn't the only thing that I do much like you I imagine, you know, and I've always had, I've always consciously built a community, I've always consciously built a hub, that I feel comfortable in comfortable to share vulnerably comfortable to ask questions without feeling silly, and really comfortable in celebrating what other people are doing, and share what I'm doing so that they can celebrate me too. Because, you know, sometimes, we just go from one thing to the next to the next to the next. And we don't celebrate, we don't acknowledge the things that we've achieved along the journey, that by having a community where you can be like, Hey, guys, this happened today. You know, it just, it just makes things feel good. And I think that that then continues to build your mojo. So that you can keep showing up time after time. Even when things don't go the way that maybe you had planned, you know, it's so important to have that support. The other thing I want to touch on here is leveraging local resources and partnerships. So whilst online networking is very powerful, let's not overlook the value of local resources and partnerships that might exist in your area. So your regional community could be a treasure trove of networking opportunities, if you know where to look. So I would consider joining local business associations and chambers of commerce if you have them in your area. These organizations will often host networking events and workshops and seminars tailored to regional businesses, it's a really great way to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, and decision makers that are in your area. If you don't have these types of events, you could create your own event. And it doesn't have to be anything flashy or fancy. It could just be you gathering together a small group of people at a cafe for a coffee, it can be really simple. And essentially, that's how the Regional Business Women connect events started. So that's an event that I run locally in person in the Gladstein Queensland region, and you'd be more than welcome to come along and attend. You can find information about that on my website. There are lots of networking Well, I wouldn't say lots, there's a few networking events in my area. But what I discovered is that they happen at times that really don't suit me. So they're 7am breakfast meetings, it's 5pm event 5pm evening events. And it just doesn't work with my schedule. So I started a small gathering of regional business women. And now we sell out the events every time. So if you don't have it in your area, or you don't have something that suits you, chances are it probably doesn't suit other people too. And perhaps you could gather those other people together and create your own event. The other thing you can do is attend industry specific events in your region if you have them. So whether it's a trade show or business expo, community, fundraiser, events, anything like that these can provide you with valuable networking opportunities with potential clients with potential partners collaborations. Don't underestimate the power of face to face connection in your local business ecosystem. Really important. And failing that if you don't have those kinds of in person events in your area, or you've been along to those kinds of events before and it just was clicky or it wasn't quite your vibe, you just didn't really feel that it added any value to you and where you are at the moment in your business or in your industry. Of course, I'm going to say the Regional Business Women's membership is here to support you in that way, or to complement your local networking efforts. So our community brings together women from diverse backgrounds and industries and experiences you know, we have some people who are just starting out in business, some people who've been in business for decades, and it creates this really rich tapestry of connections and collaborations that will support you every step of the way along your business journey. And it's the perfect blend of local and global networking for regional business women. And it's an incredible resource. It's an online community designed for women just like you who are craving that practical support and training because we do a lot of masterclasses that are bite sized giving you the information that you need to stay ahead of the game to cut through the competition and to really grow your business. But it's also about building that network of ambitious business women who keep it real. Because we keep it real, my friend, we, we keep it real, we say it how things are we ask the questions that need to be asked. And it's a beautiful community that I'm really, really proud of. So you can head to the website. If you want to learn more. If you want to join us today, we'd love to welcome you in the links in the show notes too. But it's super easy. Just go to Donna han.com. And you can find all that information there. Today, we've unlocked some of my secrets for regional networking success, from overcoming those geographical barriers to nurturing meaningful relationships, and then to leveraging your local resources. And now you have the tools and strategies to build some powerful connections no matter where you're based. All you need to do is add a dash of courage, get out there and make it happen. So I want to thank you for tuning into this episode of the season in business podcast. And if you found today's episode really beneficial if you found it valuable. I'd love it if you could share it with other regional business women who could also benefit from these networking tips too. So until next time, keep rising, keep soaring, keep shining, and keep building those powerful connections. Thank you so much for tuning into this episode of The shiz in business podcast. Make sure you hit follow so that you are the first to know as soon as a new episode drops. And if you really want to deliver me smiles send me a DM find me on Instagram at Donna Han underscore coach and tell me what you loved most about this episode. Also, feel free to let me know what topics you need to learn more about if you are a regional businesswoman, ready to rise and soar towards success. I'll see you back here next week for another episode.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
