Have you ever wondered how some people just seem to have all of the opportunities. They seem to get the gigs. They seem to work with great people. They just seem to somehow make things happen. Today I am going to share with you how I think they do that.

So how do these people make all of these things happen for themselves? I did do a Facebook Live awhile ago on how to create opportunities, but this, I think, is a little skill that if you can perfect, can make a massive difference in your business and I call it the art of asking. Absolutely one of the key things that you can really get good at is how to ask for the things that you need.

1// Know what you want to ask for!

Today I'm going to give you a few tips on how you can get great at asking for what you want. The first one is obviously know exactly what you want. Really think about the key things that you would like to be doing more of, the types of people you want to be connected to. What is it that you want? I'm not talking about a long shopping list. I'm just talking about a couple of core, key goals that you want to make sure you achieve this year. Really understanding what it is that you want is obviously going to help you to ask for the right things.

2// Know who to ask

The second thing is identifying who are the people that can potentially help you to achieve those things. Taking a look around you, it may be people you know, it may be people that you might need to be introduced to through your networks, but who are they and what exactly is it that they are going to be able to help you to do?

3// It's time to ask

The third is then asking. Now, you have to do this in the right way. My online boy, Gary Vee, always talks about the value equation, so you always want to be going in 51-49, where hopefully you can also be providing value, especially if you are looking at potential collaboration.

3.1//  The Collab ASK

This is the first type of ask where you're actually going to be saying, “Listen, are you interested in us doing x, y and z together?” I asked yesterday a podcaster if she was interested in doing a Facebook Live together on how people can get on a podcast because she's got a really big podcast herself and one of my clients asked that question. I also thought this is a really good topic for Play Big, Brand Bold to do on The Connection Exchange Facebook page to talk about how you can play a bigger game by getting yourself on things like a podcast.

There's obviously an opportunity for her to then access my audience and promote her podcast. There's also then the opportunity for me to bring value that is going to feed into some of the topics that I've got in my new e-course. Once again, think about how that collaboration can obviously be of equal value.

3.2// The Offer ASK

The next ask is potentially one where the other person doesn't get any value and you get all the value, but it's an ask where there's been an offer. One of my clients actually had somebody that she knows who's got quite a large audience say to her, “If you've got anything going on in your business, then send it to me and I'm happy to share it with my audience.” I said to her, “Well, why don't you do that?” Obviously there was a feeling of, “Oh, but what's the value for her? How can I do that or send that to her?” I just said,

“When somebody offers, just say, ‘Thanks very much' and take them up on the offer.” This is when you're following up on an offer and you're saying, “Hey, thanks so much for the offer. Here's my stuff. Would you mind sharing it?” There's an ask there where potentially there may or may not be value for that person, but they're wanting to help you out.

Have a think about that too. Who's offered? Well, who can you take up on their offers in regards to supporting you and your business? Don't be shy. You've kind of got to get over that and just identify and recognise opportunities when they present themselves to you.

3.3// The Trusted ASK

The next type of ask is the trusted ask. What I mean by that is where you've got a community or a group of clients who know you, like you and trust you, who you offer value to and you kind of just say, “Hey there. I really need x, y and z. Can anybody help me out?” You'll usually get a really good response. The other day I changed the template of my Facebook Business page, which is The Connection Exchange page and I realised I didn't have any reviews on the page. It was something that was highlighted, that I needed to have, so I just put a call out saying, “If you've worked with me, done coaching, been to an event, had a workshop, whatever it is, if you've had any interaction with me and you'd like to share a little bit about it, I would love you to go to The Connection Exchange page and write a review.” I also then encouraged them that if they had other clients in the group to also ask the same question and the hashtag was #askforwhatyouwant. I'm definitely going to be using that hashtag a little bit more.

I was so happy to see some really great reviews come onto The Connection Exchange Facebook page about people's experiences, which is fantastic. (Feel free to write a review if we've worked together!) **see what I did there 🙂 #thetrustedask

Really have a think about all of the different asks that you can learn the art of using in your business. Make sure that you take people up on their offers, you will identify who are the right people that can help you and obviously make sure that you're asking in the right way.

 

If you're interested in checking out more information on Play Big, Brand Bold ecourse then make sure you head over here!