Edification – the fast track to building trust
By Know My Business AU In KMB Blog On October 30, 2015
The dictionary definition of edification is “to instruct and improve for the purpose of enlightenment”, but what it means in the context of a business introduction is much more significant.
Thinking about some of the introductions I’ve witnessed over the years makes me cringe. Have you ever been at a networking event where someone attempts an introduction between two potential business contacts and the result leaves both parties feeling confused and uncertain?
They usually go something like “Hi Mike, meet John. He’s an accountant at Parramatta. I think you could do something together. You two should talk.”
The great news is that introductions like this leave plenty of room for improvement!
Edification conveys positive, uplifting feelings about someone which helps another person to understand why they might like to work with them.
Introductions create first impressions, and using edification in an introduction is a fabulous way to create a great experience at the beginning of any relationship. Here’s a few ideas to help you use the principle of edification to introduce people with impact next time you want to connect someone.
- 1. Focus on value. Often, we can’t see our own value and if we do, find it difficult to communicate it humbly to business prospects. It’s much easier to talk about others though, so take time to discover the value of other people so you can speak with clarity. Talking to someone’s clients often uncovers their true value. A removalist client of an outsourced administration provider tells about having his life back due to the help he gets from his virtual PA. He’s able to eat dinner with the family every night instead of preparing quotes and booking jobs. Imagine how many different ways you could use a story like that to introduce the virtual assistant. Short stories are a great way to share someone’s value with a prospect.
- 2. Authenticity is critical. What you say when introducing someone has to resonate with your own truth about them. People sense any lack of integrity, so it’s important to temper edification with a dose of truthful reality. Rather than share what others have told you about someone, spend time getting to know them and work out how you can best build them up when introducing them. Having done that, if nothing positive resonates, don’t make the introduction.
- 3. Tone speaks louder than words. Temper your words and body language to match what you say. The most positive of scripts won’t do a thing if the accompanying tone and stance aren’t equally positive and warm. It’s the emotional connection that creates a willingness to move forward in any relationship, and as 90 per cent of communication is non-verbal, how we speak and carry ourselves is key in conveying a positive message.
Edification creates positive emotional currency. When someone hears you edifying them to others, an emotional connection is created that can be banked and collected upon at a later stage. Of course, this should never be the sole reason you edify someone with an honourable introduction. But it’s a very nice reward when someone returns the favour and introduces you in the same edifying manner that you used with them.