An article about building relationships through the gift of content.
Do you ever have in-depth conversations on a topic both you and the other person are really into? Maybe you’re talking about a business deal, or the future of one of your careers, or the details of a favorite hobby. Whatever it is, it’s an amazing thing to be able to share on that level with someone. You almost don’t want the conversation to end.
And maybe it doesn’t have to. You can go home and think about that conversation, maybe do some research on the topic or develop some new insights.
If you have been creating content, you may already have a blog or podcast or video on the topic. Then you can share what you’ve found with the person you were talking with. You can say “here, I thought this might interest you.”
Maybe what you send is a magazine article or a blog you found somewhere, or maybe the title of a book. I like recommending books and articles to my friends. This is good food for thought, and thinking is a very underrated activity!
But imagine if you could send something you created? Imagine taking one of the insights you gained from the conversation, maybe something your friend (or new connection) said, and extrapolating from it, developing it, exploring it, and then sharing it.
Still wondering how you can create a new piece of content? Use the conversations you are having to be the idea for production.
The best gifts are made, after all, not bought.
This is one of the reasons that recording your thoughts in the form of a blog or a podcast or a video is so important—yes, it’s a way you can share your thinking with strangers. It’s a way to reach out to people you don’t know, maybe as part of your business, or as part of a cause you’re involved with, or for some other reason.
But you can also share this public creative work of yours with the people you know—so you can extend those conversations.
So you can say, “here, I made this for you. I thought it would interest you.”
Give the gift of content.