Business Collaboration
Adele Alfano
 
Collaboration is a key element in taking your business practice to the next level. Effectively putting together resources, energy, talents, and goals, paves the way for the success that you plan together, as well as many unexpected benefits. As co-publishers of the ‘Expert Women Speak Out!’ self-published series and the about-to-be-released “Sales Gurus Speak Out” book, we have pooled our talents and energy to coordinate and produce collaborative books for professional business owners. We are amazed by the ease and fun of our work together – and are unscathed and still friends. Go figure! If you are thinking of putting together a collaboration with another business or person, we offer you some business tips, advice, and some of the pitfalls to avoid:
- Collaboration begins the minute you have the inspiration for a project – even if you don’t know who you want to collaborate with! Know that ‘collaborative thinking’ is a different process than thinking solely about your work for yourself.
- Recognize that when you collaborate, a new energy is created that is ‘bigger than both of you’. To make your project really soar, incorporate masterminding principles and techniques. The book ‘Think and Grow Rich’ is the root source for this information, and there is an explosion of information about masterminding on the Internet.
- Have a specific vision, and make sure that it is one that you share. If there are aspects of the vision that are not the same for both of you, discuss them and determine if they can be included, or if they need to be discarded. Having your own agenda will undermine, and even sabotage your collaborative effort.
- From this shared vision, your goals will flow. Be specific, write them down, and work on making them as succinct as possible. Create a written mission statement and develop an action plan. Be as specific as possible, and include the tasks you each have, and the roles that each of you play.
- Develop a contract with each other that can be notarized. Be specific about monetary and time commitments, and the division of the benefits from the project.
- To make a collaborative effort work, you need to set regular meeting times with an agenda. Have specific, clear goals with deadlines. We are all so busy, that it is very easy to move away from the vision of the project, and to lose focus.
- Unconditionally accept the other person's skills, and methods of working. Do not expect the other person to work as you do. It will cause a situation of constant friction and tension. Park your ego at the door.
- Utilize the skills that are unique for that person. One persons’ expertise may be in marketing and sales, and another in writing, editing, and her knowledge of a certain industry. Be willing to sit back, and let the other person shine in their unique way. Trust is the key.
- Do not be afraid to express your feelings, doubts and concerns, but do not become ‘lost’ in them as well. Keep the lines of communication open and equal between collaborators. At the same time, recognize if you are colluding with each other in any fears that you may have. Getting ‘stuck together’ in your doubts will steal the energy from your project.
- Liking the person that you are working with first really energizes your project. If your collaborative relationship is built on friendship, mutual respect, trust, and lots of humour, the work will be effortless and fruitful.
Byline:
Adele Alfano adele@diamondwithin.com and Kathy Glover Scott of altruth@golden.net are the co-publishers and editors of five volumes of self-published books called Expert Women Who Speak- Speak Out! www.expertwomenspeakout.com Seventy-five women who are professional motivational speakers, coaches and trainers from across Canada and the USA have contributed one chapter each. The book series has circulated 40,000 books in print and has the potential of generating half a million dollars in sales due to the fine art of collaboration. Their upcoming collaborative book Sales Gurus Speak Out! will feature 15 top-notch sales professionals from all across Canada and will be available in book stores in September 2005.
Copyright Adele Alfano
www.adelealfano.com/
Reprint is welcome with permission only.
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