One of my least favorite tasks to do when I started my first business was to attend networking events. I did not enjoy the surface small talk and the heavy sales pitch by some. I am not one to promote myself with a heavy hand and it just felt uncomfortable to me. But as a business owner, you check all the boxes and do all the things when you want to succeed.

Once my business started taking off and was humming along, I was able to cut back on the networking events. Word of mouth was doing my networking for me. When I had an issue or problem I wasn’t sure how to solve, I would reached out to my own network of friends and former colleagues to share ideas and ask for advice. This was much more my kind of networking! I would also return the favor whenever I could. It can be some what isolating being in a small business by yourself - your network becomes your support team!

In my early teaching years, I noticed studio owners not wanting to share or connect with each other. There was a sense we were all competitors and out to steal each others clients. The reality is - there are enough people to go around who need what Pilates has to offer! I’ve seen this on social media - the concern about others sharing similar information or trying to target others clientele. Again - we do not have a shortage of people with movement issues … so why spend time worrying about this?

Through the years I have really realized the benefit of connecting with others doing what I am doing - whether it’s across the country or in the same city. During Covid, I was part of a running thread with a few others as we discussed what we were going to do and how we could safely reopen. We all had the same goals and same fears. Why wouldn’t we help each other?

After I sold my studio in Lexington, I was still in town for several weeks. Unfortunately one of the new owners flipped from being a friend to refusing to pay me for the teacher training I did with her, my time, her participation in classes, and my proprietary materials. It was disheartening and disappointing to invest in someone and be stiffed in the end. It left a bad taste and I did not feel welcome in a studio I had built and poured my heart into for three years. So what did I do? I reached out to my local network and was welcomed by another studio for the few weeks I had left. I had so much fun being her student and getting to chat business stuff as well.

In the studio I have met so many people who have become my network and I have been added to there’s. I truly love when the ladies in the studio share a resource or help each other out. I love the community we are able to build and the Pilates family we become. Networks can be so valuable. Whether it’s supporting your business or finding a good doctor … we all could use some support from time to time.

While you may not think of coming to Pilates class as building your network in a way you are … meeting with like minded people with the similar goals. That’s my kind of network!