There are numerous sayings about what you should do when opportunity knocks. But you’ll never capitalize on opportunity if she can’t even get to your door.
Here are 5 reasons opportunity might not be knocking at your door, inspired by a Tweet from Vala Afshar, chief marketing officer of Extreme Networks.
1. Your lights are off.
Does the outside appearance of your blog, business, or church give off the feeling that it is abandoned? If so, opportunity won’t even pull into your driveway, let alone get out of her car and knock on your door. Keep your lights on by doing simple regular activity on your website, social media account(s), or point of contact for your business. Make it look like people go there!
2. Your shades are down.
Opportunity knocks for those willing to share a bit of their “real” selves. Share some of your personal story on your site. Weave it in to your marketing materials. Give some backstory during announcements. Are you staying stubbornly private in an increasingly transparent world? Take a lesson from those local restaurants that print their history on the table placemats. This simple act of transparency creates a deeper experience by inviting patrons to become part of their narrative. It also makes waiting for the food a bit more bearable. A bit of transparency goes a long way.
3. Your path is full of shrubs.
Whenever I call my bank, I get those “press 1 for ___, press 2 for ___” options. It’s infuriating. All I want to do is talk to a human. Opportunity might feel the same way about knocking on your door. Simplify your contact process. Make it easy for people to find out who you are, what you do, or where they should go. Make it easy enough that a child could do it.
4. There’s no welcome mat.
Give opportunity the gift of knowing she’s in the right place. Make visitors feel like you designed your website, lobby, or reception area just for them. I once heard pastor Andy Stanley say that his church’s sermon starts as soon as a person drives into their parking lot. His team strives to make people feel welcome from the very first second of their church experience. Clear signs, competent parking attendants, clean facilities, and more are a top priority. It’s no wonder opportunity keeps knocking at their door. Do the same, and opportunity will come back to you time and time again.
5. You didn’t answer last time.
If you fail to answer the door, opportunity may give you the benefit of the doubt and come back another time. After all, doing the four steps above means you’ve done more than most. But like the old saying goes, “The opportunity of a lifetime must be seized in the lifetime of the opportunity.” Sometimes that opportunity lasts a few days, sometimes it’s a few seconds. Make sure you don’t make a habit of not returning calls, emails, or inquires outside the window of opportunity!
Question: What can you do to better prepare the way for opportunity to come knocking?
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