177: How to Connect (aka Network) with Natalie Eckdahl

No matter where you are in your yoga teacher journey, one of the things we need to run a successful business is a good network of connections. Thankfully, networking doesn’t have to be awkward, or boring, and Natalie Eckdahl has just the tips on how to manage networking online.

Natalie Eckdahl is the founder of BizChix, Inc, and a business strategist and coach. She is dedicated to helping high performing women build, grow, and scale their businesses while avoiding overwhelm. As the host of the BizChix Podcast, Natalie showcases the expertise of hundreds of industry experts and shares actionable tips and strategies to help her listeners and clients grow their businesses.

We often jump straight to getting on social media to get in front of people or building our email list, but on this episode, we’re going right back to the basics of networking. Natalie explains why it’s so important to connect with others and grow our network, and how to make the whole process less awkward and more authentic. She also shares more about how to track whether our networking efforts are paying off, and how networking can work for you even virtually.

If you are struggling to get yoga students to your classes, workshops or trainings, this episode is sure to be a helpful resource.

Key Takeaways:

[5:54] Shannon introduces her guest for this episode – Natalie Eckdahl.

[7:39] What does Natalie do and who does she do it for?

[9:08] What is networking?

“What I see networking being is something that helps your network know what you’re doing, and having visibility in your network.” ~ Natalie Eckdahl

[13:03] How can we connect and network online?

“We can seek to create community virtually.” ~ Natalie Eckdahl

[17:51] How can we ease the awkwardness and reduce the “weird” factor?

“If our network doesn’t know what we do and who we do it for, then the people that they’re connected to cannot work with us or find out about us.” ~ Natalie Eckdahl

[21:05] This is a good time to start reaching out to your students to see how they are doing.

“Circle back with old clients. It’s never too late to pull someone back in.” ~ Natalie Eckdahl

[22:30] How can we measure or track whether our networking efforts are paying off?

[26:37] Shannon and Natalie discuss how being in conversation with someone can help “make the sale”.

[30:02] Natalie shares a little tip around mindset and being paid.

[31:31] It is important for us to hold boundaries during our networking sessions as well.

[35:10] Reframe the word ‘networking’ to connecting. How can you connect with people in your network? Natalie shares some of her tips and strategies, especially using video!

“Video is one of the best ways to connect.” ~ Natalie Eckdahl

[41:09] Yoga teachers, people are looking for you – make it easy to be found, and make it easy for them to connect with you.

[43:05] Natalie highlights the importance of connecting with complementary service providers.

[00[44:59] Shannon shares her biggest takeaway from this interview with Natalie.

Links:

• Natalie Echdahl, Biz Chix, Inc.
• BizChix Podcast
• Stacking Your Team Podcast
• Live and Online Yoga Class Directory
• The Connected Yoga Teacher on Instagram
• The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast Episode 160: Milestones of My Yoga Business with Shannon Crow
• The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast Episode 041: Generating Profit with Natalie Eckdahl
• The Connected Yoga Teacher Podcast Episode005: Set and Achieve Big Goals with Natalie Eckdahl 

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