Strategically Ruthless, Tactically Generous

--> powerful principle that's easy to use

I mentioned last time that the number one rule for using humour in business writing was an example of being “Strategically Ruthless but Tactically Generous”.

The original application came from business networking. Something I just never enjoyed but forced myself to get half-decent at because early in my business it was pretty necessary.

Strategically Ruthless as applied to networking means being very targeted about which events you go to. It means applying “WIIFM” and only going to events where there’s a very good chance of meeting potential clients or a good number of people who could refer you to one.

Now, of course, there are plenty of examples of people who go to weird events and happen to bump into someone who knows someone who knows someone who turned into a huge client for them.

But there are plenty of examples of people winning the lottery too. That doesn’t make buying a lottery ticket a +EV strategy. Stick to events with a high density of clients or referrers.

Tactically Generous means that once you walk into that room, you throw “WIIFM” out of the window and focus on being of service. On being helpful and valuable to everyone you meet.

You often see people being Tactically Ruthless at networking events and it’s a big mistake. They focus only on the people who could be useful to them. The minute they realise you’re not a potential client they’re looking over your shoulder to find their next victim.

In theory, it mean they spend more time with the people who could be potential clients or referrers. In practice, they get a reputation for being rude and self-interested. And at networking events, reputation gets around.

Being Tactically Generous sounds like you might end up “wasting” your time helping people who can’t help you much in return. But in practice, it helps your reputation. It’s also rather more pleasant.

And because you’ve been Strategically Ruthless and focused on events with a high density of potential clients and referrers, the reality is that most of the people you’re helpful to could well return the favour anyway. The difference is you don’t have to be a jerk about it. You help everyone and because you’re in the right room with the right people it works itself out.

Not something that helps much with writing emails of course, but I though you might find it a useful principle to thing about nonetheless.

- Ian