How to ask your friends to send you work

How do you get work from your friends and close contacts without feeling pushy, desperate, or damaging the relationship?It’s a classic dilemma, particularly when your friends and former colleagues are in senior positions at your companies that you would like to have as a client. Indeed, it was the topic of a recent podcast episode here. In this episode, we are going to break down how actually to do the ask… and still preserve the friendship.Listen to this episode to discover:- Why the first and most important step is to have an open and honest conversation to overcome the paralysis that comes from the fear of being seen as "annoying" or "desperate."- How to frame the conversation by being direct and explaining your situation, for example, by saying, "I'm on the path to partnership, and a big part of that for me is building my own book of business."- The importance of protecting the friendship first by giving your contact an "out," making it clear that the relationship is more important than the work.- How to handle the common concern, "Won't your partner just take all the credit?" by reassuring them that originating work benefits you hugely and shifting the focus to the value and expertise of your entire firm.If these strategies make sense, but you're thinking, "I’m not sure where to start with who to speak with in my network," that's why having a plan is so important. The courses Creating a Business Development Plan and From Coffees To Instructions in our Progress to Partner Academy are a great place to start. These courses will give you a repeatable structure to turn your relationships into revenue consistently.If you find this episode useful, don’t forget to like it and then subscribe so you don’t miss another episode.About Progress To Partner Academy: On-demand career help and guidanceYou have to drive your career forwards. Your firm wouldn't do that for you.Stop waiting to be noticed for career development courses by your firm.Make the firm notice you! You will get the skills and knowledge about what the partners are really looking for when you join our Progress to Partner Academy.Join our Progress To Partner Academy - https://subscribe.howtomakepartner.com/progresstopartner/ and use the code PODCAST10 to get 10% off 12 months of premium annual membership.Links:Take our How To Go From Coffees To Instructions course: https://subscribe.howtomakepartner.com/coffees-to-instructions/Take our Go-To Expert Course: https://subscribe.howtomakepartner.com/gotoexpert-course/Complete our FREE Partnership Readiness Assessment - https://careerprogressionreadiness.scoreapp.com to see where you have gaps in your own development - you'll get a personalised report with actions for what progress your career forwardConnect with me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/heathertownsend/Join our Progress To Partner Academy - https://subscribe.howtomakepartner.com/progresstopartner/ and use the code PODCAST10 to get 10% off 12 months of premium annual membership.Buy your copy of Poised for Partnership - https://amzn.to/3ETEYk3Buy your copy of How To Make Partner And Still Have A Life - https://amzn.to/4iLxugMBuy your copy of The Go To Expert - https://amzn.to/3HGPYlPBuy your copy of The Financial Times Guide To Business Networking - https://amzn.to/406QPma Get full access to How to Make Partner at howtomakepartner.substack.com/subscribe