Business relationships. I met with 3 business collaborators today, and, for the sake of sensitive disclosures, we'll leave them as Abe, Bill, and Chris. They flew in to meet me. They represent the typical good ole boys business men. They'll tell you what you want to hear to get you nodding along side them, and, before you know it, you're walking away with a deal that may or may not be to your best interest. It is snowing, but, their flights arrive on time and we start the meeting in the early afternoon as planned. First, we exchange cards. We stare at each other, a little nervous but very hopeful that we will end up liking each other and having a good connection, and this will be the start of a fruitful relationship. That's what we're here to do, spend 2 hours to chat, get to know each other, and, if all goes well, express how we feel about a relationship and take it from there. As usual, my startup dad flew in for the meeting too, for "moral support" as he would say.
I nerd talk with ABC for a while. They all bombard me with technical questions, which I appear to answer to their satisfaction. Each time Chris asks a question, he says "okay, i'm going to put you on the spot again, and if you don't know the answer, just, uh, just smile." Chris tells me that he's not being pessimistic about my
current model, but wants me to start into a new model, because he's
been to where I am now, and he knows how hard it is going to be, to
break into the market i have my heart set on. "So, I guess I'm just
saying this because I've been there before. I don't want to divert you,
but I just wanted to share my thoughts too."
Startup dad interjects with comments here and there... reminding me to mention certain things for some of the questions.
Abe stares at me for the first hour, no questions, and then, for the second hour, starts his list of questions. He seemed very pleased with my comments, and at one point said, "I feel really comfortable talking to you right now. this is great" as he waves his hand between himself and I. "your <startup dad> put you on a pedestal, and after hearing you talk, you have certainly met that mark, if not higher." Businessmen in the ole boys club are extremely flattering.
Bill rambles on about how great his business model is, the pure brilliance of his strategies, and dives into the history of some success stories. He rambles about their greatness, and then finally, sums it up in a statement that puts him out in the open "what I would like to say is, I would like for us to work together into the future. So I would like develop this relationship with you." Short and effective, he said what was on his mind. "Time is running short."
I nod.
The meeting goes on, we brainstorm about the markets, joke around a bit, get a few good laughs on quick jokes.
Finally, Bill says: "well, thanks for taking the time to meet with us."
Me: "yeah, I really enjoyed this meeting" I said. Chris: "me too" and smiles widely from across the table. And the others nod.
They go off to pack their paperwork into their suitcases, and I walk them to the exit.
So there you have it. That was an excerpt of a typical day in the land of business meetings with representatives from the good ole boys club. As the drill goes, first test if we're on the same wavelength, see if we mutually
had something invaluable to offer the other, and then speak your mind, and then negotiate a deal. These guys sufficiently buttered me up like a piece of toast for a whole two hours. So this one was, of course, much more enjoyable than many others.
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