I’ve never put much credence into those who say they go golfing or fishing for “business purposes.” I figured it was merely an excuse to go have some fun at their company’s expense.
I’ve come to learn that such activities are, in fact, an ideal way to cultivate new friendships and business relationships, as well as maintain them. At the same time, you can have fun – depending upon who you are “teamed up” with, that is.
Activities like fishing and golfing provide you with several hours of uninterrupted time in which to get to know someone better. Understanding and sharing the feelings of others forges real friendships and relationships. That promotes feelings of trust – an essential element for doing business.
Isn’t it easier, and more trusting, to do business with a friend rather than a stranger?
Digitally Connected
Nowadays, it seems to me too little attention is paid to building business relationships. With everyone’s time at a premium, more and more communication is being done through digital communication and other forms of new media, rather than through face-to-face communications.
In many instances, “online” relationships are taking the place of real friendships. That may cause a tendency to care less about others because we can always turn them “off” when we grow weary of what they have to say.
While we may gain some time in our day through digital connectedness, we are losing the quality of relationships. Good relationships require a continual investment in “face time.”
Personal Interaction
With interpersonal interactions there are physical and visual cues like eye contact, other body language and voice inflection that we rely on when establishing a relationship and trust.
Activities like fishing and golfing provide insight into how others behave. You get to observe their mannerisms, integrity and sense of humor. You see how they deal with success and failure, as well as how they conduct themselves in various situations.
Gone Fishing
What crystalized all this for me happened at an industry meeting at which I was a keynote speaker. I was cajoled into being on one of the teams participating in a deep-sea fishing competition. This would be my first time in such an event.
As we bounced our way in the rough sea to our boat captain's secret fishing spot, my teammates – who shall remain anonymous – passed the time telling fishing tales.
Teammate one bragged about the fine fishing in the Carolinas. “I hooked a fish one time that took me an hour to land,” he related. “Then I saw it was too small to keep, so me and two buddies threw it back.”
Another teammate piped up: “The best fishing is in Georgia. Last month I caught a fish that was eight inches.”
“That's kind of puny,” laughed the third teammate.
“We measure them between the eyes,” replied the storyteller.
Describing a fish he caught, the fourth teammate outstretched his hands wide as he said: “I'm telling you, I never saw such a fish.”
“I don't suppose you did,” the second teammate muttered.
After an eternity of ups and downs, we arrived at the spot. We remained there for what seemed like forever as the boat roller-coastered up and down in the rough sea. While we all struggled to fish, the banter between everyone never waned.
Fish Stories
No thanks to me, my team won prizes for the most fish caught, as well as the most pounds of fish caught. Yet to my great surprise, few believed my team actually did so well.
“Don't take it personally,” counseled teammate three. “Fishermen typically double the number of fish they catch.”
Added another: “Don't you know that fish always grow fastest between the time they're caught and cocktail hour.”
My team also had the biggest catch of the day. We pulled in another boat that was adrift because its motor had broken down.
Experience to Share
Aside from being great fun, the fishing event proved to be a wonderful opportunity to really get acquainted with others and form solid relationships. It was hours of quality time, away from phones and interruptions.
What’s more, seeing people away from the work environment lets you see a very different side of them.
Comradeship
When the teams from the fishing event competed in a business problem-solving exercise that was part of a breakout session at the meeting the next day, my team bested the others. I attribute this to our working more closely together because we had built an esprit de corps and cemented bonds during the deep-sea fishing contest.
Besides all this, we fishermen shared some memorable experiences. For long after the experience, I have stories to share, inside jokes to reiterate and awful casts to reminisce about. These are natural reasons to stay in touch and help transition into doing business when the time is right.
You don’t just have to fish or play golf to build relationships. It can work for any activity.
Give it a try. You will be pleasantly surprised by the benefits you can reap.
