Franklin Connection

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Copyright © Margie Franklin
http://www.LiveTheDreamWithFaith.com

Recently, I was once again reminded of just how fragile life is. A friend of my teenage daughter died unexpectedly. The news of Ashley Dillon’s death was devastating because she was loved by all those who knew her. During her short time on earth she made many friends, volunteered at her church, competed in sports & participated in the high school band. According to my daughter, Juanita, there was never a time when her friend didn’t have a smile on her face or a kind word for those around her.

Juanita called me to tell me of the loss of her friend, but I could hardly understand what she was saying because of the huge sobs coming from her. I had never heard her cry so deeply. Upon arriving home, we spent time talking about Ashley. My daughter kept repeating that her friend was a good person, who always got A’s on her report card & was nice to everyone. She just didn’t understand why God would take a person who had such a positive influence on others.

My thoughts turned to the family. No one expects, nor wants to out live their children. I wanted to reach out to them and let them know how deeply this has touched me and that they are in my thoughts and prayers. I wish I could erase the huge loss that the family is experiencing, and take away the pain & anguish.

We must not question why such a loving, brilliant individual’s life was snuffed out at such an early age. For it is God’s will and he wanted Ashley to be with him. Only faith in our Lord will help get friends and family through these extremely challenging times.

I love my teenage daughter deeply and would be devastated if anything happened to her. I call her my “P & J” (pride & joy). While she’s lovable the majority of the time, there’s occasions when we have disagreements. I’ve discovered that the teenage years tend to be challenging for parents and children alike. I call the struggles & moodiness that teenagers experience “the teenager syndrome.”

My P & J was always an angel during her pre-teen years. But, lately a different side appears from time to time. It’s during these moments that I must keep reminding myself that the angelic side will reappear & stay for good once the teenage years are behind her. Until then I’ll continue to motivate, love, nurture and guide her. No matter what challenges we may have we both know that we’ll overcome them. For the love in our family is strong and the Lord’s blessings are many. I cherish our time together.

I can’t imagine that Ashley experienced “the teenager syndrome” because she had such a big heart. On the other hand she was a teenager and may have had mood swings. Therefore, I want her family to know that Ashley loved them very much. I’m sure she admired them for standing firm in their beliefs and family values. I would also venture to guess that if she had ever been “grounded” or not allowed to hang out with her friends, she knew that she was being disciplined out of love.

Ashley Dillon was only 16 years old when she died. However, in her young life, she managed to become an inspiration in the lives of many. Please remember to focus on the positives and don’t beat yourself up wishing that you would have handled things differently. Ashley wants you to hold onto the precious memories that you created together.

About the Author— —————————————————————–
To find the best home based business ideas and
opportunities so you can work at home visit:
http://www.LiveTheDreamWithFaith.com —————————————————————–

Copyright © Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-18762/ebiz.html

When you need an auto mechanic or an air conditioning repairman,
where do you turn for help? Sure, some people turn to the yellow
pages. But most will turn to friends and family and ask if they
know of anyone who can do the work.

The best place for your business to be positioned is to be the
business on the tips of the tongues of the people asked to make
the referral.

THE 300 RULE

Preachers, funeral directors and people in a few other
professions have learned “the 300 rule” through their own
personal experience.

“The 300 rule” states that the average person knows 300 people
on a friendly level. Wedding planners tend to make reservations
for 300 guests. Funeral directors tend to need to make room for
300 mourners. You get the idea.

DOODLING WITH CIRCLES OF INFLUENCE

Imagine your circle of friends, family and acquaintances, a.k.a.
your circle of influence. Now, draw your circle of influence as
a circle on a blank piece of paper.

Next, contemplate the people in your parents` circle of
influence. Some people who know your parents also know you.
Therefore, you will share some influence with the people your
folks know. Now draw your parents` circle of influence on your
piece of paper.

Your circle and your parents` circle will intersect in one area,
although the larger majority of the two circles will not
intersect. If you are like most people, the two circles on your
page at this point looks very similar to the MasterCard logo.

Now imagine drawing a page full of intersecting circles, each
circle representing the circle of influence of the people who
are within your own circle of influence. Imagine trying to
encapsulate an accurate rendering of where your circle and the
circle of your friends will actually intersect.

Some circles will share a large area of space, while others will
barely cover one another.

Actually, you can only imagine at this point what your piece of
paper will look like. The actual layout of the circles imagined
in this analogy is simply too overwhelming for the mind to
comprehend.

THE BIG PICTURE

300 multiplied by 300 equals 90,000. By using the analogy of
doodles in the previous section, the average person can actually
network with up to 90,000 people! Even factoring in the overlap,
one can still probably network with 50,000 people through their
own circle of influence!

Simply amazing, isn`t it?

HERE IS THE SECRET TO YOUR SUCCESS

There are 300 people on this planet whom you have a reasonable
amount of influence. Take advantage of this fact. Make darn sure
that every person within your own circle of influence KNOWS that
you are in business for yourself, and make sure they understand
what your business offers.

When your friend is asked to make a referral, they will
recommend you.

PASSIVE VERSUS ACTIVE REFERRAL NETWORKING

When people ask your friends for a referral and your friend
mentions your business, that is passive referral networking.

Active referral networking is when you can get your friends go
directly to their friends and say “Hey, I have a friend who just
started a business. If you are in need of what he offers or you
know someone who will need his services, would you please give
my friend a call or make the referral to his business?”

If you can get even a portion of the people in your own circle
of influence to actively refer your business, then you have
built the foundation to build an advertising campaign even more
effective than the average local television advertising campaign.

Think about that for a moment.

Most people only dream of reaching 50,000 potential customers
with their television advertising dollars. You now have the
knowledge to reach 50,000 people without spending a single penny.

About the Author:
————————————————————
Stone Evans, The Home Biz Guy has helped thousands of people
in over 200 countries around the world start and run a
successful home business. Discover 3 easy steps to start
your own home business and subscribe to The Home Biz Guy’s
Free Home Business Secrets Mini-Course at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-18762/free.html
————————————————————

Quote of the Day:

“Do not wait to strike till the iron is hot; but make it hot
by striking.” — William B. Sprague

PS: Get your free Dotcomology book at:
http://www.PlugInProfitSite.com/main-18762/dotcomology.html