Great, you have a thousand Facebook friends and twice as many vCards in Outlook. But your business development success will depend on your ability to focus on the small handful of referral sources, clients, and prospects who can facilitate significant business opportunities. You can spend your time with the masses chasing down dribs and drabs, or you can set your sights higher and upgrade your client base. The key is to identify your short list. To do that, answer these questions:
• Who are your top five referral sources?
• Who are your top five clients?
• Which five prospects would you most like to bring into your practice this year?
Once you have identified the short list of about 15 people, you will need to prioritize your networking time accordingly. This may mean saying “no” to a lot of the people you spent time with last year if you expect this year to be different. But if you orient yourself around the people who are positioned to facilitate the opportunities you want, you will be more likely to have the results you deserve.
