Welcome to episode 22! Have you hosted book clubs for your team? Are they well attended? Do you find that most read and finish the book? If so, GREAT! Keep it up!
For those on your team that you’re not reaching through book club, add my “No-Book, Book-Club” strategy and connect with more team members.
On the flip side, If you have been hosting book clubs, but struggle with engagement, participation, or interest and it’s more work than effective, my “No-Book, Book-Club” strategy is for you and your team!
Ok, I love book clubs. I tend to read a wider variety of books by authors I wouldn’t normally pursue on my own. Not to mention, the discussion is rich and offers a perspective that I don’t always see on my own.
I always get practical and thought-provoking tips from my mastermind book club. It’s always valuable.
Why Book Club Doesn’t Work for Every Direct Sales Team
All that said, book club is not for everyone. Even those that start off interested in the book, and participate, can get discouraged and stop attending if they fall behind in reading.
Some people feel they simply don’t have time for reading. Those that do feel they have the time when it starts, may end up too busy to continue before the book is wrapped and the club is done meeting.
The New “No-Book-Book-Club” for Direct Sales Leaders and Their Team
My strategy for you is to offer a “No-Book, Book-Club” to your team. Personal growth and development still happens. Conversation can still take place. You can still meet about content to offer a belief building, personal development, and connection point to your team.
This can all happen in addition to your well-running book clubs or instead of. You get to decide. Better yet, let your team decide.
A “No-Book, Book-Club” is not centered around a book, but focused on a podcast! Yes! A podcast. It doesn’t have to be focused on network marketing. You can pick any podcast covering life-enhancing, personal development topics that would be timely for your team.
It can be a single podcast episode from any podcast you feel your team would benefit from.
Or, you can listen to four different episodes from the same podcast to cover each week of the month.
There are many podcasts that have shorter episodes ranging from 5 to 20 minutes. Others are up to an hour. I recommend choosing based on message and content vs. time. Either way, it will be much less of a time commitment than reading a book.
I recommend choosing an episode, but know why you’re choosing it and why you feel it would be timely for your team.
Discussion Questions for Your Direct Sales “No-Book, Book-Club”
Create a handful of discussion questions. Here are a few general, question recommendations that could apply to any episode.
- How was that for you?
- What was your top one or two take away’s?
- What will you do differently after listening, if anything?
- Is there someone on your team that would benefit from hearing this episode?
Invite everyone to listen to the chosen episode before you meet or host a discussion. There are several ways to host a discussion.
Ideally, it’s a touchpoint and opportunity for you to connect with your team. I would start with hosting a date and time. In addition, give additional options to connect. As we all know, one date and time isn’t going to work for everyone’s schedule. Other ways to meet will help with this.
After the meeting, have the conversation continue on a platform you use to connect with your team. Whether it’s Facebook, Voxer, or something similar, you’ll know how to best reach your team.
The point is to have them receive the message you see of value for them. And to follow up with an opportunity to discuss, connect and implement actions for new and better ways to go about life or business.
The Best Topics to Start Your “No-Book, Book-Club”
To help get you started, I’ll recommend a few episodes from this podcast Crazy Big Dreams:
Ep 2: One Single Powerful Guide for Your Direct Sales Biz (14 minutes)
Ep 5: Infobesity – How Not to Let it Steal Results in Your Network Marketing Biz (9 minutes)
These are just a few to get you started.
If you’re looking for a topic to listen to, not with your own team, your downline, but with fellow high-achievers at the top of your company, maybe you have a mastermind group, I recommend:
Ep 16: Are you Willing to Face Answers to This One Question on Your Growth Journey as a Direct Sales Leader? This one is 14 minutes. Humbling. And will require you to get honest with yourself.
Ep 15: What Direct Sales Leaders Must Know to Help Team Members Grow in Their Self Belief (15 minutes). You have to know what you’re up against when tackling the ultimate challenge of helping your team members believe in themselves more.
Ep 5: Does Every Future Dollar Have a Job From Your Direct Sales Business? (10 minutes) This is my most downloaded episode. Ever.
A “No-Book, Book-Club” is a great option for those team members you may be missing through book club. Maybe your book club died off some time ago and you’re looking for a new creative way to offer connection. Maybe your book club is thriving, but you’re looking for a new, fresh way to reach more people.
And if you’ve never done book club with your team, this is a fresh new take on connecting with your people on personal development to enhance both their life and business.
If you would like more specific discussion questions based on the podcast episodes I recommended here simply get in touch with me. I would be happy to provide these complimentary for you and your team. Reach me on IG @yourcrazybigdreams or https://crazybigdreams.biz/contact/.
The best is yet to come. Always.