Have you ever heard this before: teamwork makes the dream work? If not, trust me: it’s true. I say it a lot at home when convincing my preteen daughter to do chores. And, she actually gets it. What about you, do you believe in the power of collaboration? As a young college student, I didn’t really understand its power because I had several bad experiences with group projects. As I became older, I understood and welcomed it.

When working together with someone to accomplish a goal, you get an awesome feeling of achievement, the satisfaction of having someone to share ideas with, and a new supporter cheering you on. I’m not sure about you, but I like having new supporters in my corner. If you’re thinking, “how am I going to find someone that I respect to connect or collaborate with,” don’t worry. I’ve listed two key steps, and included three reasons why collaborations are a win for everyone.

 

Here are two key steps to find someone to connect with:

 

– Social media: search Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest for industry-specific hashtags and key words. Find someone you admire, follow her, and then reach out via Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.

– Email: send a quick email to share why you admire her work, and why you want to pursue a collaborative relationship.

 

Now, let’s determine why collaborating with like-minded women is necessary; and, is absolutely everything.

 

Here are three reasons why collaborations are a win for everyone.

 

1). It’s an opportunity to learn.

 

Collaborating with someone else is a learning opportunity. Let’s face it; we can’t know everything. And, we don’t have the time or resources available to even try. Therefore, it’s to our benefit to take advantage of the chance to work, or converse with someone we respect: in order to learn from her business strategy, work ethic, and wisdom. It’s also a great time to share ideas and brainstorm about potential projects. Although you may not work together, you may eventually become great brainstorming partners, which is also an invaluable collaborative effort.

For example, I’ve learned to seek out phenomenal women whom I would like to work with, or build a professional relationship with because I know that two awesome women sharing ideas will likely result in something brilliant. In addition, I take the initiative to reach out via Twitter or email.

 

2). You will forget about your comfort zone.

 

Collaborating with smart women will quickly take you outside of your comfort zone. Once you connect with someone you want to work with, your fears may naturally subside because you’re having such a great time, you want to make a good impression, and you don’t want her to regret responding to your invitation.

For instance, let’s say that you’ve reached out to someone, and she responds. Next, you schedule an introductory meeting via Internet chat or phone, and have a fantastic conversation. Soon after, you may email ideas back and forth, and chat again.

What if she asks you to cohost a webinar with her, but you’ve never even attended a webinar?

– Are you going to say no, and risk hurting your new relationship?

– Or, will you say yes, admit that you’re not familiar with webinars, and learn all you can about them?

– Or, will you say yes, admit nothing, and learn all you can about webinars?

I’m going to guess that you would choose option two or three because you want to rise above your comfort zone, and learn as much as possible. And, that’s why collaborating with other fierce women is beneficial and necessary.

 

3). You will have a new supporter.

 

Another cool thing I appreciate about collaborating with like-minded women is that the relationship is mutually beneficial. Not only are smart women willing to share ideas, they’re also willing to connect you with potential clients, mentors, and networking opportunities. But, here’s the catch. Your new collaborator expects you to extend the same courtesies. And, fair is fair, so she’s appropriate in her expectation. Make sure that you’re sharing beneficial information and opportunities as well.

Creating a mutually beneficial collaborative relationship with someone allows you to brainstorm, possibly work together, share ideas, and learn. The mutual support is fantastic as well. I really believe that teamwork makes the dream work. I know that collaborating with amazing, like-minded women is a win for everyone involved. Who would you like to collaborate with in 2016?

 

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Karen Doniere is an author, blogger, and speaker with a passion to inspire women, moms, and mompreneurs to take better care of themselves. She is the chief curator of the KD Collection, where she shares her heart in every article. Karen is the author of the new Baby Bear children’s book series, and the creator of The Forgiveness Project: a positive and healing conversation where women feel safe to share their journeys. Through her mentoring program, she helps women turn their ideas into achievements, one step at a time. Karen’s inspirational articles have been featured on websites such as She Owns It and She is Fierce!

Connect with Karen… www.karendoniere.com, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest,Facebook