One of the people I know who exudes authenticity has a very relaxed manner with people. When with others she is very disarming, always showing a genuine interest and encourages them to talk about themselves. She is genuinely comfortable with people and people feel genuinely comfortable with her. She is one of the most remarkable people I know.

The sorts of behaviours that demonstrate comfortableness in authentic business relationships include:

• 
  
• An interest in the other person above yourself.
  
• Conversation includes personal as well as business matters.
  
• Confident to make contact outside of normal working hours.
  
• Positive response to the request to meet in the short term/this week.
  
• The ability to catch up with one another without a business agenda.
  
• Desire to keep in contact after any commercial contract is completed.
  

Business relationships that lack authenticity can feel somewhat contrived and manufactured. You know that the motive behind the relationship is only instrumental – they have no particular care for you beyond what they can get out of you. This is what I describe as ‘networking’ and is why I dislike the practice so much.

Harvard Business School recently published a paper entitled ‘The Contaminating Effects of Building Instrumental Ties: How Networking Can Make Us Feel Dirty’. The research undergirding the paper shows how instrumental relationships can leave people feeling ‘dirty’ and even describes those relationships as having a motive that is ‘morally impure’.

Relationology advocates building authentic business relationships. You can be intentional about reaching out to those people you would love to work with but at the same time this can be done with authenticity. It can be done in a way that is natural and genuine rather than pushy and contrived.

Question: How can you become more comfortable and build more authentic business relationships?

The post Authentic Business Relationships Are Hallmarked By Comfortableness appeared first on Relationology.