Every single week, as I work and talk with clients, referral sources, and friends in business, I uncover the same thing: massive opportunities sitting inside referral networks, inside relationships with people who already like, know, and trust them. And those opportunities aren’t producing. Not even close.

And the reason they aren’t producing usually comes back to one thing: you and they are trying too hard.

I know that sounds counterintuitive. We’ve been told our whole careers that effort is the answer.  When it comes to referrals, the opposite is often true.

Referrals Feel Like Skipping the Line

There’s a common belief that referrals let you skip the line. That they’re a shortcut, a cheat code to faster growth. And I get why it feels that way. But here’s what’s happening: referrals aren’t faster because you skipped the work…they’re faster because you already did the work You built the relationship. You figured out who your referral source is, who they know, and who you want to meet. You invested in the trust long before anyone picked up the phone.

If you’re interested in taking your business a step further, head over to my Substack to read the full article and subscribe to Can I Borrow Your Car.