Revive Your Network by Pruning & Trimming Lifeless Branches

Your network is like a tree. It needs to be healthy and watered to bear fruit.

Growing your network-marketing tree takes time. You are trying to establish relationships whenever possible—and relationships involve nurturing, energy, and a time investment.

You only have so much time, though. Spending it on something that will never produce what you want takes vital time away from those things that will.
If it’s all one-sided, it’s a time and energy sucker. You need to cut that branch off.

You’ll have more time for new branches that will give your network new life.

So don’t be afraid to do it. Prune your network-marketing tree so that lifeless branches don’t spread their disease.

How to Recognize a Dead Branch

But how do you know what is dead and what is dormant?

It’s dead if you never, ever get a response.
It’s dead when there is no sign of activity—not even an attempt. Think unreturned emails, calls, and no sales.

This zero-pulse state has to go on for a while to truly qualify as “dead,” though. 

We all get distracted, we all get busy. Sometimes we even need a few weeks or months to sort it out.
So what’s the rule of thumb?

Six months.

Give it half a year. If they don’t peak their head out of their shell, stop making the effort.
I’m not saying remove their names from your database. Just stop contacting and actively pursuing them.

When They Come Back to Life

Sometimes you’ll find people will miss your attempts and will contact you. Sometimes they’ll just fade away.

But you won’t know which is which until you do it.
I have respect for people who respect my time.
If I’m not responding for a long period of time, I’m not interested. At least not right now.

If you stop contacting me, it gives me a chance to miss you.

One day I might just look up and wonder where you went. Then I’ll decide whether I was really interested in the first place.

If so, I know where to find you.

Let the Soil Breathe and You’ll Grow a Bigger Tree

In planting and harvesting, they call it letting the soil breathe. 

They till the soil and leave room for water and air to get to the roots. It actually “decongests” the roots that need that oxygen—and, like us, expel carbon dioxide.

Give your prospects time to breathe, and your strong roots will grow a stronger tree!

Give them some room to breathe, and some will spring back to life, better than before.
They’ll all of a sudden decide they are definitely interested and get on board.

It’s funny, but true—knowing that you won’t keep contacting them, that there’s a possibility you will cut them off completely if they don’t act—prompts some people into action.

Even with your active networkers, give them periods of time to themselves.

Time to bring all of your previous instructions to fruition. Time to come up with new ideas. Time to put those ideas to work in new and profitable ways.
Time to get stronger—and to strengthen the roots of your ever-growing network.