When conducting business development, the first rule of thumb is to find a way to make a connection. That connection can be anything… even a dog like Star.

A few months ago I attended a fundraiser to support the San Diego County Law Library Justice Foundation. I was assisting the Law Library Board of Directors at the time in their search for a new executive director, and I wanted to show my support for the organization. Public law libraries are an amazing community resource that few people know about.

I was making small talk with the people at my table and I learned one of the women sitting with us lived in my neighborhood. She asked me what street I lived on and I told her. She said, “You must know the Swains then.” I shook my head no and apologized that I did not know as many of my neighbors as I should. “Unless they have a dog, I probably don’t know them,” I said.

Star and Abby Together

She told me they did have a dog and her name was Abby. I lit up. “I know Abby. That’s my dog Star’s best friend.” As it turned out I did know Peter and Tanya Swain. I just didn’t know their last name.

We ended up having a nice conversation about our respective businesses and our dogs. Soon others at the table were telling stories about their dogs as well. I left with several business cards.

I’ve been writing for several weeks about how everything I learned about business development, I could learn from my dog Star. In some cases, I mean that literally.