Are You Burning Business Bridges?

I received a call from one of my coaching clients and she was rather distraught. Someone she has done business with unfriended her on Facebook.

I told her there must be some explanation, “perhaps you hit the unfriend button by accident on your phone.” After all, who hasn’t pocket dialed someone by mistake? These things happen right?

I suggested she reach out and tell the person she noticed that they were no longer friends on Facebook and try to rectify the situation. What happened next shocked me…

She was deliberately unfriended because of a perceived misunderstanding.

Now, I am all for not being connected to people who are toxic, negative, and damaging to you on Facebook but….. is severing a friendship, (we are not talking strangers here) a bit drastic and could it be the new Burning Business Bridges?

In my coaching sessions and my training programs like The Pilot Project I talk a lot about building relationships in your business because my fundamental belief is that business is all about relationships. When we build solid relationships with people online and in person we are able to connect those relationships to our business through word of mouth marketing. Relationships might very well be the most valuable asset you have in your business.

To me, this unfriending signifies a lack of maturity and professionalism that can do irreparable damage to a person’s business and business reputation.

My suggestion – do the 24 hour cool off. Maybe remove said person from your newsfeed for a month and take some time to really think through whether you need to be as drastic as clicking the unfriend button.

Take a look at the video then let me know what you think in the comments below.

How would you handle it if this happened to you? What situations do you think merit this type of thing?