Starting a business and looking for office space for rent in Tulsa can be a lonely journey for many entrepreneurs.

When you start a business, you are mostly by yourself. There’s nobody there to encourage or mentor you. Without a network, you’re isolated—no referrals, no built relationships, no one to bounce ideas off or help solve problems. You’re left without connections to people who might need your product or service.

Coworking is the best solution, especially when you’re looking for office space for rent in Tulsa.

When you work in a coworking space, you have other business owners to talk to and navigate the challenges of life and business together. This makes a tremendous difference in your business growth because you have a network of seasoned entrepreneurs who can help you or be your next client. Finding office space for rent in Tulsa within a coworking community can create opportunities you wouldn’t find working alone.

Here’s how to create powerful connections in a coworking space in three steps.

Step 1. Engage with your coworkers

You need to start by proactively engaging with the other coworking members. When you’re in office space for rent in Tulsa, even a simple “hello” in the coffee area can lead to valuable connections.

It can be as simple as saying hello while you’re grabbing a coffee or drink in the coworking space. If you want to expand that, I recommend bringing snacks and treats to the coworking space and offering them to everybody. This will break the ice and help you get to know your neighbors, and vice versa.

Plus, if you give away free food, they will want to return the favor. They can help you solve business problems, and grow your customer base, all thanks to the law of reciprocity. This is how I scored a major deal with one of my clients while renting office space for rent in Tulsa.

I started by handing out bags of pretzels, which only cost me $0.75. The client was very thankful, and it opened up a dialogue where we asked each other what we each did for business. When I told her about mine, she wanted to work with me.

The result? I now have a business deal worth $500,000 over the next two years, not to mention the residuals are going to be between $5,000 and $25,000 a month.

All from being proactive while working from office space for rent in Tulsa.

Step 2. Offer up what you do for free

As you build rapport with your coworking neighbors, you need to offer them some level of what you do for free.

For me, I freely offered my business advice to an entrepreneur who was struggling to grow. My advice helped him so much that he gave five referrals for my coworking business that came in and gave me business. Not only did helping him a little bit for free improve our relationship, but I proved I was capable of delivering on my business promises (and now more people want my business as a result).

Don’t be afraid of wasting time or money by offering free work, especially if you are just beginning to build your business. Office space for rent in Tulsa allows you to meet people who can vouch for your expertise. It’s a powerful way to build trust, prove your expertise, and attract more clients who genuinely want to work with you.

Step 3. Attend coworking events/workshops at an office space for rent in Tulsa

Attending your coworking’s major events and coffee meetups is one of the easiest ways to build your network if you have a hard time connecting with people.

Everyone attending those events is another entrepreneur saying, “I would like to meet people.” It is truly the lowest barrier to entry.

You don’t have to question the attendees if they want to chat. Do it, and grow your network at office space for rent in Tulsa.

Direct & indirect benefits of network opportunities through an office space for rent in Tulsa

Networking at a coworking space unlocks a new lead generation tool.

Through it, you can simultaneously build:

• Direct Leads: The people you connect with directly in your coworking space may realize they need your product or service, becoming potential clients on the spot.
  Indirect Leads: Even if they don’t need your service personally, coworkers often know someone who does, giving you access to an extended network of referrals through word-of-mouth recommendations.

The $500,000 client I mentioned earlier started to proactively network with other coworking members to build up direct leads. As a result, she gained two new clients from Catalyst Coworking.

As for me, I gained indirect leads from her because she is referring her clients to me thanks to our coworking relationship. Now, every new client that she refers makes me over $2,000 in profit for my business solutions company.

And she has over 150 clients, all indirect leads.

If you take these three simple steps, you will dramatically increase your network with other entrepreneurs in office space for rent in Tulsa. As a result, you’ll create real, lasting opportunities that drive your business forward in ways you’d never achieve on your own.

(p.s., if you want to scale your business in Tulsa, get your first month at Catalyst Coworking for only $1)