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By NAOMI FINKEL

Get more than java at the coffee shop

Posted 4:45 p.m., February 4, 2008

Get more than java at the coffee... friends and business contacts

By Naomi Finkel

Talk about a ritual. For the past 20 years, about three times a week, I get up at the crack of dawn, put on my walking shoes and do a brisk three mile loop from my home to a local coffee shop.

It is a beautiful and invigorating walk through the lush green belt path in my neighborhood. Along the way, I nod my head and smile a clipped "morning" to the dog walkers, joggers and to my neighbors.

Throughout the years, sitting in close proximity to others who also frequent the coffee shop, we soon do a biographical history... what's your name, where do you live, how about your family, exciting news, and what do you do. My casual acquaintances often become my friends. Now we sit at the same table and draw others into our group.

We have shared birthdays, anniversaries, baby showers, and vacations. Many of my coffee house friends, their associates, and their referrals have become my clients.

Two months ago I met Paula Berinstein at the coffee shop. Paula is the producer and host of the Writing Show, a web broadcast. A journalist and author of seven books, Paula interviews writers in many varied fields. We started talking and Paula soon arranged an in depth interview with me.

"Behind the scenes at a marketing agency" is my online podcast with Paula. It aired on January 20th, 2008 and ran for a week. We talk about how I started my business, strategies for success, mistakes business executives make, and how I helped many clients become multi-millionaires. The site also features some of my clients' projects.

Ready to tune in? Go to www.writingshow.com . On the Home Page, go to Archives in the right hand column, click on Podcasts, January 20, 2008. Enjoy!

Okay, Naomi. It's now 7:15 a.m. Time to stop writing and head for the coffee shop, schmooze with my buddies... and make new friends.

Naomi Finkel is the owner of Say It With Words, a Westlake Village Marketing & Advertising agency. She is an award-winning copywriter, a marketing consultant and the author of “How to Get Big Business Exposure on a Small Business Budget.” Naomi can be reached at siww@earthlink.net or www.siww.net