Networking Secrets

NETWORKING

You hear it and the primary emotions that surface are uneasiness, stress, and possibly disdain. It resembles this illusive and impalpable thing that you find out about all the time yet never truly make sense of what it is. All your compelling speakers discuss it and ensure you know it is the key in your adventure to achievement, however you're similar to "well I'll simply store that in my mind's file organizers for later when I really need to do it." Here's the issue with that, systems administration isn't some sprint to urgently interface yourself to powerful individuals once you require a vocation or need individuals' help, It's a systematically and completely arranged marathon.

HOW 80% OF PEOPLE VIEW NETWORKING:

Connecting yourself to people who have something you need, or have connections you desire, in hopes they somehow pass that along to you.

I think that's why the term "networking" gets such a bad rap. Just as the word "sales" makes people think of those slime balls who are doing anything and everything they can to get you to buy their product so they can make a quick buck. It's the whole concept of "having an agenda". You have ulterior motives, and people can sense it. Watch this 40 min video of how Michael debunks this fallacy, or you can skip below to see how I summarized it:

(scroll to the bottom for the link to the video)

HOW THE 20% (THE SUCCESSFUL NETWORKERS) VIEW NETWORKING:

How can I add value and be of service to this person?

That's it. No ulterior motives and no tricks. This is probably one of my favorite quotes of all time and I love how it applies to networking:

"From what we get, we can make a living. What we give, however, makes a life." - Arthur Ashe

How does that apply to networking? Simple, networking is all about your reputation. You want to be known asThe Connector-the one who is always giving help and making people's lives easier. A good connection in business can mean "making it" over "breaking it". If you are known as The Connector, people will naturally and happily be willing to help you with anything you need that's within their power.

THE 3 STEPS TO BECOMING THE CONNECTOR

Spend time in places where you are likely to meet business owners and people who are on the same journey as you.

• Local startup groups, conferences, business launches, even college groups.

Inquire about their business - What are they up to? What's going well? What are the challenges?

• If you know a great business book that contains just the knowledge they need for the challenges they face, don't just recommend it, go online right then and order it for them!
• If you know someone who could be helpful, make an introduction right away.
• If you know something that could be helpful, offer it right away.

Keep helping, keep giving

• KEEP IN TOUCH. Rewards in life go to those who follow through.
• If you see an article or another resource that would be useful to them, send it their way.
• Invite them to social events.
• Make introductions and referrals.

To summarize, just like the bad rap sales gets from the poor salesman who can only think about the commission, networking can be cringing due to those aspiring entrepreneurs and businesspeople who only have their interest in mind. It's not about what you want, it's what the customer needs. It's not about receiving, it's about giving.

SUMMARY & APPLICATION

I recently had somewhat of an applicable experience with this. I've been attending a weekly startup group, mainly just to watch how other entrepreneurs are going about starting their businesses. But I've been able to make some pretty good connections from going. After watching the video above and doing some studying on networking, I realized I needed to start applying that to the connections I already had. So I wrote out a list of all the people I had met and what they might need. I then explored which ones I could help, either with my direct skills or my connections. I realized that one of them was in the Doterra industry and remembered how my mom (who is a health nut) knows a lot of people in that world. So I did some digging there and found out she actually knew some of the biggest names at Doterra. I had her reach out to them and prep them, letting them know her son knew someone who might be able to connect with them and help their business (keep in mind the giving factor). The response was extremely positive, so I passed the references on to my friend in the startup group. I would say our relationship and chances of something positive coming from it in the future increased tenfold. He is now willing to help me with anything he can and I'm extremely grateful for it, seeing how he has many connections and has a degree in accounting-which is definitely not my strong suit.