Networking Skills (Part 2)

Thank you to those people who have emailed me directly since I began this Networking thread, it certainly seems to have struck a chord. Please keep your feedbacks coming, my email address is listed and I'm always happy to hear directly from you. You may have also noticed you're now able to leave thoughts, questions and ideas at the end of each post. This is a new addition to my Blog, so please also make use of this facility. I promise, your questions and feedback here will be an inspiration to other readers, and for that I thank you in advance.

So, the next step towards improving your networking skills; and something most of us have, EMAIL.

Who have you met with, been interested in, or inspired by at a networking event or meeting – or even better they've said how they'd like to keep in touch with you, but then for whatever reason it just didn't happen? I know this happens with the business card collectors amongst us! A good intention can so quickly become an overwhelming pile of never followed-up leads.

So now here's the thing; you need to get back in touch with them. Put together an email, or better still a letter that re-establishes the connection. Remind them where you met and what you talked about - and if you can't remember simply be honest and say something along the lines of 'I know we've met in a business networking situation recently/or not too distant past…'

Honesty, even when you may have been remiss in keeping touch, is such a refreshing and attractive characteristic. Use it, and immediately you set yourself apart.

Be prepared to follow up with another email/letter/or telephone call if they haven't responded within a week or so, and if they ultimately choose not to reconnect at least you gave it your best shot.

My personal experience has usually shown that for every one person that doesn't get back to you, two or three people will; and in business that's a great result!

Get to grips with your email follow-ups, and I'll Blog again in a few days with the next step to build better networking results.

Top Tips for Young Entrepreneurs

This is a ‘cut & paste’ of the reply I just posted on Linked-In, it’s part of an excellent thread by my friend Bev James, MD of The Entrepreneurs Business Academy. If you want to follow and/or contribute to this or other threads sign up or go to your Linked-In.

Here are my top tips for young entrepreneurs…

1. Have a 'magnificent obsession.' Top entrepreneurs are usually pretty obsessive about their goal, whilst they measure, research, plan etc, they come from a place of 'how can I make this happen' rather than 'what if this doesn't happen'.

2. Assemble a power team. As Anthony Robbins says, 'no man (or woman) is an island' - we will never be as successful alone, as we could have been with a team around us. Great entrepreneurs inspire others. They give hope and a chance to ride along with 'the dream', and because entrepreneurs exude enthusiasm and focus, they attract fellow experts, making assembling the power team possible.

3. Keep on, keeping on. Successful entrepreneurs stay the course; they don't give up. If a plan doesn't work, they examine what happened, make adjustments, and get back on with the journey. As a jet flying between New York and London (granted, not this week...), off-course 80+% of the time contently resets the flight plan whilst keeping focus on the destination, so an entrepreneur takes action, makes adjustments, and keeps his/her eye focused on the target.

How Good Are You At Networking

How good your network is, and how much time and energy you invest in it, will undoubtedly have an effect on the success of your business.

No matter where you are now, over the next few Blog posts I want to run through some of the fundamentals of how to build, nurture, and grow your ideal network.

To be honest with you, the first (and worst) networking strategy I had was to join Chambers of Commerce and Business Link for London, attend their events, stick on badge at reception, grab a glass of wine and a plate of food, and then hide in the corner!

Eventually I graduated to being able to mix. In fact I became a serial mixer, collecting business cards – hundreds of them – and piling them up with all the other unused business cards I'd collected along the way. Or even worse, SPAMMING contacts, trying to sell regardless of what they'd said, did or didn't want when I (obviously) hadn't listened to them at the original networking event.

Does any of this resonate with you? Or even if it doesn't, if you're at the beginning of your networking journey, the up-and-coming Blog posts will be useful, and may well save you spending so much time getting low, or no results from your networking endeavours.

The upside? Networking can be fun! Business should be fun!! We live in a world of more than 6 billion people, we're sociable creatures, and so interacting with some of those people in a subject we're passionate about (our business) should be so easily a win-win situation. Check in the next time and grow your networking results now.