News flash! Some people think YOU care about their stuff as much as they do. These same people think they must be ahead of you on the road. If not, then they some how have the right to ride so far up your tail they can put stuff in your glove box.
The thought never hits them that maybe the deer ahead may leap in front of you causing you to slam on the breaks and suddenly back bumper boy has a nano second to go from 8 billion MPH to zero and has 6 inches to do it. He stops alright....but not by using his breaks. Physics plays a huge role in how his head pierces the windshield. You stop by applying emergency pressure to your peddle. But you had time to react to the issue at hand. He stops because an object in motion stays in motion until the object in front no longer is in motion.
If it only happened to the stupid.
Same basic 'laws' apply in sells/sales/sails. (not so sure about the last one but made sense at the time) an object in motion tends to stay in motion until the thing in front stops suddenly. In our case, the economy just stopped. BAM! Now we have a pile up on the road to success and our road (us net workers) has been detoured. Or totally blocked.
Networking has no hidden teachers or secret yoda networking masters. It has but three simple rules:
1) Be willing to learn
2) Be willing to listen
3) Be willing to do.
And three simple laws:
1) Caring for the group first always precedes the group caring for you.
2) Giving to the members first always precedes the members giving to you.
3) Telling others about a fellow member first always precedes another member telling someone else about YOU.
And only one basic foundation.
It never ever happens any other way.
Never ever ever never will it happen any other way. Argue the point till the cows turn blue or your face comes home. Networking has one direction. Right.
Imagine yourself in a networking circle...as big or small as you head will allow. Your job (net-WORK-ing) is to find good referrals to the guy on your right. (we'll get into good later) and his job is his right and so on and so on. At some point IN THE FUTURE the guy to your left hands YOU a gig.
This exercise is meant to keep you from expecting anything from the ones to whom you send work. Not that they won't send back...just expecting it can be fatal in networking.
Relax, the meetings are not really a circle. I just wanted you to imagine the concept of NOT expecting things from any one source. Not at first.
Expecting gigs is being a vampire. Expect= vampire. We'll spot you a mile away.
Sop let's get into the rules.
Be willing to learn.....
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Phil, this is an excellent article. I always thought I was a pretty good networker, but you have a way of breaking it down that makes me realize I still have a lot to learn. They say when the student is ready the teacher will come. Thank you for being my teacher. Hmmm, I guess that means I must be willing to learn.
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