Synopsis

Dr. Misner recently read an article in a major business publication entitled “Stop Networking.” The author complained that the process of networking is mercenary and that instead of “networking”, you should

* Focus on relationships, not transactions.

* Don’t ask for something before you give something.

* Don’t make the process about you.

* Strive for quality, not quantity, in your relationships.

* Volunteer for leadership roles in organizations you belong to.

But wait–isn’t that networking? Yes: networking the right way. Dr. Misner expresses these five principles this way:

* Relationships, not transactions.

* Invest in some social capital.

* Be interested, not interesting.

* Quality over quantity.

* Become engaged in the groups you belong to.

Don’t stop networking. Just start networking the right way.

Share your own ideas about networking the right way in the comments.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

Complete Transcript of Podcast 447 –

Priscilla:

Hello everyone and welcome back to the Official BNI Podcast, brought to you by NetworkingNow.com, which is the leading site on the net for networking downloadables. I am Priscilla Rice, and I am coming to you from Live Oak Recording Studio in Berkeley, California. I am joined on the phone today by the Founder and the Chief Visionary Officer of BNI, Dr. Ivan Misner. Hello, Ivan. How are you today?

Ivan:

I am doing great, Priscilla. We have an interesting podcast, I think, today. I am going to get on one of my soapboxes.

Priscilla:

Okay.

Ivan:

So when I asn an audience how many of you are hoping to possibly sell something, almost everybody raises their hand. You and I have talked about this in a previous podcast. When I ask that same audience how many of you are here to buy something, nobody raises their hand. Hardly ever. Not one person.

This is what I call the networking disconnect. too often, people show up at networking events wanting to sell something but nobody ever goes wanting to buy something. This is how networking can be done badly.

So it didn’t surprise me when I read an article in a major online business venue. The title was Stop Networking. That is what he was telling people. Stop networking – it is so mercenary. That is what he called it. The problem was that every example that he gave on how networking doesn’t work was an example of really, really bad networking. So he gave this really bad examples and said stop networking. The conclusion was stop networking.

Instead of networking, the author said to do these five things:

One, focus on relationships, not transactions. Two, don’t ask for something before you give something. You are chuckling because you see where this is going.

Priscilla:

I do see where this is going, yes.

Ivan:

Three, don’t make the process about you. Four, strive for quality, not quantity in your relationships. And five, volunteer for leadership roles in your organizations that you belong to.

This is where I feel like screaming, “Hello! Does anyone notice that the emperor has no clothes?” I would argue that all five of these strategies are, in fact, all about networking. But networking the right way. In his article, bad networking tactics were presented as the reason that people should quit networking altogether. Networking can be done horribly wrong, but networking isn’t bad. In face, when it is done right, everyone agrees that it is a fantastic way to build your business.

So don’t stop networking. Just start doing it right. It is, in fact, about relationships. Not transactions. You have heard me say that many, many times.