Synopsis

As we discussed in Episode 409, chapters go through cycles. Here’s an easy way to recognize and categorize chapter cycles.

On Fire

These chapters are energized, goal-oriented, and thriving. They’re generating a lot of referrals with a high value. They’re the biggest groups–or on their way to being it. Members of the leadership team attend all the required trainings, and more. BNI members in these chapters have completed their BNI Connect profiles and pass referrals every week. They conduct effective one-to-ones. And they have fun together.

On Hold

These chapters are still generating referrals and revenue, but they’re just going through the motions. They do the minimum and get average results. Sometimes these groups have been on fire in the past, but became complacent and started to slide. They’ve often given up on growth, and don’t follow all the suggestions of their regional directors and the BNI policies.

In a Hole

These chapters are struggling with attendance. They’re not holding members accountable. They have difficulty retaining members. These chapters focus on problems rather than solutions. They don’t follow the agenda and policies of BNI very well, and they often regard their regional director as an outsider rather than a resource.

Where does your group stand right now? If your group is on fire, congratulations. That’s how BNI is supposed to be. If your group is on hold, it’s not that hard to transition to being on fire. Even if you’re in a hole, you can break out of that, as long as the leadership team and the membership are committed to change.

The key to improvement is recognizing where you are. Why settle for mediocrity when excellence is an option?

Use the worksheet below to rate your chapter. Is your chapter is on hold or in a hole, contact your director for help.

If you’ve moved your chapter from “In a Hole” to “On Fire,” share what you did in the comments.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

Complete Transcript of Episode 480

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 and where are you?

Ivan:

This week, I am in Houston and in Boston. You didn’t know that they were real close to each other, did you?

Priscilla:

No, I did not know that.

Ivan:

I am doing BNI things for both Houston and Boston. I’ll be traveling a little bit. I love the topic today.

Priscilla:

Olay. Help us with this one.

Ivan:

If your chapter has ever gone through a cycle and if your chapter has been around for a couple years, it has probably gone through the cycle. This is all about a life chapter cycle, so I would recommend you go to BNI podcast and do a search on chapter cycles. You will find some additional information on chapter cycles here. Plus, I just came up with these three phrases recently, and I think they perfectly identify where chapters are within the cycle process and it is so easy to remember and so easy to understand.

You walk into some chapters and they are on fire. They are energized, goal-oriented. They are thriving, and most importantly, they are referring high dollar value or high revenue value in thank you for closed business values, while others are basically on hold. They are just kind of going through the motions, doing the minimum, getting average results.