Discover “The Power of True Networking” An interview with Steve Bell, co-Founder of The Networking Masters

Friday November 28th Steve Bell, co-Founder of The Networking Masters appeared on The Joan Sotkin Blog Talk Radio Show…

During the interview Steve and Joan discuss:

• The difference between prospecting, brokering and networking.
• The definition of “true” networking.
• Various true-life examples of the benefits of effective networking
• and more!

You can listen to the complete interview here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/JoanSotkin/2008/11/28/The-Power-of-Networking-with-Steve-Bell

Enjoy! We’d love to hear your comments

Happy Networking!

December Inner Circle Mastermind Teleseminar: Why Creating a Membership Based-Business Is So Smart with Sheri McConnell

December Inner Circle Mastermind Teleseminar: Why Creating a Membership Based-Business Is So Smart with Sheri McConnell

Wednesday December 3, 2008 at 3:00 pm CST
(visit www.time.gov for other time zones)

Becoming the center of influence in your chosen niche is an excellent way to build your brand as the expert of choice. An underutilized strategy by many leaders in professional services is establishing your own membership-based business. Find out why the membership-based business model is a smart way to generate more profits and position yourself as the expert in your industry almost immediately.

Sheri McConnell is the CEO of Sheri McConnell Companies, Inc. and the president and founder of two national organizations, the National Association of Women Writers-NAWW and the International Association of Web Entrepreneurs-AWE.  Under the same corporate umbrella she is also the owner of two high-level product and consulting companies: Create Your Group and My Millionaire Friends. You can visit Sheri, access her free article archive, and find out more about all four of her companies at www.sherimcconnell.com. Sheri lives in San Antonio, Texas with her husband, their four children, a weenie dog, and two cats.

You will learn:

• The many benefits of the membership-based business model including free publicity, immediate platform, and more
• How to leverage your position as a gatekeeper
• Core elements to consider before creating your own membership-based company
• Key roles as the leader
• How to select your team of professional experts
• What systems you need to implement to run a profitable membership-based company

There are two ways you can access this call:

1) Become a FREE Subscriber Now for complimentary access to the live teleseminar.

2) Become an Inner Circle Mastermind Member for VIP access to the mp3 recordings and CD’s of the month. You can jumpstart your membership today and get 3 months for the price of 1.

Already a member? Just login to the Inner Circle Mastermind Forum and enjoy the benefits of being a member of this exclusive group today like networking tips only seen there.

Prospecting – Brokering – Networking: Do You Know The Difference?

I love Success Magazine – Do you subscribe? If you do, I highly recommend reading the article on page 84 “The Gift That Keeps On Giving: Networking Your Way to Personal Gold” by Tim Sanders.

It’s a great article and the highlight for me is his differentiation between prospecting, brokering and networking. Could it be that your networking isn’t working because you haven’t really been networking? Let’s take a look:

Prospecting: When you walk through a reception or meet-and-greet with a handful of business cards looking for new prospects (you are not networking!).

Brokering: When you connect two people, then expect to be repaid for it (not networking!).

Networking: When done correctly, networking is when you connect two or more people who should meet. In other words, true networking is a gift you give to others.

Connecting others without an expectation of being repaid works in line with The Law of Reciprocity which is what Tim refers to as “The Secret” of the business world. The law states that people will give back where they’ve been given to. In other words, “what goes around, comes around” (just not necessarily directly from where you’ve given… that’s the catch!).

Tim’s article goes on to share the story of Elmer Letterman, a successful New York insurance salesman from the 1930’s. “Elmer hosted networking lunches every Friday at the Four Seasons Restaurant. His strategy was simple: Invite three business people who should meet due to mutual interest. He did his homework too, arriving with ideas on how the three could work together. For example, Letterman might invite a chef who wanted to start a restaurant, a banker who could finance it and a construction executive who could build it. He’d explain why each party was credible, get conversation started, pay the bill and then disappear.”

You may be wondering how this strategy worked for him. Here’s the math: 3 people times 50 weeks a year equated to hundreds of business owners in New York who had Letterman to thank for part of their success. Cool story huh!

Now here’s what’s really exciting… this strategy can be duplicated to produce surprise and delight and long lasting loyalty for those in YOUR network! Now think about what this small investment in “networking” could yield for your business in a very short time!

Action Steps:
1) Identify three people in your network who should meet
2) Schedule a networking lunch with these three individuals
3) Introduce them revealing the connection and relevancy, get the conversation started and disappear.
4) Do this every week for one full year and watch The Law of Reciprocity work in your favor.

Tip: Starting today, when you get a business card, enter it into your contact database and think about who you know that this person should meet. Tim suggests that you can use the “miscellaneous” or “other” field as a “should meet” field.

“You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” ~ Dale Carnegie

If you like the concept of GIVING as the foundation of your networking strategy, you’ll enjoy reading “The Greatest Money Making Secret in History” by Joe Vitale and you’ll want to mark your calendar for the JV Mavens Partner and Prosper 5 week Tele-series. It’s f.r.e.e. to attend and we will explore in great detail how you can leverage this concept to grow your business. You’ll find more information at http://snipurl.com/4qcql.

Happy Networking!

An Interview with Dr. Larina Kase, Author of The Confident Leader

In these difficult times, only the exceptional thrive. Discover how they consistently surpass even the toughest challenges–and the scientific research that proves how you can too.

1. Can we build confidence from career achievement?

We know from recent research that self-esteem and confidence are some of the most important predictors of career success and income, and that it doesn’t go the other way around—we can’t wait until we having a thriving career and hope that it increases our confidence. Instead, if we develop confidence, we’re more likely to have a thriving career.

Confidence does NOT necessarily come from achievement. It comes from how you interpret your actions. Two people can achieve the same level, and one feels great and proud of her process of getting there, and the other feels that they could have done better or worries if they’ll do as well the next time. (Guess who’s more confident?)

2. How come being effective doesn’t cut it in today’s economy?

As you know, the current economy is a challenging one and it will separate the true leaders from the simply effective people. The cream will rise to the top and they will be the ones who will be most competitive for the best jobs, clients, and other opportunities.

Ironically, in tough times, most people become LESS exceptional. They get scared. They retreat into their comfort zones. They seek security and play it safe. They want to blend in and fly under the radar. They are afraid to accept responsibility for things that don’t go well. They do not step up as leaders.

You must avoid this temptation! These things will keep you in the average zone (or worse) and keep you from being exceptional and presenting your best.

3. What are 5 ways to make yourself exceptional to stand out in a tough market?

* Become an expert. Pick one aspect of your work and make yourself an expert in it, such as “the woman who gracefully handles difficult customers”. This makes you invaluable.
* Speak in specifics. Market the results of your work by highlighting outcomes and data. This type of self-marketing delivers value without coming across as self-promotional.
* Tell stories. Stories engage others and make you memorable. Show your value by telling the success stories of your clients or customers.
* Step up as the leader. During fearful times you’re tempted to fly under the radar, but this makes you dispensable. Instead, pick a project you are qualified to lead and take charge.
* Take ownership. When you’re anxious, fear of failure increases and you don’t want to be blamed for problems. Unfortunately responsibility-shirking undermines your confidence in yourself and others’ trust in you.

4. Why do we know what we need (and even want to do) but we don’t do it?

We high-achieving types are great consumers of knowledge. We always want to learn more and be our best, but most of the time we struggle with turning our knowledge into action. There are many reasons for this, including:
* The timing isn’t right
* We don’t have the right support or other resources
* We aren’t committed to making the change
* We don’t yet have the skills to successfully take action

These reasons can be legitimate and important to consider and manage, or they can be excuses. The #1 reason that we don’t take action is fear. We doubt ourselves and get paralyzed with indecision. When fear is active, these reasons all feel very legitimate, when in reality they are not important.

The key, then, is to critically evaluate your readiness to take action when you are not feeling particularly anxious about the change. If you need to address these factors, do so, and while you have momentum, start taking action!

Is your new book The Confident Leader just for leaders?

It’s really about personal leadership- being the leader in your career, business, community, and life. It’s for the person who wants to take charge, push their own boundaries, surprise themselves with what they are actually capable of, and make a real difference in the world. You can get it plus lots of bonuses at http://www.ConfidentLeaderBook.com

Facebook Fortunes! with Guest Expert Mari Smith

Facebook Fortunes with Mari Smith is The Networking Masters Inner Circle Marketing and Mastermind Call for November.

Date/Time: Wednesday November 19th at 1:00 pm CST

Facebook has significant implications for business owners, marketers, and entrepreneurs.

This highly successful online social networking platform boasts one hundred million registered members, and is growing at a rate of 225,000 per day. Analysts predict Facebook membership to be at 500 million by 2011.

To keep your business current in today’s world, you must know how to use the latest conversational marketing techniques and viral technologies, including Facebook and its array of powerful features.

Regardless of what you read in the news, online or what your kids tell you – Facebook is an incredible platform to connect with quality, like-minded professionals, find joint venture partners, attract TOP paying clients, gain media attention and establish yourself as the expert in your field.

If you’re using (or wanting to us) Facebook for business… this event is a must!

Mari will share the top reasons why you need to be active on Facebook if you’re in business, including how to:

• Establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry.
• Drive a flood of traffic to your website and blog.
• Get rapid high search engine ranking.
• Easily find top paying clients.
• Build a team of quality Joint Venture partners.

Mark your calendar and plan to attend this information-packed Teleseminar and learn how you too can use this powerful platform to leverage your results.

There are two easy ways to be notified of the call-in details:

1) Become a fan of The Networking Masters on Facebook.

2) Subscribe to The Networking Masters (Free Networking Success Kit Inside!)
NOTE: Call recordings are reserved for Inner Circle Marketing and Mastermind Members who also receive each monthly CD plus bonus shipped to their doorstep. Jumpstart your membership now with 3 months for the price of one!

*Call Time Is CST – Central Standard Time