How are your Holidays?

As a kid I hated getting ready for a holiday because I was leaving all my friends and comfortable surroundings.

But once I got there I loved it.

The smells sound and colours of a seaside resort were wonderful and of course the rock, which I admit to eating far too much of and occasionally being unwell as a result.

Its like a dark and light side of your view on life.

I was asked if networking can be a bad thing and is there a dark side to networking.

My answer: Its like doing something new, something different, it depends on how much, what type, and if you take too much or if you take it from a stranger.

The last few weeks have illustrated an unfortunate but clear example of scary and uncomfortable networking. What happens when some people are not only in the know, but use the information unwisely and others are negatively impacted.

The financial fiasco has many people to blame. But we are networkers and we are optimists which is why we do it. But who is going to sort out the ongoing mess?

When our world is going 90 miles a minute it doesn't seem necessary to say, let's slow down and ask ourselves a few questions. Now that sort of thinking makes sense.


A few questions that are worth asking:

How well do I know this person? If you know someone socially, they may know something about investments or another topic. Or they may not. It doesn't mean you need to grill them, but taking anecdotal advice can be risky. It is fine to have friends who are just that - friends. They don't need to be your business advisors. From the other side people I do business with should be respectful and have integrity.

That doesn't mean we're going to be best friends. What is their motive? Everyone has an objective for the connection. It can be honourable, maybe not. I ask people what's in it for them. There needs to be some benefit for both parties or a project won't succeed.

Does it pass your mothers test? If you were asked by your mother about a networkers services- would you be confident? The acid test of your product or services is that would people in the room refer you to their mum? It’s a hard one that, as there are people I know and like that I have met through networking that I would either have to think about very hard. Or decline to pass them a referral from someone I know, just because they don’t do exactly what it says on the tin

In the press? What if you read about your relationship in the newspaper or saw a story on TV. Would you feel at all uncomfortable? Networking succeeds when it enhances the lives of others and helps people do well. Remember its about building trust based relationships. How do I look to the world?

Some time ago, I got a call from a woman asking me for help on her dissertation. She was a business student and her paper was on effective marketing techniques. She said she wanted to include networking. Much to my surprise when I took some time to research her and the class, it turned out she was a consultant for a competitor.

The transference of trust is at the heart of networking. The ultimate connection is when someone makes a connection on your behalf. Honour others who give you their confidence. Ask good questions of those who may need some guidance when learning best practices.

Warren Buffet says, "When people are greedy, be scared. And when people are scared, be greedy." Take a few moments to evaluate whether or not to network.

In the end, it will let you conserve time, money, and maybe even avoid a head ache.

Paul

Helping Real People do Real business Through Real networking