The unique part about my story is, growing up I graduated from kindergarten, high school, and college all from the same campus where I attended church. Basically, everything from my worldview to life experiences and perspectives was controlled by how they wanted me to view the world. When I graduated college I realized I didn’t want to be in ministry but I had a degree in the Bible and church ministry, I had recently gotten married and bought a house. So I started doing the only other thing I knew how to do which was door-to-door sales. But I knew I didn’t want to do that long term so I dove into studying personal development through books and podcasts. 

Your network is everything, everyone has heard the phrase your network is your net worth or the average of the five people you spend the most time with. We are nothing but a product of our environment, no matter who wants to pretend they can buck the rules of the environment they are in, you can’t. Your environment is what shapes you and the cool thing is you are largely in control of it. Meaning you have control over who you will become, the type of income you will make, and where you will end up in life. Find people that are killing it in the areas of life you value and position yourself near them and adjust your goals accordingly.

The traditional networking model is very transactional and short-term. You go to this networking event and expect to get a certain number of clients from it but if you don’t it was a waste of time. That is the traditional mentality around networking. To network the right way you have to switch your mindset from short term to long term, from taking to giving, talking to listening. Networking is the same as building a friendship but the difference is you are more likely to meet people that you already have something in common with based on the type of event you are attending.

As a small business owner, you want your potential customers to hear from you outside of what you are selling. You want to be seen as an expert in your space, that could mean blogging, podcasting, speaking at a local Chamber of Commerce, or even giving a presentation at an industry conference or event. Getting people to see you as a thought leader, an advocate, a human, and not just someone trying to sell something is the key to increasing your reach. Nobody wants to be sold but everyone likes to buy things. 

If I had a service-based business in a local area I would be calling all my best customers and potential referral partners and interviewing them on my podcast. I would be talking to all the top real estate agents, mortgage brokers, solar companies, and alarm companies in the area. Inviting them to be part of my podcast to share their insights and in turn, I might be the one they think of when they need something. However, you never do it with the expectation you will get something in return but as a way to give back to the community and grow your network. I would challenge anyone to do that consistently over several years and not see a dramatic increase in your business. 

Resources Shared: 

Build Your Network Podcast

Guestio.com

Meet Your Hero by Travis Chappell

Meet Your Hero Training Course