Posted on: 03 December, 2001
Author: Leni Chauvin
How would you like to have a fan club filled with people who know, ... and respect you? People who have a very clear ... of whatyou do and exactly the kind of client you are looking f How would you like to have a fan club filled with people who know, like,trust and respect you? People who have a very clear understanding of whatyou do and exactly the kind of client you are looking for. People who willactually go out and find clients for you, and, best of all, they¹ll nevercharge you a cent!. Sound like a fantasy? It¹s not. It¹s allpossible...if you know how to network.So what exactly is networking? If you look at the word ³network,² you¹llnotice that it is both a noun and a verb. As a noun it is simply the peopleyou know, your sphere of influence. As a verb, it is making use of thatsphere of influence in an intelligent manner by sharing information andgiving support. Networking today is about forming and cultivatingrelationships. The objective of networking should be to help other peoplesucceed. The more you help others, the more they will want to help you.It is a simple law of nature: what goes around comes around.Like anything else in life, though, networking is work--netWORK. You needto have very clearly defined goals and objectives in order to succeed. Youneed to have systems in place to make sure those goals and objectives aremet, and you must have a plan of action.Here are just few tips to help you build your business through networking:--Know who you know!You cannot even begin to network, unless you know who is in your network!Make lists of everybody you know through family, friends, your children,hobbies, sports. For everyone on your list write everything you know aboutthem, e.g, their hobbies, where they grew up, the type of dog they have, whotheir friends are, etc. Update this list weekly.--Know who you want to know.Then figure out how to meet them. This is where you need to have a veryclearly defined plan of action. Learn everything about the people you wantto meet, and then figure out who in your network shares thesame interests. It is very probable that they will know someone who knowsthe person you want to meet.--Understand and appreciate your value to the people in your network.We all have unique interests, talents, and experiences which can be used tohelp others. Revel in knowing that you can touch the lives of everyone youmeet if you are prepared to share your knowledge and resources with them.--Develop systems to organize your information so it is readily accessible.Whether it¹s a Day-timer, a contact management computer program, a Rolodex,or good ol¹ index cards doesn¹t matter. Use whatever works best for you andallows you to retrieve information quickly so you can pass it along in atimely manner.--Strategize ways to consistently get your name before the people in yournetwork. You want to be at the forefront of their thinking so when a potential clientpresents him/herself to someone you know, that person immediately makes theconnection and makes the referral. This is the ultimate goal of networking.--Give, give, give!Give freely of yourself, never expecting anything in return. Trust that whatyou put out there will come back to you. It may not come back immediately.It may not come back, directly. It will, however, come back eventually.Just give. Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com