Sunday 29 November 2009

The book you don’t read won’t help you!

29/11/09

I was asked recently why I was always reading a business book and my answer was very simple: development. After all, you can always learn. Plus, the more you know the easier things becomes.

One of the benefits I find is that by reading more than one book on any given subject, I learn more. The reason is that one author will explain a subject slightly differently to another and this difference, plus the repetition, help me to fix things in my head. Even then, I can always learn more about the subject.

This reminds me of a deal I made with a member some time ago when he couldn’t see the point of going to Visitor Host training for a third time! He was a Visitor Host at the time and just couldn’t see the need of being trained yet again. So, I made him a deal. If he carried out the visitor host role perfectly at the next meeting he need not do the training. He knew that whatever he did, it could always be improved, so he attended the training without any more fuss.

While on the subject of repeat training, even if he could carry out the visit host role perfectly, why would he not want to go to the workshop and network with the other BNI members and gain possible new business?

So, every book you don’t read won’t help you, and it is the same with training; every workshop you don’t attend can’t help you or your business.

Two books that I can really recommend are The Jelly Effect by Andy Bounds and Truth or Delusion by Ivan Misner.

Saturday 21 November 2009

Are you sitting comfortably?

21/11/09

Recently I was on a conference call, given by Area Director Phil Berg. Its subject was ‘getting more visitors to your chapter’, and I have to say that as a Gold Badge member (pretty good at bringing visitors) of BNI, the content was just outstanding.

In fact, however good you are at bringing visitors to your chapter, you could not have hung up at the end of the call and not be better still.

Members often say that it is difficult to think of who to invite to their chapters and Phil had at least twenty ideas on the subject; one of which was a visual interpretation of ‘Follow your money’. And, it’s so simple!

So, are you sitting comfortably?

It doesn’t matter if you are reading this at home or in the office, it will work. It will even work in your garden, in fact just about anywhere.

All you have to do is look around you and start taking notes. Where did you get the carpet? The picture frames? Who made the bookshelves? Who decorated the room? Who put in the central heating? Where did you buy the curtains? Who decided on the colour scheme? Who made the cushions?

Get the idea?

And, what’s great, each room of your house will give you a slightly different list, your garden another and your office yet another.

But, the best thing of all is that you know all of these people. Each one has supplied you, you know how good they are, and each would be more than happy to talk to you. After all, you are a customer of theirs.

So, make your list and start inviting all of those great suppliers you know.

Sunday 1 November 2009

Phone a friend!

1/11/09

I don’t know about you but I don’t always find role-play easy. Role-play is not that hard in itself, but in a training room full of people, all pretending that they are meeting someone for the first time face-to-face, or sitting next to someone using your little finger and thumb as a phone, well it just doesn’t feel real. And, let’s face it - it’s not!

But role-play and practice are actually very important if we are to be successful in finding both referrals and visitors for our chapters. They are also just as important in our everyday business life, as a great telephone manner and confidence when meeting people for the first time will win us more business.

So, how do we practise more real and effective role-play?

Well, the answer is very simple – phone a friend. Not just on the spur of the moment, but arrange a time when it would be convenient. Maybe agree on a time between 10.00am and lunchtime one morning, or just after lunch one afternoon. It doesn’t matter when, as long as your friend has time to take the call and is happy to play their part.

As a BNI member you already have scripts as to what to say, so that part is done for you. But I bet some of you are saying, ‘I can’t say that!’ Well, guess what? You don’t have to. What I would suggest is that you type the script as suggested into Word, then say it out loud. Any words that don’t sound correct for you, or you stumble over, change to words that you would use. Once you are happy with the new script, you will have your version, a version that you are comfortable saying.

Then all you do is ring your friend, try it out, and ask for some feedback. Then try again another day, and so on, until you are happy with how you sound and your friend has not said that they are leaving the country.

At this point it is time to try it for real. I can promise you that you will be surprised at how good a result you get.

Just a couple of things to finish: enjoy yourself and if your friend is a fellow BNI member, return the favour.