Motor City Connect Detroit's Business Networking Engine

You Don't Want To Be That Guy

You have seen them. We all have. If you don't recognize the following description, I implore you, look in the mirror. If you find that I am describing you, I respectfully request that you make some changes. At the very least, please don't attend the same events I do.

The individual I am describing is the one who comes up to you, with a fake smile, and his business card in the hand he intends to shake yours with. He doesn't want to learn about you, just to add you to his database, he ..

You go to networking events to network, not to sell-

I am not a big fan of pet peeves, but if I had one it would be the people at
networking events who try to cram their product or service down my throat. I am
not there for you to sell me stuff. You shouldn't be there if you need to sell
stuff right now. That's not how it works.

My good friend Charlie likens networking to farming and construction. Unlike the
hunting mentality in sales, networking takes time. You actually have to develop
relationships. Those things just don't happen over-night. ..

It's important to recognize that everyone in your network needs to hear from you. What's dynamic about that is the frequency with which you communicate with them. Sometimes it depends on projects or workload. Other times it depends on how much you like one another.

There are people in your network that you need to communicate with almost daily. There are others that as long as you touch base with them semi-annually, you can keep a relationship strong. In either scenario, you need to have a plan on how to reach out to them.

The simplest and most effective way is ..

Many of us can discuss our IQ at length. We know the score, we
understand what it measures and we may even remember the test we took.

Some of us are familiar with the the concept of EQ. Our emotional
quotient or emotional intelligence. This concept basically discusses
our ability to monitor one's own and others' feelings and emotions, to
discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one's
thinking and actions.

This is all well and good, but I want to know about your AQ. What is
your Awareness Quotient?

Are you aware of your surroundings?
Do you ..

Worry and regret are emotions that many of us experience frequently. The rub is
that neither of these serve us well.

If we look at worry, we notice that which we worry about has yet to happen. We
are concerning ourselves with some future occurrence or event. Even in the
example of worrying about someone's current health challenges or a surgery, we
are still focused on an outcome. All the worrying you can muster can not change that outcome.

In similar fashion, regret has us concerned with something that has already
occurred. We go back in time and look at an ..

Target markets: partners
One of the best ways to gain faster entry into your target markets is through strategic referral partners. Having the right partners - the connected ones who service their clients well - will yield big dividends for you. Here is a quick list for you to understand who are the partners you seek:

Are they selling to your same decision maker?
This one is both obvious and often overlooked. Let's look at the IT space. Most companies sell to the CIO but also require buy-in from the CFO. If your company sells network security and my company sells ..

Status updates are simply the fastest, easiest way to let your network know
what's going on. The challenge is, so many of us are posting things that neither
serve us or our network!

Think about it, does anyone really care if you're "sitting on the patio"?. Of
course they don't. That is a line from a Verizon ad that exemplifies how useless
Twitter can be, especially when used incorrectly. I would contend it's Twitter's
own fault as they ask the wrong question: "what are you doing?"

If that's the wrong question, what are the right questions? While I'm not
entirely sure ..

Ways to be memorable, they're not all good

It's a heck of a lot easier to start a conversation with someone after a networking event when they remember you. Here's the rub, so many of us don't engage in memorable or meaningful conversation. Worse than that, there are those of us who are remembered, but are remembered for the wrong thing.

 Here is a quick list of some ways to be remembered at a networking event-note that I said they are not all good:

 1. The most important networking accessory you can wear is very simple: It's a smile. ..

This message sponsored by the Creative Breakthrough Career Day for IT professionals and Administrative folks December 18 in Troy, MI.

You are a part of the most magnetic networking group the world has ever seen.

It dawned on me recently that we haven't communicated who we are, what we are and and how you can benefit lately. It's high time to change that.

First off, welcome to Motor City Connect. We are glad you're here. Our members are able to derive a ton of value just by putting forth a little effort. Some of the benefits our membership has ..

1. They show up ready to network. It doesn't really matter if you are
networking online or face to face, you have to show up.

2. They realize the importance of being interested over being
interesting. Networking isn't only about whats in it for me, it about what
can I do for you and most importantly what we can do together.

3. They ask good questions. The reality is you dont really get to
know about people until you start asking them questions about them.

4. They have excellent listening skills. Listening is vital to any
conversation, but in ..