Ivan R. Misner's Blog, page 120

Crucial Conversations

We’ve all heard the phrase “It’s not so much about what you say, it’s more how you say it that really matters” and, let me tell you, I learned the hard way how true that actually is.  Conversations can be tricky–especially when one or more of the people involved are upset. Back in the 1980s when I first started BNI®, there were only a handful of chapters in existence, as the organization was in its very beginning stages, and it was still small enough to where I was able to make personal visits to chapter meetings.  One day, the chapter ...

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Got Jet Lag? Use This Trick to Banish It Once and for All . . .

Ugh . . . jet lag–the dreaded tormenter of travelers far and wide.  I know a thing or two about traveling as it’s a huge part of my career and my years of consistent traveling have taught me the one and only thing I need to know about jet lag which I’m going to share with you today.  Last year alone, I traveled on roughly around 50 flights, many of them being international routes requiring long (and I’m talking LONG) hours of plane travel and adaptation to some significant time zone changes which can sometimes make the simple act of ...

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True or False?–The More You Promote Yourself, the More Referrals You’ll Get . . .

If you believe that promoting yourself, in the traditional sense, is the best way to get referrals, I hate to break it to you but it’s actually not a particularly effective way of generating referrals.  The thing is, just talking about yourself is not enough–you’ve got to teach people how to refer you. You’d think that people would listen when you describe what you do and then just naturally put two and two together when they come across somebody who needs your product or service but unfortunately it doesn’t often happen that way.  People need to be led down the ...

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‘Why People Resist Networking’ Series: Part IV–Lack of Understanding

In this fourth and final installment of the “Why People Resist Networking” Video Series, I discuss a fourth reason why people likely shy away from networking–Lack of Understanding. Unfortunately, many people simply don’t understand what networking is and, in addition, they don’t understand the benefits of networking. In this video, I put some common misconceptions to rest about what networking is and I explain why, no matter what business you’re in, it’s best to “take off your bib and put on your apron” if you want networking to work for you. After watching the video, please leave your feedback, thoughts, ...

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What Is Success & How Is It Defined?

No matter what we call it, we all pursue success.  We all have desires and strive to achieve them.  Our desires may be different from anyone else’s, and we may not consider achieving them to be “success.”  We look around and see people whose success we envy.  What is Jake doing with his supply of hours in any given day that puts him so far ahead of me in money, friends, and influence?  Why is he successful, and why am I not?  Why is he flying his own Learjet while I’m rattling around in this two-year-old Jaguar?  Why is she ...

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‘Why People Resist Networking’ Series: Part III–Impatience Resulting in Early Failure

In this third installment of the “Why People Resist Networking” Video Series, I discuss another popular theme surrounding why people tend to resist networking – impatience.  If new networkers don’t see immediate payoff from their efforts, they become impatient, inevitably resulting in failure early on in the networking process. Quite often, people simply don’t understand the value of taking time to build fruitful relationships and, like it or not, fruitful relationships are the cornerstone of effective networking. In this short video, I show a Power Point slide which offers eye-opening proof of the payoff that comes from being patient and ...

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Speak to Be Heard and Hear to Know How to Speak

Peter Drucker once said, “The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn’t being said.”  This is so true and extremely important because the quality of our relationships depends on the quality of our communications; and when it comes to sales for your business and growing your business through referral marketing, this concept is a cornerstone for success. Of course, not all sales transactions require incredible relationships or communication (e.g., online shopping), yet even big box stores like Wal-Mart–not known for warm customer relations–illustrate the value they place on communication and relationships by employing a visitor host to ...

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‘Why People Resist Networking’ Series: Part II–Too Busy to Network

In this second installment of the “Why People Resist Networking” Video Series, I discuss another commonly held idea behind why people most likely resist networking–they claim they are much too busy to network. The bottom line is that though people may feel they “don’t have the time” or that they’re “too busy to network,” in reality they’re simply not making the effort to take the time because they don’t realize two extremely important facts about the benefits of networking and the power it has to significantly build their business. I highly encourage you to watch this video to find out ...

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Facts Tell, But Stories Sell

Over the past few weeks, I’ve posted blogs on how embracing quality, adding members, and seeking engagement are all things that will help networkers and entire networking groups achieve success.  Today, I’d like to talk about an additional tactic for obtaining stellar networking results–sharing stories. Listening closely to the information shared by those in your referral network will help you in telling positive stories about them when you come across potential opportunities to refer them.  Conducting regular one-to-one meetings with each of your networking partners will also help you become more able to share stories when you refer others to ...

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‘Why People Resist Networking’ Series: Part I–Lack of Confidence

  In this first video in the “Why People Resist Networking Series,” I list four ideas about why people most likely resist networking and then delve more deeply into detail about the very first idea–Lack of Confidence. I offer insight into three different reasons why people lack confidence when it comes to networking and then give explanations & solutions (solutions which have helped me in my own networking efforts, I might add) to combat this reasoning which too often prevents people from reaping the benefits of networking for their business. After watching the video, please leave your feedback, thoughts, and/or ...

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