January 2008
Art of Networking |
Changing the Way the World Does Business
About a year ago, it struck me that BNI truly is "changing the way the world does business." Last January, I was in Tucson, Arizona, for a bi-annual meeting of the Transformational Leadership Council (TLC). TLC is a small network of trainers and thought leaders founded by Jack Canfield of Chicken Soup for the Soul. I've been a member of this organization for several years. At each meeting, members do mini-versions of their personal development and transformational leadership seminars.
I was talking to my wife and some of the members of TLC about the fact that BNI didn't fit the mold of the group because we are not a seminar company doing self-development training. Many of them pointed out that BNI is, in fact, "transforming" the world through our philosophy of Givers Gain. I started thinking about BNI's larger role in helping business people around the world. By the end of the week-long program, the theme for this year—Changing the Way the World Does Business—had materialized in my mind for our organization.
How are we changing the world? Here are some of the ways that come to mind:
- First and foremost, our philosophy of Givers Gain® is powerful and transformational. It focuses on cooperation and collaboration. It involves helping other people; over time, they help you in return. Givers Gain® is an early tradition within our organization that has set us apart from many other groups.
- BNI devotes more than 135,000 person-hours a year to training!* That's huge! And it is far more than any other networking organization in the world. No other organization devotes this much time and energy to teaching people how to run effective networking meetings – none!
- BNI offers a huge quantity of free content to members to improve their participation, such as the weekly podcasts at www.bnipodcast.com, the regular networking blog at www.NetworkingEntrepreneur.com, the monthly networking column at Entrepreneur.com, the monthly online newsletter, SuccessNet™, and (for leadership teams) the special download section at www.bni.com.
- BNI is the only networking organization in the world to have published 10 books on business and networking to help our members learn how to be more successful in their marketing efforts. These include Masters of Networking, The World's Best Known Marketing Secret, Business by Referral, Truth or Delusion, Givers Gain, Master of Success, and several others.
- BNI has been a driving force in the creation of the "relationship networking" approach to marketing. We have helped create an entire industry and marketing strategy for building one's business through a whole new paradigm of business development.
- In 2007 BNI passed an estimated 5.5 million referrals worth $2.1 billion (USD) in business for our members all around the world!** This is more than the GDP of some small countries.
- BNI impacts the success of more than 100,000 business professionals around the world. We help make a difference in the lives of people in almost 40 countries. We have built a program that has lasted for more than two decades and has helped people generate new business, build friendships, develop personal and professional skills, mentor one another, and change the world around them.
I see these positive contributions almost every day. In the next several issues of SuccessNet™, I'd like YOU to share how you believe BNI has changed your life or your fellow member's lives in some way. Send your message to erin@bni.com.
Everyone that sends in a message that I use in a future issue throughout the year will get a set of free downloadable gifts that will help them in BNI.
So, tell me - how is BNI "Changing the Way the World Does Business" for YOU?
* 135,000 hours is calculated by taking 5,000 Chapters times 3 Leadership Team people times 2 trainings a year by an average of 4.5 hours per training. This number does NOT include Membership Committee Training, Visitor Host Training, Advanced Trainings, and Director Trainings. It is a very conservative number.
** These numbers are preliminary estimates for 2007. Final numbers will be released in February 2008.
Called the father of modern networking by CNN, Dr. Ivan Misner is a New York Times bestselling author. He is the founder and chairman of BNI, the world's largest business networking organization. His latest number one bestseller, Masters of Sales, can be viewed at www.MastersBooks.com. Dr. Misner is also the Sr. Partner for the Referral Institute, an international referral training company. He can be reached at misner@bni.com.
Have you listened to BNI's weekly internet recording, also known as the BNI Podcast?