From the Founder
Build Cooperation or Expect Resistance ⁽¹⁾
By Dr. Ivan Misner

Last month I spoke about the importance of choosing between "excellence" and "mediocrity." Over time, groups that gradually accept mediocre performance and excuses tend to struggle. The secret is to be adamant about doing the things that promote success and excellence in a group. These things include education, following the system, passing quality referrals, good attendance, and more.

What I didn't talk about in last month's article is the "attitude" you must embrace and exhibit when striving for excellence.

The key to achieving excellence in a BNI chapter—or in any group for that matter—lies in having a solutions-focused attitude, which naturally will promote and build cooperation. ⁽¹⁾

It's amazing how many people (inside and outside BNI) have a problems-focused attitude instead. They assume that in order to achieve excellence they first must pinpoint everything that's wrong and lacking in the situation and channel all of their energy into fixing it completely.

With your BNI chapter, try the following exercise, which demonstrates how a solutions-focus encourages cooperation and progress towards achieving excellence, and how a problems-focus leads to resistance toward greatness.

• Ask members to pinpoint the two main problems in the chapter and rate those problems on a scale of 1 (huge problem) to 10 (not a problem at all).
• No matter what number they rate each problem, your initial response should be, "Why so high?" Let's say they give a #4 rating (which would indicate that they are not very satisfied with the situation), your response will then be, "Why so high? What's working that made you give it a 4 instead of a 3, a 2, or even a 1?"

This approach helps members to realize that there are some things working, and how things would be better if the group did more of those things.

With this approach you shift the focus toward a solution; the entire group focuses on what to do instead of what not to do. Fellow members will create the answer to the problem—all they have to do is pinpoint what's working and do more of it.

We forget that the answers are always there. Most of us get easily preoccupied with the problem. By simply focusing on what's already working, your chapter can cooperate to find a solution.

Differences between a problems- and solutions-focus
Outlined below are the differences between having a problems-focus chapter and having a solutions-focus chapter, and the consequences of each.

By maintaining a problems-focus, we get stuck dwelling on:
• What's wrong
• What needs fixing
• Blame
• Control
• The past
• Deficits and weaknesses
• Complications
• Definitions

Think about how you would react if you were having an issue with someone and they were focusing on the negative. It's easy to see how, in any situation (family, employment, entrepreneurial, networking group, etc.), this attitude engenders resistance and stunts progression of a positive solution.

By having a solutions-focus, however, you're already thinking in terms of how you will move forward. Your focus is on:
• What's wanted
• What's working
• Progress
• Influence
• Collaboration
• Resources and strengths
• Simplicity
• Actions

Focusing on solutions helps create resonance in a chapter. You're focused on what works rather than what doesn't.

With this approach, it is very important to remember that sometimes the art of creating resonance is knowing what to overlook! If you try so hard to achieve excellence that you attempt to immediately work through every little problem that comes up, you will become frustrated and overwhelmed.

Instead, focus on two or three things at a time—pick the things that need the most urgent improvement. Inevitably, those things will positively impact the next ten problems you have.

In conclusion, here are some supplemental points to focus on when building cooperation and working toward solutions:
• Think of actions as starting something rather than stopping something.
• Concentrate on small actions that can be taken now.
• Focus your energy on what's working.
• Come up with specific and clearly defined steps that build on successes, not failures.
• Focus on solutions, not problems!
• Take incremental steps to build towards the solution.
• Don't fix what isn't broken.
• Find what works and do more of it!
• Spot useful qualities and resources in action.
• Be selective about solutions.

The way to build cooperation in a chapter is to focus on a positive-solutions focus to problems. When that doesn't happen, you can almost always expect resistance.

⁽¹⁾ MerKergow & Jackson, Solutions Focus

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.