Take your own handbrake off...

I've been networking for over ten years with 4Networking.

I don't network anywhere else.

I don't need to.

But it hasn't always been like that.......

Back in 2011 I flounced off in a mood for six months because 'it wasn't working'. I threw my networking teddies out of the pram completely. I didn't go to a single meeting in that time. Instead I sulked.

And guess what?

My sales plummeted. My personal brand was massively diluted. I had no 'standing' to create relationships with my potential clients. I'd basically broken up with my network and it had very quickly moved on without me. Which hurt.

So, after I'd sulked, and felt 'let down' by a network that forgot me when I stopped showing up (yes, I know, I know) - I came back as Area Leader to reopen Lincoln Breakfast and picked up my networking again.

And guess what?

My sales improved. My personal brand strengthened. My relationship building improved.

Not because the network changed. But because my attitude towards it changed. I stopped pressing my foot on the gas whilst pulling on the handbrake at the same time. Here's how I recalibrated my own approach to networking, took my own handbrake off, and had a mental retune.

First - I stopped blaming the network for all my problems and started looking at how I was networking.

I wasn't networking enough, I was always networking in my comfort zone, I was talking about the wrong set of products and services for my audience, I had a crap 40 seconds and I'd got lazy.

So I needed to change that.

Second - I stopped looking at my team role as a chore.

I wasn't investing any time in my role, I was expecting my team members to produce great meetings without any direction from me, I was treating it like 'work', and I was far too 'hands off'

So I needed to change that too.

Third - I stopped expecting people to simply know who I was because I turned up.

I was hiding behind a personal brand that I didn't really love, expecting sales rather than building relationships and I wasn't presenting a personal brand people could identify with and want to be a part of.

So I needed to change that as well.

If some of this is ringing bells with you, if networking isn't getting you the business you want - maybe you aren't putting the right fuel in your networking tank.

Maybe you've also got your foot firmly on your networking accelerator, but aren't aware you're also hanging on to that handbrake for grim death.

Here's how you can change that:

1. Stop expecting networking to work for you simply because you turn up. It won't. You have to work at it. It's an investment in your business and you should treat it that way. But do look at the where, who, why and what of your networking. If you want to connect with working mums, breakfast meetings are not the place to be. If you want to connect with a specific business type, invite them to join you. What do you want to get out of your networking for your business? Analyse it. Focus your effort, make a plan and be proactive. Don't be lazy.
2. Embrace the opportunity a team role gives. You'd spend 30 minutes a day promoting your business without a second thought. Use a team role as part of that. Use the exposure to talk about your business, and how networking helps you build it. Think about how your group performance appeals to your fellow networkers. Its a direct reflection of your personal brand - is it what you want them to see?
3. Get a strong personal brand in place. Not a flashy website or a funky roller banner. That's not your personal brand. Build your brand by getting out in your network. Speak at networking events to share your knowledge. Give back and get involved - put more fuel in your tank!

Fast forward a year or so and after I stepped up to Regional Leader, I realised this was something I needed to do all over again. And so I created The 'Shire. And that's a story for another time....