How To Network

#HowToNetwork

Hey, this is Mike from Epicmarketer.com and in this video we’re going to talk about how to network.

So some of you might know from my past interviews that when I was 18 I got into Amway, which is network marketing. I’m not an Amway, I don’t discourage it or encourage it. For me, it was not the path I wanted to take. But one of the things that they really promoted a lot and that I learned a lot about because I was very introverted was how to network, okay, and the importance of networking.

So, initially, as an introvert, I looked at networking as putting on a show, you know, contorting yourself to be like the crowd or the people you’re talking to and really that’s not it.

Really. Networking is, simply having conversations with people and building relationships.

And one of the things that I learned was initially, my thought or assumption was that people wanted to be impressed by you. That was what it was all about, you know, you got to have really cool things to say. And what I found instead was it was actually the opposite. If you want people to like you, be impressed with them.

And I’m not talking about lying, I’m not talking about you know, when somebody does something awful saying, hey, that’s great. I’m just saying, be interested in what they have to say, you know, tell me what happened next, you know, wow. If it was something amazing, tell them that’s dependent, amazing. I must have felt great or whatever it is.

If it was something horrible and sad or whatever, empathize with them and tell them Oh man, that must have been so painful. How did you get through that? You know, so basically, the big key, the big takeaway that I’m trying to share with you about networking is the ability to listen. And to give people feedback based on what they’re telling you, okay? Now, sometimes people will say things and it’s not really clear. And it’s okay. You can say, you know, I want to make sure I understand, can you kind of clarify that or give me an example of that.

And then when they do, say, Ah, now I get it, you know, and then again, whichever direction it’s going, if it’s good news, if it’s bad news, that’s good news. That’s bad news. You know, whatever it is, but you’re giving them that feedback. And you’ll find that that networking, the more you’re interested in them, like I used to go to a lot of these live events, and I would teach people how to network in a live events and I would say instead of looking for people to partner with, make friends, just listen, check people out, see what they’re doing.

Instead of saying, Hey, dude, Here’s my card. You know, here’s what we’re working on, we got this commission, none of that crap instead, what are you working on? Awesome. How’s that been going so far? Great. What do you love about it? You know? And I mean, you’re kind of steering the direction by asking positive questions.

Like you said, What are you working on? It’s not? Are you working on anything? Because I could be? No, I’m really not working on anything. It’s what are you working on? And they might not have been, as far as steering direction, the conversation goes, they might not have been working on anything when they first got to that conference, for example. But now that they’re taking notes, they’re thinking about, oh, yeah, I think I’m gonna make a product about such and such.

So when you ask them the question, so what are you working on? Now they’re in that frame of mind of, yeah, I’m going to make a product about this and I’m going to promote it when I get back. It’s gonna take me you know, whatever, you know, X amount of time to finish it.

So now you can say awesome, is there anything I can do to help you hit that goal? Okay, Now by you being interested in them, they’ll be way more likely to say that’s awesome. Thank you. What are you working on? How can I help you?

So you don’t want to do it in a slimy way or a manipulative way where you’re trying to hear, how can I help you? Because sometimes it won’t happen. You know, you just have to trust and have faith that if I’m kind to other people, if I care about other people, and I put other people first, people will reciprocate.

Okay, so, I would love to hear your feedback about this as well in the comments below. And thanks so much for watching.

Talk soon,
Mike.