Phil Gerbyshak » networking

Simple Network Solution: Networking by the Numbers

Phil Gerbyshak — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 06:08:00 +0000

No matter how many people you have in your network, it’s doubtful you’re working it as effectively as you can. I’ve developed a plan for working my network, and I gladly share it with you in hopes of helping you be a more-effective networker.

I recommend separating contacts every quarter into 4 numbered piles:

Here’s how I decide who goes in what pile:

80 - 80% will be people you barely know and others who you are unlikely to help, and who are unlikely to help you with what you need. As this is the largest number, it will also be your largest pile. Unless these the folks call me in the next 3 months, they will probably be move to the 0 pile. I try to contact them once in a while myself, but my expectations for anything happening are REALLY low.

Contact frequency: Every 6 months

19 - 19% of your contacts are good folks that you’ll help when you can, and who will help you if they can…if you ask. If you treat these folks right, they could make it into the 1% pile. You may want to send a handwritten note to these folks in hopes of rekindling the spark that was originally in the relationship, which could prompt moving them to the next pile.

Contact frequency: Every 5-7 weeks, or 2-3 touches a quarter.

1 - 1%. These are the best people in your network and are rare, perhaps as low as 1% of your contacts. These are people that help your business in any way they can. They’re the folks you call when you need help, and often, they call you when you need help before you know you need it. Take GREAT care of these folks and try to touch them often. Send them an e-mail, give them a call, leave a voicemail, whatever. Get in front of them!

Contact frequency: Every 3 weeks or more if relevant.

0 - Last is the 0 pile, zero meaning how much energy I recommend spending on these people. These are folks you know, but you haven’t talked to them in over 3 months. You may talk to them in the future, but you’re going to invest 0% of your mind space on them. Life is too busy to waste on the ones who fall into this pile. This pile may grow over time, and you may want to think about an annual email to catch up with them and see if they have any interest in what you are doing now.

Contact frequency: Annually, just to make sure you don’t lose them completely.

You can move folks between these piles as often as you wish. I recommend reviewing things quarterly at a maximum and annually at a minimum. If you’re not weeding through your network, you’re not feeding those that need to be fed, which means YOU’RE not eating enough either. Invest your time wisely, as it is the only finite resource you have to invest in your business.

Do you network by the numbers, or do you have some other solution in place? I’d love to hear if this is a workable system for you or if you have something else you use that works better for you.

Numbers in the orange by Leonid Mamchenkov

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Network is Two Words

Phil Gerbyshak — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:11:34 +0000

June 3rd, 2009 at 6:30 PM Eastern/5:30 PM Central, I will be Joan Schramm’s guest on Career Momentum Radio. The topic of our talk is Network is Two Words: Winning the Networking Game. I’m going to discuss some of my favorite online and offline networking tips. If you miss the show, click back. It’ll be recorded for your listening pleasure.

For me, networking is a fun and useful thing to do. Networking is fun because I love people, and networking is useful because it’s helped me find a job, it helps me find answers I need to tough questions, and it helps me connect people together who might not otherwise be together.

What do you think about networking?

Do you enjoy it?

Do you loathe it?

Do you see it as a necessary evil?

Do you have a great tip for networking? Something you do, or something to avoid?

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10 Things I Learned About Connection from President Bill Clinton

Phil Gerbyshak — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:16:32 +0000

Guest post by Sean Stephenson, Author of Get Off Your “But”: How to End Self-Sabotage and Stand Up for Yourself

Note from Phil: I’m always curious how the best do what they do. Bill Clinton is the BEST connection artist I’ve ever seen, and though I don’t agree with all of his personal foibles, I have to admire the way he made everyone around him be connected to him quickly and effectively. I always wondered what tips he would share. Of course, I wasn’t able to get to him to ask him, but I was able to get one of his former intern’s insight, and now I can share that with you. Enjoy!

Love him or loathe him, you can’t deny that Bill Clinton is a masterful connection artist. I’ve seen him in action many times, and he’s a wonder to behold. How does he do it? How can he connect with people who despise him, and within a few minutes have them laughing, hugging, and listening closely to him?

During the time I worked for the president as a White House intern, I watched him closely, trying to figure out his secret. The first thing I noticed was that he always paid very close attention to how other people were feeling. If they retreated emotionally during an exchange, he immediately reengaged them and brought them back on course. He had an infinite number of techniques, but these were the ones I saw him use most often:

1. He told a story. This was far less intrusive — and way more effective — than making his point directly. And his story would always evoke specific emotions from the listeners — laughter, anger, compassion — that would help them connect with what he was communicating.

2. He made physical contact. On many occasions, he would place his hand on your shoulder, back, or forearm as he spoke, passing his energy on to you kinetically.

3. He remembered your name. This one baffled and amazed me. The number of people a president meets in the course of one year in office is overwhelming. He couldn’t possibly remember them all. Yet if Clinton met you on more than a few occasions, he would retain your name perfectly and use it every time he spoke to you. Which brings us to the next point.

4. He called you by name. Whether he remembered it or had to glance down quickly at your name badge, he would make sure to call you by name more than once in the course of his conversation with you. During one of the recent post-term visits I had with him, he walked into the room and said warmly, “Sean, boy am I glad to see you.” Someone once told me that the sound of our own name spoken in a loving tone is one of the most soothing sounds we can ever hear. I agree.

5. He made deep eye contact with you. Once President Clinton’s eyes locked onto yours, they didn’t leave until the interaction was complete. In all my years of talking to celebrities, from sports icons and Hollywood starlets to business moguls and politicians, few have used this technique with such finesse. Most of these ego-monsters can’t hold the connection more than a few seconds before they start scanning the room for someone more important to talk to than the person right in front of them. Yuck!

6. He used his facial expressions to convey his emotional state. President Clinton would greet you with a smile in his eyes on a joyous occasion, and with sad eyes and an expression of empathy in moments of devastation. If he was upset about something, it showed on his face like a summer storm. I’m sure there were times, as there are for all of us, when he felt one emotion and projected another. But he never seemed false around me — he was always successful in conveying the emotion he wanted to show.

7. He calibrated his vocal inflections and volume based on the amount of rapport he had established. If the rapport was strong, he would be more boisterous in his volume. If it was weak, he would have a more soft-spoken demeanor. Simple, but effective.

8. He asked for your opinion. The first time the president turned to me and asked, “Sean, what are your thoughts on that?” I thought, “Did he just ask me for my opinion?” Whether he asked because he really wanted to know or because he knew it was tremendously flattering to be asked a question by the leader of the free world, I’m not exactly sure. I do know that it felt good, and I remember it to this day. Humans love to give their opinions on things. On those rare occasions when we are actually asked our thoughts on something — and we are listened to — it makes us feel tremendously important.

9. He chose his words wisely. Never once did I catch President Clinton taking the verbal low road, slinging slang with disregard. He carefully selected every word to create just the right expression he was looking for.

10. He praised you publicly any chance he got. On July 24, 1998, 1 was attending an event in the Rose Garden, when out of the blue the president said, “I’d also like to thank Sean Stephenson, [Boys Nation] class of 1996, now an intern in Cabinet Affairs. Thank you for what you are doing here.” Then he nodded and smiled in my direction. Was he doing that because it was standard protocol, or because he really was truly grateful for my service at the White House? I’m going to choose to believe the latter. It felt great.

Sometimes I affectionately refer to President Clinton’s gift of connecting to those who don’t like him as “the carwash phenomenon.” Dignitaries and their families — specifically the ones who were skeptical and unfriendly toward him — would enter the White House through the East Wing gates, often with expressions of disdain. They would take a tour of all the public areas and then work their way over to the president’s office in the West Wing, to meet with him. A few hours later, when they exited the White House through the West Wing gates, they looked completely different. It was as if President Clinton, like a cosmic car wash, had magically washed away their scowls and replaced them with expressions of pure relaxation. Absolutely remarkable!

It’s been said that Clinton’s greatest skill is his ability to communicate. I would disagree. I believe his strongest suit is being able to connect.

The above is an excerpt from the book Get Off Your “But”: How to End Self-Sabotage and Stand Up for Yourself by Sean Stephenson. The above excerpt is a digitally scanned reproduction of text from print. Although this excerpt has been proofread, occasional errors may appear due to the scanning process. Please refer to the finished book for accuracy.

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Recession Proof Your Life

Phil Gerbyshak — Fri, 08 May 2009 02:16:27 +0000

This week I was in Canada to present to two HDI chapters, Trillium HDI (in Toronto) and Ottawa HDI (obviously in Ottawa). It was my first trip to Canada, and I must say, the folks I encountered all throughout the country were wonderfully welcoming and amazingly approachable. The cab driver even took me through a drive-through so I could get some food on my way to the hotel in Ottawa because it was VERY late and nothing was open close to my hotel. Awesome!

I promised all the great folks I met that I would upload my presentation to Slideshare, and I thought I’d share it with you as well.

Recession Proof Your Life: Make A Plan And Make It Great – Canadian version

View more presentations from Phil Gerbyshak.

If you can’t see it above, or if you get my articles via e-mail, you can Recession Proof Your Life via Slideshare.

Questions for you:

Do you like the presentation?
Do you see things that could make it better?
Anything else you’d like to share?

I’d love your feedback. Please share it below in the comments.

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Simple Offline Networking Tips

Phil Gerbyshak — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 08:09:26 +0000

While I love social media to network online (favorites include LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter), I love even more networking offline. Networking offline allows me to deeped the connections I have, and create more new ones, faster and more effectively.

I’m an extrovert, and I get super energized when I get to hang with others who share their energy with me. I recognize not everyone is that way, but if you’re willing to step beyond your introversion and be a little bit out there, this article can help you network offline.

5 Simple Ways to Network Offline

Attend conferences – Going to a conference is a great way to find people who share an interest with you. Recently, I’ve attended the HDI Annual Conference and connected with almost 2000 passionate, dedicated help desk and service desk professionals. The first weekend of May I’ll be attending SOBCon in Chicago with 150 or so folks who are passionate about online publishing and blogging for business, something I want to learn a LOT more about. Another great type of conference is the “camp style” conference. Check out PhotoCamp Milwaukee for more about these types of conferences.

Send out notes and postcards – Quick questions: How many handwritten notes do you get in your mailbox every day? How about every week? OK, every year? My answer: NOT ENOUGH! I love to get handwritten notes and I’d bet you do too. So how many did you SEND out last week/month/year? I’m guilty too, but I do send a few, and when I do, folks LOVE getting them and they send me a note of thanks back. Send 1 or more this next week, and then make it a habit, or better yet, send one out every DAY and see what happens.

Share a cup of coffee or lunch – Recently I had a 4 hour layover in Phoenix, and rather than just sit in the airport and be bored, I coordinated a cup of coffee and lunch with my dear friend Pam Thomas (see above picture). We had a great conversation, we deepened our friendship, I still caught my flight, and it didn’t hurt one bit You can do the same thing at work, in your city, or whereever you’re going.

Attend or Organize a Meetup – Send an e-mail, a tweet, or whatever, to some of your friends and connect with them live at a local coffee shop, bar or restaurant. It’s even more fun if you ask your friends to invite one friend so you can meet someone new.

Attend a book or poetry reading or open mic night – Your local bookshop probably brings in authors or has an open mic night. Support an author, meet someone new, and learn something new…all at the same time!

What’s YOUR favorite way to network offline?

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Grow Your Online Community (5 Ways)

Phil Gerbyshak — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 08:01:52 +0000

A friend of mine recently asked this question:

“On a whim, I started a college alumni group on LinkedIn (because there wasn’t one). With no effort on my part, it has grown to 513 members which I think is pretty solid (I also co-founded another group with 240 members, and founded 2 other groups that have less than 50 members each). The question I have is “now what”? What can I do with this group to grow it, create value for members, and become more than an icon in a LinkedIn profile. I’m trying to think of ideas that won’t become a full time job for, so perhaps soliciting for a “alumni of the month” story or creating a news letter from Alunmi supplied stories (I would just be an editor, not too hard).”

Great question, and some good suggestions to start with!

It got me thinking, what ELSE would I do to grow my LinkedIn community? After thinking a bit about it, I came up with 5 more ideas.

5 Ways to Grow Your Online Community

Create a Ning.com community for each group, and invite all the folks there to start there own conversation. Seed it with a few topics/posts, then invite folks to discuss things and create their own things. Then, set a few folks up as admins and let it do it’s own thing (with some moderation and commenting from you).

Create and seed with ideas a few topics on LinkedIn and get folks helping each other.

Create a live meet-up where everyone can get together and share things.

Create special business cards just for the group, so when you meet up with someone who would “fit in” you could give them that card and invite them in.

Set up a free poll (one option is at http://surveymonkey.com and ask some questions of the existing group

What would YOU do to grow your online community?

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5 tips for connecting with people online and offline

Phil Gerbyshak — Tue, 20 Jan 2009 01:01:00 +0000

Connecting to people, online and offline, is one of the best ways I know to improve your business, and to improve your life. Frequently when I talk to groups about the power of connections, I’m asked HOW to network.

To me, it’s a natural thing. I love people.

To some, it’s difficult, and a learned trait.

But I’ve thought about what I do, and how I do it, and I thought it might be helpful, for all those who need a little help. None of these are rocket science, they’re just simple, honest tips that work for me.

Know WHY you want to connect to this person – Is it because they are a favorite author of yours, a thought leader in your field, just a cool person, or what is it about them? Let me know that when you reach out, and be honest. If it's just a fan boy/fan girl letter of "Hey, I love your writing" that's great. Be specific about why you want to connect, even if it's just to say thanks for writing a great book or article, or thanks for giving a powerful presentation.

Help FIRST – See what the other person needs and add value to the relationship before you ever ask for help. One of the things I like to do after I attend a seminar is offer an unsolicited testimonial for any speakers that changed my thinking. I’ll email it to them, post it on their LinkedIn profile, or post it up along with a link to their site on my site. And anytime I do that, I make sure and be specific about why I’m doing it, as a thank you for the value they added to my life.

Be authentic – It’s important to be who you really are and most folks will naturally be attracted to that. You won’t attract EVERYONE this way, but those who aren’t attracted to you aren’t folks you want in your network anyway.

Start small, think GREAT – Never underestimate the power of connecting to just 1 person. 1 person can make a HUGE difference in your life. Make it a point to focus on that 1 other person by asking questions about their needs and their wants, and make that 1 relationship GREAT.

Connect others together when appropriate – Now that you know the other person, how about connecting them to someone else they might value knowing? The power of three is more than the power of me! Connect 2 people who don't know each other, share why you think they should connect, and then make the introduction. KEY POINT: Be sure to explain WHY you are making the introduction or folks may feel like you’re stalking them or worse, trying to sell them something.

What are your best tips for connecting with people?

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