Ten reasons why introverts fail at networking

What is holding you back from networking?

This is the last part of the networking for introvert series. There have been 2 articles from the experts, the first one is written by a financial adviser: Lim Chih Yang, and another is from a networking specialist: Jason Jacobsohn. Both admit that they are introverts by preference but both of them have made great steps into a career that involves a lot of networking. What does that mean? introverts have potential to be a strong person in networking. It’s not undoubtable, yet it has to be developed.

In the previous articles, there have been a lot of tips on making use of introverts’ strength in networking. Some to be mentioned are listening, focus on few people, analyze your way of networking, be authentic, and many others. Enough about the strength, now we need to get into the introverts’ weakness. You will not be able to change unless you understand what makes you weak on networking. Awareness is very important, especially not to fall into the same trap again and again.

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How to win extroverts in selling and networking

How can introverts better extroverts in networking and selling?

Here is another guest post on networking. This time, it comes from an expert in networking, Jason Jacobsohn, someone who is passionate about advocating for entrepreneurs through his business and community efforts.

Jason Jacobsohn is well known in the Chicago area as a “connector” and go-to person for entrepreneurs who want to grow and maintain their success. He is a seasoned relationship builder who enjoys sharing resources through his Website, Jacobsohn.com, newsletter, Network Your Way to Success, and blog, NetworkingInsight.com. Jason regularly speaks to groups about networking and is a featured columnist for MidwestBusiness.com, Personal Branding Magazine, and SoHo Magazine.

Five techniques to help an introvert to become an effective networker

When you think of a good networker, you probably think of someone who is outgoing and can easily talk to people. While this may be true for someone people, introverts can also be effective networkers. Below are five techniques that if implemented can give the introvert the confidence and mindset that building relationships is possible.

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The 5 simple things to appreciate your friend

You may have read it in my 12 tips to become a great friend, but I’m going to separate the post, first to respect Bruce who is holding the challenge. Second is not to distract my 12 tips with too many details.

Five simple things to appreciate your friends

It is the 5 little things challenges that Bruce from Brucism has started. I would like to share with you the 5 simple things that can help you appreciate your friends.

1. Listen: Friendship always listens. Similarly you need to give your ear while conversing with your friends. Listen what they like and dislike, listen to their question and opinion. Listen and do not judge too fast, and you will learn a lot from them.
2. Observe: Sometimes you just could not aware your friends’ strength just from the relationship you have with him/her. His/her strength may compliment others and not you. That’s why you need to observe his/her relationship with others. It is a way that you can see how he/she has really become a great friend.
3. Remember first: For a few friends that I have listed down there, I just started with the name first. I just somehow so thankful of this friend, and I want to put him/her in the list. The title/uniqueness comes later, amazingly in few minutes I can find a little thing that I can be thankful of from them. And from there I can describe much more.
4. Have a miracle from them: Albert Einstein said, “There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.” Take the little things that your friend has done to you as a miracle, an encouragement is a miracle, an SMS or a simple gift is also a miracle. A pat in the back is a miracle, even how they call you brother/sister is also a miracle. That’s a secret of how you can find happiness in your daily life as well. Have a miracle everyday from your friend.
   
5. Believe: How do you bring the best in people? John Maxwell shared that “believing the best in people usually brings the best out of people.” Give your friends the benefit of the doubt. What does that mean? If you are doubting on the motive/reason behind their behavior, learn to give them the benefit of your doubt, means that try to always take it as they have the right motive behind. My manager, Dayal, taught me on the principle as well, he said… “Trust anyone until you have got a proof that you can’t trust them.” Give your friend your trust and you will bring the best out of them.

One last tip:

Do not let situation matter more than the relationship. Do not let disagreement to ruin the relationship. Remember the good time and you will appreciate your friend more.

Join my Group Writing Project: Reason-4-Smile - Our Friends, take the exercise to appreciate the friends in your life by giving them some title!

Cheers,
Robert

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12 ways you can become a great friend

Reason-4-Smile Group Writing Contest! I’m holding a group writing project on friendship, with free ads and Entrecard credits as the prizes. Please check the details below.

Do you have living saints in your life?

I have been tagged by Evan for a meme project, it’s called “The 10 Saints”. I was honored to get a title of patron saint of personal development from him. Yet, it comes with a price =), I was tagged to follow the same project, writing the 10 saints in my life as well.

The Saints (or the X-Men)…

I really enjoyed the process of finding the 10 saints, even to the point that I find 10 is not enough. There are 12 saints that I would like to share through this project. All of those 12 are friends that I know personally, the people around me who have touched my life in a special and unique way.

If you don’t like the word “saint”, you can think of them as your X-Men. I like watching X-Men, partly because I’m excited with the variety of talents and skills that each individual has, but somehow they can work together to complete their mission. Similarly, these 12 saints, 12 real friends in my life will share with you their unique talents, their 12 ways how you can become a special friend to someone. So… let’s get started!

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Let’s have fun! The trivia facts about me

I guess I’ve been pretty serious with all my articles before. So let’s have some fun. I’ve been tagged by Cherryl from ButWhatNow.com and I’ll share more trivia facts about me.The rules of the meme project are following

1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share 4 things in these themes.
4. Tag 4 random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

As it’s for fun, and fun does not follow all the rules (am I right?). I’ll skip the rules number 5. I guess the bloggers I tag will know with when they get my trackback =)

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Five reasons why you need networking break

HELP! Are you feeling tired of networking?

Network, network and network! Your career needs networking, your business needs networking, your daily social life needs networking, and finding your life partner also needs networking. When should you take a break from networking?

Yesterday, my very first guest post has just published. It is titled “The Trap of Networking” and it is posted in Jason Jacobsohn’s blog: NetworkingInsight.com. It also talks about networking, but the trap that it might have. What I am emphasizing there is networking with the focus on the result and not the activity. It’s not the issue of how many people you’ve got to know or how many networking event you have attended. It’s the matter of how many win-win relationship you have formed. Check out the article to know what the trap is.

While some suggested practicing networking to become better at it, I find that taking a break from networking is equally important. And even more, it’s actually advantageous to your networking. Let’s find out why:

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The introvert’s way to networking

Does introversion label you?

One thing I want to consult you. I’m an introvert like you. I found that sometimes it is really hard for me to make friend with others or we usually call it “networking”. Do you have any suggestion for me?

The question was asked by one of my readers, Harrison from Finandom.com. He blogs on pursuing financial freedom, and I believe that networking is extremely important to achieve them as well. Why does introvert think that making friends or “networking” sometimes difficult?

I have ever posted a short post on networking for introvert before. It was inspired by an article from BusinessPundit.com: Networking for introvert. I found the article when I google for some tips on networking that I am about to do at that time. The article has a good position on the search engine. The author and the former owner of the blog, Rob May, even admit that the article is the most popular article of all time on BusinessPundit.com. That really shows how introverts really struggle and need helps on networking.

Before I’m sharing my answers and insights on networking, I will share with you some tips from my friend cum financial advisor, Lim Chih-Yang.

In our last meeting, I shared about my blog to him. His reply surprised me, he confessed that he is also an introvert. It was hard to believe that. He is a full-time financial advisor and practically his work is all about networking, meeting up new people and building relationship with them. I believe that he must have challenge to decide on taking this career path, but the courage is inspiring. He is one of the persons that come to my mind when it talks about networking for introvert. He is an introvert and he is full-time networker. So… I’ll pass the mike keyboard to him… and here are the tips from him…

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Winning with People by John C. Maxwell

Do you need others to achieve your vision?

If your answer is NO, that means your vision is not big enough. If your answer is YES, that means you will need to have relationships with other people. Not only a common relationship, but a winning relationship. That is about how you can win with people.

I have just finished reading this book. If you are familiar with the previous book reviews I have shared, you will notice that they only have a short paragraph describing the book. From this book onwards, I am planning to give a more proper review of the book I read. Hopefully, it will help you decide whether you need to get the book and really benefit from them. As usual, I’m still providing the browse articles button, specifically to help you get the articles I have written, inspired from the book.

The book Winning with People consists of the five big questions below:

• The Readiness Question
• The Connection Question
• The Trust Question
• The Investment Question
• The Synergy Question

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How to be successful, uniquely yours

How do you define success?

That question has been in my mind since I’m putting “Helping introverts to be successful” in my tag line. I was fortunate that nobody asked me what I mean to be successful until now; otherwise I would not be able to give a strong answer.

Sadly, many relate success with what they have and achieve, that can be money, material things, positions, titles, responsibilities or even friends and families. But how about relating success with our potential? That is relating success with who we are instead of what we have.

Craig Harper, in his article Potential for Greatness shares a definition of success that relates very much to the potential.

…successful person (success of course being different things for different people) is not necessarily the one with all the talent but rather the one who simply uses more of what he/she has been given when compared to what the bulk of the population does (or doesn’t do) with their potential.
~Craig Harper (Potential for Greatness)

When success is related with who we are, that will be a success custom-made for each of us. Certainly, that success will not come overnight, that success requires a process. This article will share the process of manufacturing your custom-made success, a success uniquely yours.

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Let’s have disagreement!

Do you embrace disagreement?

If two men on the same job agree all the time, then one is useless. If they disagree all the time, then both are useless.
~Darryl F. Zanuck

The quote above is taken from the book Winning with People by John C. Maxwell. The book is sharing on how to find agreement in the middle of disagreement but I’m not going to talk about agreement here. I’m interested to share more about the first part of the quote. It’s about disagreement, why it is important and how to handle them.

Inspiration

Last week I had a chat with one of my “apprentice”. I am leading a small bible study group, and I was asking one of them for some feedback on the articles I have written. The feedback again was not satisfying. He mentioned that he disagreed on some of my points though he could not remember them. My first reaction: I was disappointed. Subsequently, I was reminded on the quote above. That reminded me that I should have embraced disagreement. The disagreement proves that my “apprentice” is not useless. And I should be grateful that he can express his disagreement.

So here are some lessons on disagreement I would like to share:
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