Is your Network Important to your Net-Worth? By Mikki Williams, CSP

As seen in Success Track magazine

Thomas Stanley, Georgia State University Researcher, claims that 80% of all millionaires are networkers. Networking began as a trend in the 1970s by Jerry Rubin, YIPPIE turned YUPPIE stock broker, who hosted parties at the "ever so in" Studio 54. He brought people together of similar backgrounds and interests, served wine and cheese and nurtured connections. His parties became as fashionable as Perrier and Reeboks and Networking, Management's New Contact Sport emerged.

If you take away the YUPPIE veneer, the process itself enriches the lives of those who use it. Networking is no longer a chance meeting. It has become and art form molded into a lifestyle and cultivated with valuable resources. In a recent presentation on networking for American Business Associates, one of my participants likened networking to "planting a garden, nurturing it, not knowing when it will bloom and eventually up comes the unexpected". Is your Net-Working? Do you know the actual skills involved? Unfortunately, colleges do not offer Networking 101, but there are techniques you can do to improve your networking abilities. INC Magazine ran an article on CEOs, entitled, "Getting Together for Getting Ahead" and reiterated several key points.

1. Develop reciprocal relationships - say thank you and return favors
2. Establish well defined goals - join appropriate groups
3. Be tenacious - payoffs may not surface immediately
4. Become an active listener - good eye contact/verbal acknowledgements
5. Follow up as soon as possible - categorize and file
6. Look for opportunities - elevators, planes, hotel lobbies, etc.
7. And remember the old adage... "You have to make contacts to make contracts!"

Happy Networking!