Your Network Becomes Your Net Worth
By Jeffery S. Watson
“Your network becomes your net worth” is something I’ve heard many times from my friends David Phelps and Jim Ingersoll. I’m not sure where it originated, but I recently had this advice demonstrated to me.
A colleague of mine, Jason, who works at one of the companies in which I am a minority owner, was in the process of closing on a home in Sarasota, Florida, when he discovered that the agent representing him had made a material misrepresentation as to one of the key aspects of the property. He quickly reached out to me for advice. Upon receiving the text message from him, I reached out to one of my contacts in that area, Chad, who is a preeminent real estate transaction attorney in Sarasota. Within a few minutes, Chad and Jason were connected, and Chad’s capable advice guided Jason through the transaction.
That is a good illustration of what I mean when I say that your network becomes your net worth. Networking is more than just collecting names and information. It involves knowing how you can help other people with their situations. I knew that I was not the best lawyer to give my friend Jason the advice he needed in his situation, but I knew that there was an extremely competent attorney in the exact market where he was looking to close the transaction.
Networking is also more than just knowing what the strengths of others are. It’s being able to develop relationships with people by making the necessary deposits into the relationships in order to be able to draw on those deposits at another time. How do you make deposits into a relationship? You make them by doing several things:
- Make genuine connections.
- Listen to what it is that person is doing in their business and investing career.
- Ask how you can help them. It isn’t just going to an event to see how many people can help you.
I’m reminded of a time when I attended a networking event in St. Pete Beach, Florida, when a new representative of a large wholesaling company barged into the room, interrupted a conversation that I was having with two other people, and basically said, “So, you want some good deals?” When I ignored him and continued the conversation I was having, he interrupted again, very rudely, and asked the question again. I looked at him and said, “No, and please excuse us. You’re interrupting our conversation.”
When you show up at a networking event, stop trying to see what you can get. Instead, participate from the position of asking, “What can I do for others?” It’s like Zig Ziglar said, “You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want.”
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Until next time,
Jeffery S. Watson