Effective Communication/Networking

Networking & A Personal Touch
(“What I Do ‘Is Not’ Who I Am”)

Ah, the personal touch that continues to make a big difference, for the better in our lives and the lives of those, who have an opportunity to experience a personal touch from us.

If networking and effective communication are centered on other people, can we effectively network or communicate without the help of other people?

For the sake of argument, let us define networking as: finding out what another individual wants or needs and then fulfilling the want or need of the other person.
People want to know that their existence makes a difference.

The term often used ‘dissed’ meaning an individual feels disrespected by another might seem petty to us but it is usually very real to the individual complaining.

An example, my friend Bill a Plummer who is financially set for many years to come doesn’t always get properly acknowledged. We all realize that there is nothing we can do without the help of other people. Yet, in Bill’s profession he is not always highly respected. This is because society has taught us to value the title of the individual and not the individual.

Let us take responsibility for going back to the basics and simply treating people like we ourselves would like to be treated. We will never know who can help us until that time comes.

Really, it doesn’t take much imagination for us to think of ways a Plummer can make us look good or bad and we know bad can be real ugly when it comes to our toilet and stopped up kitchen sink. All of a sudden Bill is Mr. Bill, sir.

Bill may not remember what you said to him, what you did to him, but Bill will remember how you made him feel. If you didn’t know that Bill Gates was Bill Gates of Microsoft, how would you treat Bill? Bill the Plummer today could easily be Bill the owner of a multi-billion dollar enterprise tomorrow! By the way, where is Bill? I think Bill was president of the United States for a while… he sure made people feel good. My guess, he’ll always have a position or venture of choice!

Janice Smallwood-McKenzie
The Networking Coach
Author, “The 101 Commandment of Networking:
Common Sense But Not Common Practice”

www.Amazon.com/exec/obidos/asin/1585004448
www.1stbooks.com/bookview/2513

Ms. Smallwood-McKenzie is a Networking Coach and Speaker based in Los Angeles.
She has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Sentinel, and Black Enterprise Magazine and other publications. Her book can be found at Barnes and Noble, Borders, Walden Books. Also, the book is on-line at Walmart.com, Barnes and Noble, Borders.com and Amazon.com.