BNI - Sydney Inner West

BNI - Sydney Inner West

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  • Anthony Benner
    Anthony Benner    Group moderator
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    I Absolutely Refuse to Participate in the Recession!
    * by Dr Ivan Misner & Tony Benner

    Q: What can I do to build my business in a recessionary economy?
    Successful business owners learn from the past. So, what did we learn from previous economic downturns?

    In the early '90s, right in the middle of a nasty recession, I was at a business mixer where I was meeting many local business professionals. It seemed that everyone was feeling the crunch from the slow economy. Throughout the entire event, the favorite topic of discussion was how bad the economy was and how things were getting worse.

    The whole affair was depressing, because nearly everyone was obsessed with the problems of the economy and its impact on their businesses. Except one real estate agent!

    I asked him how he could be doing so well, given the conditions of the economy and the stiff competition. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue-and-white badge that read: "I Absolutely Refuse to Participate in the Recession!" "

    While most of my competitors are crying how bad business is, I'm out drumming up a ton of business networking with my contacts and generating referrals by talking about the great opportunity that exists right now to purchase real estate." If you want to do well in business, you must understand that it does absolutely no good to complain to people about tough things are.

    When you complain about how bad business is, half the people you tell don't care, and the other half are glad that you're worse off than they are! While you cannot control the economy or your competition, you can control your response to the economy.

    Referrals can keep your business alive and well during an economic downturn. During the last recession, thousands of business owners grew and prospered. They were successful because they consciously made the decision to refuse to participate in the recession. They did so by developing their networking skills and learning how to build their business through word-of-mouth. You can do the same during a slow economy by:

    * Diversifying your networks. You need breadth and depth. Participate in different kinds of groups.

    * Refusing to be a "cave-dweller." Be visible. Get out there and meet people at business events.

    * Learning how to work the meetings you attend. It's not called "net-sit" or "net-eat," it's called "network." Learn networking systems and techniques that apply to the different kinds of organizations you attend.

    * Being prepared. Prepare effective introductions and presentations to give to other business professionals at networking events and meetings.

    * Developing your contact spheres. These are a groups of business professionals who have a symbiotic or compatible, noncompetitive relationship with you.

    * Knowing your goal. Perhaps most important, understand that networking is more about farming than it is about hunting. It's about building relationships with other businesspeople.

    * Don't let a bad economy be your excuse for failure. Instead, make it your opportunity to succeed.

    It's not what you know or who you know, it's how well you know people that counts. In a tough economy, it's your social capital that has value. Make good use of it, and you'll thrive while others struggle.


    * Dr. Ivan Misner is the Founder and Chairman of BNI, the world's largest business networking organisation and Tony Benner is BNI’s Executive Director for Sydney Inner West. http://www.bnisydneyinnerwest.com.au
    • 27 Apr 2008, 06:04 am