In 2009, I had been in business for myself for four years and was part of an online forum called Flying Solo (https://www.flyingsolo.com.au). That group was put together by Robert Gerrish, a business coach who had a lot of respect for the solopreneur and, what he calls, the microbusiness.

One of the things that Robert and his team decided was missing for the collection of Flying Solo microbusiness owners was our own conference. His thoughts were that, as small business owners, we rarely would get to meet each other. And because we were small business owners, we might not have exposure to conferences and conventions like larger businesses do. He wanted to give us an opportunity to network and find out who we really are when we are not in front of the computer.

To give us that opportunity, Robert and his team created an event called “Flying Solo Live.” I was excited and eagerly paid my $250 or so to attend. I made sure that I had business cards ready to go because I figured this was going to be a great opportunity to meet some new customers.

Failure

When I went to Flying Solo Live, I was overwhelmed and a little scared. I didn’t know who to talk to or how to start a conversation. I am an outgoing person, but I didn’t think that I had anything in common with these people. I felt like an imposter in a sea of achievers. Like my business wasn’t worth of their time or attention. I knew I could start a conversation, but I had no idea how to steer a conversation. I might ask someone what they did. They would ask me what I did. And we would be sort of stuck after that.

I gave out a lot of business cards, but I did not make one sale, and I don’t think I followed up with one single person.

ROI? Zero.

But I’m a glutton for punishment.

The next year, I decided I would go again, but instead of selling to anyone or trying to meet new customers, I decided I would focus on the sessions. The second event was significantly bigger than the first one, and Robert had organised breakout sessions with speakers. There were all kinds of topics being covered, and I figured I’d get better value out of that than trying to sell something.

One of those breakout sessions was about networking. I decided that I would attend that session.

Success

That was a life changing decision for me.

I remember the presenter’s name: Kim McGuinness. She took the stage in a small auditorium, and she spoke from the stage about networking. She based her presentation on what she called ‘the karma bucket.’ She said networking was about putting good things into the karma bucket, and being generous to the karma bucket, because the karma bucket would repay you. She also talked about the fact that networking was about making friends.

At one point in her presentation, she asked for the house lights to be brought up. They were, and she asked us to introduce ourselves to the person who was sitting next to us. She suggested that we should organise a follow up; a catch-up meeting… maybe over a cup of coffee.

The lady next to me was a financial planner whose name is Jane. Jane and I introduced ourselves, and we soon found out that we lived in neighbouring suburbs. We exchanged numbers and organised to catch up. Gold star for us.

More Success

Meeting Jane that day, and cultivating the relationship over time, resulted in a cascade of introductions to people who helped my business grow from where it was 11 years ago to the multimillion-dollar business it became. In the end, more than 60 percent of my business came through the people I met from that "sliding door" moment meeting Jane.

Because I met Jane, I have a very well-diversified group of people who support me, trust me, and send business my way regularly. Each connection is an individual. Many initially connected to me through my BNI business network, but my relationships with them go beyond the network. Some of them have moved, changed businesses, changed careers, and left my daily routine, and yet they remain good friends and good referrers.

Because I met Jane, I now have new business ventures which have been supported just as generously. Working with my network and sharing my growing knowledge and expertise about networking over the last decade, I earned the credibility it takes to create, develop, and launch the Strategic Networking consultancy and investing in my own BNI Region as a franchise owner. My network learned about what I was doing and helped get me started by recommending clients to me, offering solid advice, and sharing their supplier networks.

Pondering

Sometimes I wonder where I'd be in my life if I hadn't been a glutton for punishment. If I'd have let the failure in one event stop me from attending the next.

The more I think about it, failure is part of success. Without it, we don't grow, learn, evolve, and develop skills that eventually become effortless.

Do you have a story like this??? If you're successful, I bet you do!