People Networking - Lesley Morrissey
Networking - Discussion between Michael Beale and Lesley Morrissey, November 2007.
Lesley Morrisey, who runs a professional writing practice discusses what networking means to her, where and when she networks and what she considers to be some of capabilities and beliefs of effective networkers.
http://www.ppimk.com/nlp-podcast/lesley.mp3
Michael : Good morning Lesley
Lesley : Good morning Michael
Michael : Firstly can you introduce yourself and give our listeners some background about yourself and what you do.
Lesley : I tell people that I am an expert in read-ability which usually throws them. I?m actually a professional copywriter and also a non-fiction editor and I?ve written all my life so my career sort of appeared out of doing all of that. And I?ve learned an awful lot about how people read as well as what people read, which is why I say that I?m an expert in read-ability because it?s not just about the words it?s about how the words are presented to the reader. You can write an absolutely killer copy, but find that the reader can?t take the information on board purely and simply because the way in which the copy is presented makes it very difficult to read.
Michael : We?re going to be talking about networking ? so would you let me know what networking means to you?
Lesley : I didn?t used to think that I was very good at networking, I didn?t like going to things like Chamber of Commerce meetings and milling about. And coming away wondering why I?d been.
I was a member of Ecademy back in 2003, but I didn?t really use it, I didn?t really get it properly - I had about 24 contacts, and at the time I was as director of a company that was a consultancy and human resources training, ? and I decided to jump ship, I wasn?t doing what I wanted to do, and I was spending a lot of time in the office, not doing training, not doing coaching, not doing what I like to do ? and I decided to go back to writing, at which point I though ?OK', I need an income. I?d not got any money out of the company that I was working for, so I?d better get stuck in and find some people to work for.?
I decided that Ecademy might be the route into doing that because I like writing and it meant that I could just sit in front of the computer and type away happily ? and I worked quite hard at developing my contacts on Ecademy, and I did get that it wasn?t just a numbers game, it?s partly just a numbers game, but having lots of people in your network is not the answer because if they don?t really know you very well there?s not much point.
So I started going to the London meetings because I?m in a situation where I?m an hour ? hour and a half journey into London, and that?s great. And I started to meet people and I started building relationships. Since I restarted my company in 2005 I have never done any sales, it?s all come to me through networking.
Michael : So talking about networking, where and when do you it?
Lesley : I did some of it online. But only in certain places, I?m a member of some online networks, liked LinkedIn, and Bing, or Crossing, or whatever it?s called. And unfortunately Facebook, which I don?t find useful as a business tool, but people keep telling me to persevere.
I do find Ecademy is great, because it suits my style, it is to do with relationships, with getting to know people and certainly since last year when I upgraded my membership to the Black Star level that has made a huge difference, because the way in which people network in Black Star, people actually make the effort to get to know you. Not to sell themselves to you, but to get to know you. And I think that?s the secret, because I?m doing that outside of E-cademy as well with my local network, because I used to go to breakfast meetings every week, ? but it is to do with understanding somebody else, what they do, what they?ve go to offer, how they operate, what it?s like working with them.
And then you say, ?Well, now I can refer you, because I actually believe in what you?ve got.? And I think people buy people as much as they buy what you do.
Michael : Lets look at what you actually do when you?re networking. You?re going into a meeting, maybe where you don?t know anybody, what do you actually do there?
Lesley : It?s rare that I go to a meeting where I don?t already know anybody. I?ve usually been invited by somebody that I already know. I tend to talk to whoever I?m nearest to, because I suppose I?m reasonably outgoing, and I?m quite happy to talk to people ? Sometimes they might find it hard to shut me up actually (Laughter), I ask them what they do and I ask them what sort of business they?re looking for, and what is their ideal customer, because if they don?t know that, it?s a good exercise for them to clarify that, in order to get the right business.
So I get into it with the helping of the people aspect, and if they come back and bring business to me that?s great, but the thing is when you help other people, it?s not so much that they?re obliged to repay the favour, but they actually want to because they feel good about you. Networking isn?t about going out and selling, and anybody that comes along and tries to hard-pitch you, is really not going to get very far in a networking environment.
Michael : If you were to teach a newbie at networking, what would you do? What are the key points that you would get them to look out for?
Lesley : Firstly they need to get their business card right, I would say that because I?m in the right business! The business card needs to have on it somewhere, what you do. Because just having your name and your company name is not always enough for people to remember, and not everybody writes on the back of the business card.
I use the back of my business card, and it has a brief outline of what I actually do. There?s plenty of space around it to write what date it was that I gave it to you, or where you met me or whatever, but it?s really important when you?ve been to a networking meeting to remember, that there might have been a hundred people there or even two hundred people there, but if you?ve got seven or eight cards, you can?t always remember who it is that gave you each one, unless you have a bit of an idea about what the company did, and that should be beyond obvious from the card.
Michael : What else would you say is absolutely essential?
Lesley : I think you have to be interested in other people. And if you go along thinking ?who can I sell my services to? you?re going to fail. I think you really need to go in there thinking ?who can I get to know who could be really interesting and I might be able to help?? and real networking is about connecting people. It?s not just about going and selling what you do, because people are looking for relationships, not yet another product in whatever field you are ? and I go to several different meetings regularly, and there are people who do the same thing in different groups, but there are some that I really am happy to work with, and there are some that I like, but I don?t have any allegiance to whatsoever.
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Lesley Morrissey on networking
Lesley Morrissey Interview
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