Networking: Joining a Committee
By Intrigue
As soon as an entrepreneur or a sales rep from a company hears about a networking group, he wonders, “Will this group work?” This is a fair question to ask, but are you asking the right person in the group?
The right person to ask is someone with a leadership role in the group, either someone who organizes it, speaks or brings out a lot of guests. These are the people that get the most out of groups. The person who puts the most time and effort in the group ultimately reaps the most reward. It won’t be the person who came to the group once, or the person who comes every now and then who will have the answer.
Here are two examples of different groups that I was part of, and the impact of joining a committee had. Before I joined both of these groups, I felt they were a good fit for me and my business. With every group I join, my intention is to give 100% with the expectation of receiving nothing. But judging by some of the mistakes I made with these groups, my 100% effort was not focused in the right area.
Example #1: Rotary Club
I joined the Rotary Club to get more involved in my community. For my business, I wanted to get more content for my network of televisions and meet some good contacts. The Rotary was quick to put me to work and had me join the golf committee for their Charity Golf Tournament. It was a lot of work, but I gave the group and committee my full commitment. I showed up to the meetings, did what I said I would do, and most importantly exceeded the expectations of my peers. In the end, I had made such a big impact on the committee that everyone in the group knew my name.
Through that situation, I showed my peers that I am a hard worker, reliable, and passionate about what I do. If potential clients believe that you are reliable, passionate and a hard worker, they will approach you to work with them.
Example #2: Referral Networking Group
My business partner and I joined this group on a one-year commitment. The potential business was definitely there, but we came in without establishing ourselves. Our first mistake was to split the time commitment.
One of us showed up for every meeting, but that gave us half the necessary time to prove our worth and build relationships. Our second mistake was that neither of us joined a planning committee.
We’ll chalk this up as a lesson learned- we did not put in the appropriate effort to be successful in this group. In the future, we will go the extra mile!
In the future, when I join any networking group, I am going to take on a leadership role. I will start by getting to know each person in the group, join the best committees and take a leadership role.
Even if you are not the leader of the committee, you can definitely stand out by doing amazing work. This will certainly pay off in the long run.
Great article Feed and so true! Life is what you make it and you always get out what you put in.
Thanks for sharing Fred, you are a true leader in your community!!