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What would you say is one of the most important aspects of networking?
Trust, of course!
Abagail Alfano of Pine, Louisiana lives in a Hummingbird fly zone. As they migrated, about 20 of them were in her yard. She has been studying them daily and one morning put the water cup from the bird feeder, in her hand. They had gotten used to her standing by the feeder and they had grown to trust her, and as a result, they came over to her, landed on her hand and drank from the little red bowl she was holding.
I feed a stray cat. He is a real alley cat, but over the years he has grown to trust us, and he will even let us touch him – on his terms of course!
If you approach a strange dog, it’s natural instincts will tell it to fight or flee ie. it will either bite you or run away. But, if u put your hand out for it to smell, talk to it gently and then slowly try and pat it, it might relax and begin to trust you.
The same applies to networking.
You would be very loathe to recommend someone you don’t know to a client of yours, because your credibility is at stake, if that person lets your client down.
But, by attending meetings and getting to know the other members of the networking group, you gradually build up trust in their service and their product.
This applies to every single one of us. Every one of us has received an accolade at one time or other for going that extra mile, and in this way, even if we haven’t had personal experience of that particular person’s business ethic, we build trust based on our fellow members’ experiences because we trust them!
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