Earlier this month Susan RoAne’s latest book, Face to Face: How to Reclaim the Personal Touch in a Digital World, was released. I think it is an essential read for everyone interested in becoming a better networker. Susan has been a good friend of mine for years, and she is one of the few people I know whom I can confidently say is the epitome of a born networker.  In her new book, she uses her innate charm, grace, humor and rare networking know-how to teach people everywhere how to communicate like an expert...

The law of reciprocity is always working, and it even has an impact on our conversations when we’re networking.  If you want someone to ask you a specific question, ask her the same question first. She’ll think, “that’s a great question.” After she answers, she’ll probably ask you the same question in return.  (If she doesn’t, she might be an “all about me” person–someone you want to avoid.) Here are 10 great questions to ask someone while networking that ...

How much would it benefit you to have several dozen salespeople working on your behalf to bring you new business?  That would be something, wouldn’t it?  Wait, it gets better.  What if you didn’t have to pay them a salary or commission?  What if you didn’t have to provide them office space or fund their retirement plans?  Well . . . that’s what referral networks can do! You may already have caught on to this not-so-well-kept secret, especially if you’re familiar with any of the book...

As the founder and chairman of an international organization, I am sometimes overwhelmed by commitments and obligations, so I know firsthand how important it is to make the most of your time.  Have you ever tried to get back an hour you spent on something that didn’t turn out well? It’s not possible. Since you know you can’t retrieve an hour, much less a day of precious time, you obviously want to spend it as wisely and effectively as you can. So if you spent your time networking, you would want to...

Sponsorships seem to have become a part of our consumer culture.  You can’t watch or attend a big sports event, for example, without being exposed to the event’s sponsors.  On a smaller scale, local communities and organizations also depend on sponsorships to make ends meet at some of their events.  In most cases, the dollar amounts for sponsoring events of this sort are modest–ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. How many times have you been asked to be a sponsor?  How many tim...

A simple thank-you card may not sound like going the extra mile. To many people, however, it truly is. The old-fashioned, personalized, handwritten thank-you card has been largely replaced by e-mail. When was the last time you received a traditional, handwritten thank-you card? What was your reaction? If you’re typical, you were pleasantly surprised, and you appreciated the sender’s time and effort. If you don’t think you have time to write a thank-you card, think again. How many times have you foun...

This week celebrates International Passion Day. With that celebration comes the release of the paperback version of The Passion Test written by good friends of mine Chris and Janet Attwood. According to the Attwoods, “80 percent of the population is not passionate about what they do for a living!” Ouch. That’s amazing (but not surprising) to me. I really love this book, and I highly recommend it. They have done a great job of creating a system that really allows you to hone your thoughts down to a p...