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International Networking Week®, an initiative of BNI®, is February 6th – 10th, 2012.
The goal of International Networking Week® is to celebrate the key role that networking plays in the development and success of businesses across the world. Simultaneous events will be held globally to celebrate International Networking Week. The focus of these events will be to bring together representatives of government, businesses, and the community to network with each other, to understand the concept of good networking and to listen to talks by key networking specialists from across the world.
Watch this video in which Dr. Misner discusses the theme of International Networking Week®.
Please check here for event details.
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A Culture of Learning
The importance of investing in ongoing education.
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Maybe not you—you're actually taking time to read an article on business development. I'm talking about the average business professional.
Ask a group of business people if they'd be willing to attend a seminar on networking, and ¾ of the people in the room say yes. Give them a specific date and time, and only a handful will actually sign up!
It used to surprise me when I heard that 50% of all businesses fail in their first three years. Now that I've been in business for several decades and have seen many entrepreneurs come and go, I'm somewhat surprised that 50% actually make it past three years!
Maybe I'm being a little harsh—but not much. One thing I've learned is that most successful business professionals embrace a "culture of learning." This is especially true during difficult financial times.
Personal and professional self-development is a journey—not a destination. It is something that is always a work-in-progress. Often, business people get so caught up working "in" their business that they forget to spend time working "on" their business. Part of working "on" a business is devoting time to professional development.
Benjamin Franklin once said, "If a man empties his purse into his head, no one can take it from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the highest return."
With that in mind, here's an action item for this week. Look at your financials (e.g. check book, credit card statements) for the last year. Have you spent anything on some type of on-going business education?
If you aren't "emptying some of your purse into your head," take a few minutes to think about what you want to learn to help you build your business—and sign up for something this week! Don't put it off any longer.
If you want to earn more, you need to learn more! Oh, and reading these articles from time to time won't hurt either.
Called the father of modern networking by CNN, Dr. Ivan Misner is a New York Times bestselling author. He is the founder and chairman of BNI, the world's largest business networking organization. His latest New York Times best selling book, The 29% Solution, can be viewed at 29PercentSolution.com. Dr. Misner is also the Sr. Partner for the Referral Institute, an international referral training company. He can be reached at misner@bni.com.
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What does luck have to do with success? Are successful people just lucky? Or is there more to it than just luck? This audio CD builds on the #1 Best Selling Book, Masters of Success, by Dr. Ivan Misner, Founder and Chairman of BNI. On this Car Coach CD® Ivan shares with you the five themes all successful people have and practice. Listen and learn how, applying these themes to your life, can give you the model to be your own master of success.
Order Masters of Success today.
© 2012 BNI® Published by CZ Marketing
February 25th, 2010 at 5:26 pm
Hello Ivan! As the first president of a very large, but very new group (BNI-Millionaires) in north central PA, I was feeling a bit overwhelmed by the idea of rallying the troops to attend Chapter Training. This article reminded me to stop being so selfish. It’s not about me and my comfort level – it’s about the need to let the members know that what they don’t get at work they do get with BNI – a proven system of continued education directly related to putting more money into their pockets! It’s like President Rita Davenport reminds us in Arbonne – we are a personal development company disguised as a personal care products company. Learning is the key to growth of any kind. Thank you for providing SuccessNet Online.