Have you always dreamed big – big company, big car, big house and big bank balance? If your answer's yes, then how far are you prepared to go to fulfil your dreams?
Do you think about them occasionally, then push them back into the recesses of your mind? (Like heirlooms that are taken out, polished then stored away again.)
Sounds familiar? Well, that's why you – like many of us – are still dreaming the same dream.
Katrina Prentice, trainer, speaker and executive coach, says to achieve your dreams you must first hone your networking skills.
"The trick is to find out who could connect you to your destiny and then work to make that one meeting happen. One conversation can change your life," she says.
Prentice, from the UK, says she helps "people in businesses with strategies to get [them] where they want to be. I look at direct networking where you need to identify who you need to get in front of and to make the sales pitch that's going to get you one step closer to your goals. I teach corporates to increase their business by networking, as opposed to telesales and chasing cold calls."
But isn't networking all about attending a clutch of events and adding more business cards to your Rolodex?
"Business and social networking are totally different. Too many people network for the sake of networking, for being seen instead of targeting who specifically they want to meet," Prentice says.
"Companies feel their staff are busy [doing this], but they are probably busy meeting their own people."
"You need to research who your market is, where they go and specifically which individual you need to meet."
"The question I would ask myself is what two people could do magic for my business – Bill Gates or Sir Richard Branson? There's more to do after that, but it's a good place to begin."
"Before you go to a networking event, do your research. Get a list of the other people who are going and who you would like to meet. And if you know someone's going but don't know them and you know someone who knows them – then get their help by calling them. So that gives you an opener, as in, ‘Oh, your friend so-and-so spoke to me about you. And I'm Katrina Prentice. How do you do?'"
Avoid overselling yourself
Prentice says one of the important rules of networking is not to oversell yourself.
"When I teach business networking, I tell people that you are not selling your widget, you are not selling your service," she says. "Just do a very short introduction about who you are, what you do and then pass them your business card. Then move on immediately, especially if they're famous, because they are not interested in having a long conversation."
"Finding out the interests of the person you want to meet may help in striking up a conversation," she adds.
In order to first get your foot in the door, preparation is crucial, she says.
"I have what I call my must-have outcomes and nice-to-have outcomes in networking. [For example, I] must meet Richard Branson and Bill Gates. The nice-to-have outcome would be that I meet Richard Branson and he gives me a contract. But yes, you need to prepare."
"I use the example of Richard Branson because I did actually meet him. I had a business idea to discuss with him which I had researched thoroughly. I gave him my card and discussed the plan."
"And before midnight I had sent him an e-mail to confirm what he'd agreed with me. Of course, I wasn't going to wait for [a busy person like] Richard Branson to confirm, I did it myself. This [approach] helps in other ways; for example, if what you understood about the deal wasn't what the person had in mind the onus is on him to communicate and clarify."
Learning the ropes
Born and educated in Dorset, England, Prentice started her career with Goldman Sachs, a global investment bank. There she first encountered the benefits of staff training.
She quit to start her own business Right Connections, a product sourcing company which she ran from 1995 to 1996. The company sourced products from all over the world and supplied these to a major firm that distributed the products worldwide.
However, overnight she lost her business, home and everything when the firm she was supplying went directly to her clients, she says. Prentice says she took the company to court and it settled out of court.
"But in the course of lifting myself from the depths of despair I met people who brought about a transformation in me positively and I thought: I can do this for others," says Prentice.
"That was when I set up Katalyst & Co, a training company that ran from 1996 to 1998 with a grant from The Prince's Trust [a UK-based charity] where I brought in renowned speakers for corporate training. Chris Moon, who worked with Princess Diana on her anti-landmine charity, was one of the motivational speakers who worked with me in motivational training. It became a very successful business and I sold it … to pursue my dream of a global television show on personal development."
In 1998, she launched Katrina Prentice Intl Ltd, a training, speaking and life coaching business. Some of her clients include BT plc, Nike, British Airways, Microsoft, Barclays Corporate and Surrey University. In addition, she runs a corporate gift supplying company called Shama.
She was in Dubai recently to promote her speaking and training sessions scheduled for November and December, having first come to work with the Institute for International Research (IIR) then later with the Dubai Quality Group.
In her quest for self-development Prentice has attended sessions conducted by some of the world's best life coaches. Of these, she rates Peter J. Daniels, Anthony Robbins and Jay Abrahams highly.
"You need to model the outstanding – not the excellent, not the best – only the outstanding," she says. "If you want to learn golf, why go to the neighbourhood pro? Instead, go to a golf clinic that's run by the most outstanding coach in the world.
"I spent a huge amount of money, but those who cannot afford to do so can get videos, books, do web-based research on the people who are the best in the field."
While still on the speaking circuit, Prentice's goal is to bring her knack for coaching to the electronic media.
"My [ambition] is to have a global television show on personal development and I'm still looking for a buyer for this. And I have a ready pilot of this show. I have invested everything I have to achieve this goal. I sold my previous business, my jewellery and even my TV to make this dream come true. I have been pursuing this dream for four years and in the meanwhile, I have been honing my skills as a professional business speaker and trainer."
Setting goals
But for now, Prentice's stage is the auditorium, not the TV screen. Here, she instructs people that networking involves a degree of give and take.
"It's very important to give before you receive. If I am chatting to you and you are selling your car and if then I chat with someone else who's looking for a car, I'll put these two people together."
However, before this can happen, she emphasises visualising potential goals.
"I teach vision and goal setting. So I tell people to first visualise who they want to meet in order to take their business to the next level. I do this myself. I will cut a picture of that person or company logo and pin it up on the wall. For example, you want to do business with Emirates, cut the logo of Emirates and pin it up on the wall. And then tackle the challenge of getting there. You need to be proactive to shape your future yourself."
Ready to dress sharp, talk smooth and hand out those business cards? Prentice shares 10 hints on networking.
1. Have two pitches ready
"Introduce yourself by shaking hands and chat briefly. Find an area of common ground that you can chat about," says Prentice.
"You have to be very succinct when someone asks what you do. You have to have what I call ‘the short elevator pitch' and ‘the long elevator pitch' ready. Who you are, which company you work for and the area of service.
If you get into an elevator and you are only going to the third floor, it's the short elevator pitch. If you are going up to the 25th floor, you have time to say a little bit more about yourself and your widget or your service.
"Let me give you an example of this: I was speaking at an event in Johannesburg and, incredibly, next door was an event for senior government officials of South Africa. I do a lot of work for governments and had been trying to get in touch with a [South African] official for a long time."
"While I was waiting at the elevator a gentleman came along and I saw his lapel card and he was just the gentleman I had wanted to meet – so we had the short elevator pitch. He literally had just three floors, his bodyguards jumped out with him and I jumped out too. I had just enough time to introduce myself, but that gave me the opening and from then on we have been corresponding. You never know who you will meet where and that's why you must have your short elevator pitch ready. You've got to convey what it is about you or your company that will hook the other person in less than 20 or 30 seconds."
2. Dealing with awkward situations
Part of networking is pre-empting and dealing with potential conflicts of interest and pressure from competitors. It's best to address these issues upfront, says Prentice.
"If you know [someone is] working with your competitors and if you have been trying to get in there for a long time, say straight away ‘I know you deal with my competitors, but we can give you this, this and this' rather than letting the other person tell you what his objections are," she says.
4. Be realistic about your outcomes
Prentice emphasises the need to give and take at a networking event.
"If you expect that you will come away having made the acquaintance of 16 people from a networking event that's just being ruthless. I would say slow down, back off. [Ask yourself:] What can I give the people I meet? "
"We can act as their host. The event host should introduce you to people but we can also do our part by acting like a host to put people with common goals and interests together."
"Don't bulldoze your way through a networking event. That's poor form. For example, I have seen people just land up at a table while everyone is sitting down and they will just hand around their business cards. That's incredibly poor form. You do not hand over your business card until much later in the conversation."
5. A graceful entry
Upon meeting someone, Prentice always introduces herself formally.
"I say something like ‘My name is Katrina Prentice. How do you do? To say ‘Nice to meet you' or ‘How's it going?' is not correct form."
"Many people give a limp handshake and I am led to believe that there is nothing cultural about this, even in this region. It is an acquired habit. If someone does not want to shake hands that is OK, but a weak handshake is not. Don't give a bonecrusher either. Practise it to get it right. If your palms are damp, wipe them before you shake hands."
6. Know which groups to approach
"If people are in a closed group, and it's head to head and you notice a serious discussion going on, don't interrupt them. Use sensory cues to see who's just chatting – a less formal group. They may have their shoulders to you but you could very gently tap them on their shoulder and come into their space say, ‘Excuse me, may I introduce myself? Katrina Prentice. How do you do?' Just use your body language to open the group.
7. Two are better than one
"I always say to a group that if you are [collectively] going to a networking event, split up at the door. Husbands and wives too. Two are better than one."
"You can meet more people if you spread out and you'll have a greater impact too. You need a certain amount of boldness and courage which takes some time. I had to work on it too. You are only there for a certain amount of time so you have to make the best of it."
8. Cross-networking within a company
Companies organised into separate divisions can hinder internal networking, says Prentice.
"I may be going to a networking event for engineering companies and somebody in my office may be in touch with the HR departments of engineering companies. That person could get an internal referral back to me – yet that isn't being done in most companies, as I have seen. Getting internal referrals works even better than networking events. "
"What's happening is that companies are so profit centre-driven that they work as independent divisions instead of a team and the different teams don't ever meet."
"Just by establishing an internal database network, without investing any effort or money, your business should increase by 10 to 15 per cent."
9. dress for success
In the corporate world it is important to look sharp and dress appropriately, says Prentice.
"It's definitely worth investing. You've got to look immaculate if you want to come across as excellent and outstanding in your business – right from your shoes to your nails," she says.
"I am not saying that you should look like a model, but it means a lot when you take care of your appearance. "
"It's not necessarily about money, it's about style," Prentice says, adding that it's better to have one suit that looks sensational than several "that don't hit the mark".
"Say no to heavy jingly jangly jewellery in the corporate space. It distracts. As for men wearing ponytails or earrings – if it works, it works. While looking good is crucial, she recommends dressing in a manner appropriate to your profession."
"You also have to look at conforming to the style in your industry. If you dress like a lawyer – double cuffed and white shirts – but work in the music industry, this style will not work. You have to be flexible yet stylish."
"Of course, you have to back up your look with sincere work and skills to rise up the rungs," she says, adding that taking evening classes can add another feather to your cap.
10. How to make a graceful exit
Once you've made contact, as Prentice has already noted, it's time to move on. But that's not always that easy.
"Sometimes, you get caught in the wrong group. Or you may have finished your conversation and want to move on. In either case it's very bad etiquette if you start getting fidgety or start looking over somebody's head and hope that that is going to make them uncomfortable enough for them to move first. That's rude, don't do it."
"When you decide to move off, just say the name of the person, shake hands again, and say, ‘Meeting you and talking with you … has been a pleasure, but I have to leave and there's one or two people I have to meet before I go.'
"But if that person is on [his] own, don't leave [him alone]. Say ‘I don't want to leave you alone, please may I introduce you to somebody?'
"Even if you don't know anybody, people wear badges during events. So you go over to a group and play host and say ‘John Smith, please may I introduce you to Mary Jo?'
"If John Smith is interesting, you might spend another 30 seconds interacting with him and exchange business cards. And then you go."
"If that person is part of a group then say ‘It's been wonderful listening to you, but I do have to leave' and say goodbye to the rest of the group even if you have not spoken to them."
So when it's time to say goodbye to Katrina Prentice, expect a firm handshake. Don't even dream of murmuring "nice to meet you" – for invariably her voice will ring out "in poor form!"
Rather, stand firm and say, ‘It's been a pleasure.' Once that's done, congratulate yourself – you've just taken one big step towards achieving better networking skills.
