BNI Training: The Beginning

Changes at BNI Latvia

Before I begin talking about the BNI training sessions that have been running intensively for our group since the beginning of February this year, I will briefly outline the changes that have taken place at BNI Latvia. Currently active in Latvia are BNI Wagner (which, since 1 July 2015, has reached >300,000 EUR in turnover) and the second group - BNI Vivaldi - which will be officially launched on 10 March 2016. I am a member and, as of last Friday, I have also taken on the duties of vice president for six months (the term stipulated in BNI policy, after which another member takes over the role).

Photo from the BNI Wagner meeting at Nordic Club House

Unfortunately, after a year of active work, the positions of BNI Latvia directors have been left by two charismatic people and leaders - Gatis Zamurs and Aiga Veckalne. As someone who was inspired by these individuals to join BNI, this saddens me a little. Aiga remains a BNI Vivaldi member and actively helps everyone with advice. Marts Ešenvalds has become the new BNI Latvia director, and our training sessions are led by BNI Baltic regional director Nerijus Lungys.

Know what you want to achieve

A great deal has been accomplished in the two training sessions that have taken place so far. The name net-working has proven its worth. We have registered on the Smartsheet document management system, where we plan our teams, financial goals, and prospective guests, and on BNI Online Academy, which offers a wide variety of materials about the organisation, its operating principles, code of ethics, and networking guidance.

What I found quite challenging and significant was the task of writing down our own financial goals month by month over the course of a year. How much do I want to earn through BNI referrals over the year? How much each month? How many one-to-one meetings do I need to schedule per week? How many referrals do I need to give to other members?

It is one thing to sit at an Excel spreadsheet in your office and plan a company budget - how much revenue, how many expenses, how much profit. It is quite another to stand up in front of 30+ companies and entrepreneurs and state the figures for how much you want to earn each month with their help. I suspect more than a few people felt as though someone had crept into their garden to rummage around.

But it was a very valuable exercise. Until you can say out loud how much you want to earn, that number will not come close to reality. One of the BNI lessons:

If you want to get something, ask for it clearly, specifically, and purposefully!

Ivan Misner's book "GiversGain: The BNI Story"

This book, along with a BNI pin badge, a business card case, and a name card holder, was presented to every member who on Friday had confirmed with their signature that they would uphold the organisation's principles and code of ethics. Despite not rating my English as outstanding, I read this approximately 100-page book in one sitting in a couple of hours.

The language is simple and easy to understand. The author is BNI founder Ivan Misner, with the adaptation and foreword by BNI Sweden director Gunnar Selheden. The book is not intended for sale - it is for each member alone, so they can better learn the history of BNI's formation, from its beginnings in January 1985 to the present day.

As with other literature that I have, since my student days, been accustomed to reading with a pencil or marker in hand, I went through this book with underlinings. Here are a few quotes and insights that spoke to me:

Not every decision you make is the right one. You can only try to make more right decisions than wrong ones. And when you realise you have made the wrong decision, you simply need to correct it quickly.

One of the strengths of a networking organisation is that all members become good friends - and one of the weaknesses of a networking organisation is that all members become good friends. [...] Only growth naturally creates change, and distance creates change.

Many of the skills that marketing people use to "sell" themselves or their product or service are the same skills a leader needs to unite a networking group, achieve its goals, and fulfil its mission.

Help others become successful in their business and you will become successful in yours.

The key to success is to understand everything you do - what, when, where, how, and why you do it.

Networking means trying to find ways in which you can help other people.

Marketing sometimes resembles hunting for a quick, large catch. [...] Growing a business through networking referrals is more like farming. Unlike hunting, you don't expect an immediate reward.

People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.

How can I help you?

The first PowerTeam meeting has also taken place, bringing together members from complementary sectors to jointly find ways to offer clients full-package services. For example, if someone needs to organise an event, there is already a ready-made team: a venue provider, a catering provider, a simultaneous interpreter, a lighting and sound operator, a florist, an event host, and so on.

Every BNI member is a connector - each of us has a business card file with contacts of specialists from many different sectors: people we know, trust, and can recommend to others. Simply say: how can I help you?