Remember the 80’s classic, The Karate Kid. We watched Mr. Miyagi transform Daniel-san from a wimpy kid being picked on by the Cobra-Kai to a strong fighter who defeated Johnny Lawrence at the karate tournament. As Mr. Mayagi told Daniel-san “Wax On, Wax Off!” and “Paint da fence!”, Daniel was getting stronger and learning valuable skills. 

So you might be wondering what all this has to do with networking. Networking can literally change your life (or at least your career or business). The relationships you can build can bring opportunities you never thought possible. However, many of you might feel like white belts when it comes to networking. Your skills might be weak and your business or career are suffering for it! Well, I’m going to be your Mr. Mayagi and help you earn your proverbial black belt in networking.

     1. Get your white belt by:

• Actually showing up at events around town
• Introducing yourself to others and asking them about themselves.

     2. Get your yellow belt by:

• Paying attention to people and not scanning the room
• Remembering to bring business cards to all events

     3. Get your green belt by:

• Asking about people themselves and minimizing how much you talk about yourself
• Getting business cards/contact info and following up.

     4. Get your purple belt by:

• Making it a regular habit of meeting people for coffee, lunch, or drinks to find out more about them.
• Keeping connections alive by connecting with people through Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc and regularly commenting on things they say that you find interesting.

     5. Get your brown belt by:

• Taking time to figure out how you can introduce people to others they will find interesting or useful.
• Learning to be more intentional about meeting people in industries or positions you find interesting. 
• Regularly touching base with people through out the year.

     6. Get your black belt by:

• Helping people find jobs, referrals, resources and more. Basically becoming the go to person for being able to find whatever people need.
• Keeping notes on people you know so that you can always remember who does what, the last time you met them, when their birthday is, and other relevant details.

It takes patience, focus and discipline, but with a lot of hard work, you can move to the next level and earn your proverbial black belt. Before you begin your training, I must ask one thing of you (No, not bow to your sensei), but tell me what you think of these tips above. Share your ideas with the rest of us.