|
I attended the BNI's National Conference last month. As I looked around the room of nearly a thousand attendees, I was struck by how few represented ethnic minorities. When I had the opportunity, I asked the founder, Ivan Misner, about it. He sees the same issue and has tried to begin to address it, but in an organization where new members are selected by existing members it's difficult.
As human beings we're hard wired to be uncomfortable with people who are different from us. Think about your own circle of friends. If you have friends who are members of an ethnic minority, how long did it take for you to include them in your circle? What factors made it easy? What you probably now realize is that the original barrier was artificial. Once you established that you had common interests, it was easy to create a relationship.
Therein lies the opportunity. I have worked with people of all races and most religions, people from almost every continent on earth. When it comes to business, we speak the same language. This doesn't mean we have the same social views or look at extended family relationships in the same way, or even communicate in the same way. So, to take advantage of the opportunity, you will need to recognize the differences and appreciate them.
As you know, people do business with the people they know, like, and trust. When your target market includes those who are "different" from you, it takes more time to develop those relationships. Is it worth the effort? What I've seen is that once someone within that community trusts you, they'll introduce you to a lot more of their friends than your friends will to their friends. Diversity is an opportunity. |
