SHOW ME THE MONEY! - Connecting is Not Enough

Greetings!

Welcome back to another issue of 'Connecting is not Enough' and a special welcome to new subscribers from my recent trip to South Africa.

It was wonderful to be back in Johannesburg exactly eighteen years since I spent several months in South Africa just after the end of Apartheid and their first free elections.

The country is clearly still on a tough journey, but I saw some very positive changes. I don't know if it's something they put in the water but South Africa boasts some of the best business speakers in the world and, as well as catching up with those I already have the pleasure to call friends, I had the pleasure of meeting and working alongside some excellent talent.

Among others, I enjoyed meeting up with recent 'Global Networking Show' guest Helen Nicholson. Helen also speaks and writes about networking but, instead of seeing me as competition, we explored how we complement each other and she hosted an event for her network and invited me to be the guest speaker. We're now looking forward to working together as we move forward.

I look forward to going back again soon.

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Mention of The Global Networking Show reminds me that our next show is fast approaching. We broadcast once again this coming Monday, 17th March at 4pm GMT (midday EDT, 5pm CET, midnight HKT).

This month's topic is networking skills and we have two great guests. Susan Roane is our first guest to return to the show and is the author of the seminal book on the subject 'How to Work a Room', which celebrates its 25th anniversary this year.

Our other guest, Stanley Kong is the Executive Director for BNI Hong Kong, Shenzhen and Guangzhou, China.

Stanley used to be a financial reporter and columnist of financial magazines. He has written three books on how to do business in China and also worked as PR and marketing consultant of many listed companies and SMEs.

You can register in advance for the show and view live on Google Hangouts here.The show will also be broadcast live on YouTube here.

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I'm delighted to hear that my good friend Will Kintish is publishing his new book at the end of this month through the publishers of my last book, Pearson UK.

Will is a master of networking skills and his new book Business Networking - The Survival Guide is guaranteed to be packed full of excellent tips to boost your confidence at networking events and make new connections that really count.

Will has kindly offered four copies of the new book to readers of 'Connecting is not Enough'. To be in with a chance of winning a copy, simply email your name and address to competitions@lopata.co.uk by Friday 28th March.

If you can't wait to find out if you've won, you can pre-order your copy at the link above now!

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I hope you enjoy the newsletter and look forward to your feedback. I've made a slight change this month, removing the '5 Ways to...' feature as I tend to cover networking tips a lot in the introduction as well as linking to recent blogs.

I want to keep each edition brief but please do check out the blogs listed on the right hand side of the page for lots of extra ideas, tips and thoughts.

Let me know what you think.

If you're serious about developing a networking and referrals strategy that can take your business to a new level, or you are interested in booking me for a speech or training session for your team, find out more details on our website or you can contact me on:

Tel: 07930 417833

Email: andy@lopata.co.uk

Skype: andylopata

I look forward to hearing from you.

Andy

Video Tip: Show me the Money

Having met at a talk I gave in London a few months ago, I was recently interviewed by Griselda K. Togobo for her Awovi site. The full interview is available here but in this short excerpt, Griselda asked me to demonstrate where the return on investment lies from networking.

Andy Lopata's working plan for getting the most out of your networking activities

Interviewing the Experts: Should you separate your personal and professional Facebook pages?

One thing I admit to struggling with is getting the balance right online. To whom should I connect and where? What should I share on which social network?

I have my approach and believe that you can be guided by what you want to achieve but even so, particularly on Facebook and Twitter, the ideal balance between personal and professional content and networks is hard to strike.

Toni Newman, an award winning business owner and customer engagement specialist from Canada, has one approach, which she shared with me recently.

Should you have separate personal and professional pages on Facebook?

Inspired by Toni's advice, I then offered more food for thought in a blog yesterday. Should you separate your personal and professional lives on social networking sites?

What do you think?

Just for Fun: Madiba Flashmob

By now we're used to videos of flashmobs, groups of people bursting into song from seemingly normal roles in a public setting.

There's something special about this particular example though, a tribute to Nelson Mandela in a South African shopping mall. The song is 'Asimbonanga' by South African legend Johnny Clegg and it's truly beautiful.

Woolies and Soweto Gospel Choir: Madiba Tribute

Thanks to Simon Ekin, who I met in Johannesburg last month, for sharing this with me.

Andy Online

The Networking Shop

Recommended: How to sell through networking and referrals

...and Death Came Third! The Definitive Guide to Networking and Speaking in Public

Kindle version

iPhone App

Recent blogs and interviews

Is this the coming of the Age of the Feminine?

We are The City

Should You Separate Your Personal and Professional Lives on Social Networking Sites?

Huffington Post

Your message begins with 'why?' and not 'what?'

BNI SuccessNet Online

Why people actually like to help you

lopata.co.uk

Article in ChifTime - Siberia (in Russian)

What people say...

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Jairo Jaramillo

Chairman,

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