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Who Are You and What The Heck Do You Do?
A few years ago, I was attending a family function when I ran into a cousin of mine. Having not seen her in more than three years, she told me that her son had graduated from law school and had passed the bar examination and was now a lawyer at a very prestigious law firm in New York City.

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Joining Industry Specific Organizations Has Many Benefits
Recently, while providing an up-and-coming Virtual Assistant (VA) and small business owner with some start-up information, she asked me a very interesting question, "Why do you and other VA's join organizations?"I guess I take for granted the reasons why I belong to several industry specific organizations. But, to those that are new to any industry, joining an organization made up of your competitors is a valid concern.

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The Anatomy of a Brain Cramp; The Retainer and the Lavalava - Communication
In life, you have to successfully work with people to get anywhere. You can't avoid it.

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How NOT to Waste Your Time Networking
Ever wonder if networking, referral groups, and conferences are a waste of your time? Think about it?how many hours do you invest in deciding where to network, registering, getting there, "working the room," and then following up? How much real business do you generate from your networking efforts? How do you know where to invest and where to cut your losses?If you're not thinking critically about how (or if!) to network, I guarantee that you're wasting a lot of time and money. Bonnie Lowe recently interviewed me for her upcoming e-book: Networkaholics Revealed! True Confessions of People Who Networked Their Way To Success (And How You Can Do the Same).

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Lesson 14 - Whats In A Handshake?
The StoryAs a child growing up, one of the many life lessons instilled in me was to wash your hands before eating and after using the restroom. As a child I often played in the dirt and places where germs customarily manifested.

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Talk Isnt Cheap
The most successful organizations have good communication skills. Survey after survey bears this out.

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Where to Find a Cash Windfall of $10,000 - $1,000,000 - You Never Knew You Had
There is a rather famous true story called "Acres of Diamonds".It is about a successful farmer who risks everything searching the African continent for diamonds.

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Your Front End
While surfing for traffic or browsing your safelist emails, you are sure to have noticed the very large number of networkers promoting similar, if not identical, programs. Empowerism and Profit Rally are everywhere, as are health related and telecom based MLM opportunities.

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Time to Hire a Professional Networker?
It used to be that people said that there was 6 degrees of separation between everyone. Many people know that Kevin Bacon game that people play to prove it.

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The Secrets to Networking Success
Recently I was interviewed for a book on networking. My first response was, "Hey, I don't network.

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Practice Makes Pefect
What is the problem when people try to describe what they do and they stumble over their words and never consistently repeat the same message?Have you ever gone to a networking event and the person next to you is trying to describe what they do and they keep miscuing the words? This happens so often at these events. The major problem, besides focus, is the fact that they have not practiced their spiel.

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How to Shmooze
Definition: talk idly or casually in a friendly way Value: pricelessGearheads like me have trouble understanding that great ideas and hard work aren't enough..

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7 Step Plan To Get Going With Networking
Whether you're an introvert or an extrovert, feel like you have the gift of gab or just don't know how to make small talk, networking know-how is very important for your business success. There is a notion in business that I believe most of us subscribe to that says "all things being equal, people will do business with and refer business to those they know, like and trust.

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The 4 Attitudes of Awesome Hospitality
Hospitality relates to the Latin term philoxenia, or "the love of strangers." And stranger is defined as "someone with whom you have not yet been acquainted.

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Giving the Gift of Your Name (The Networking Factor)
Although, this is about giving the gift of your name to others, it certainly runs a close second in importance to "Whats' in a name?"What is giving the gift of your name? Giving the gift of your name is when you see someone you haven't seen in a while and you are kind enough to give (remind) him or her your name (the gift) again without any hesitation.It's not nice to keep someone guessing about your name.

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How to Turn Water into Lemonade by Giving a Flavored Answer to a Fruitless Question
I remember the first time I opened the fridge to get a drink of water and accidentally grabbed the wrong pitcher..

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9 Ways to Spice Up Your Nametags for More Engaging Conversation
Nametags are worn for a variety of jobs and functions, but people don't like to wear them because they're annoying, damage your clothing, clash with your outfit, and eliminate anonymity.Picture this: you see someone's nametag and decide to strike up a conversation with them:"Nice to meet you Jimmy, my name is Gary.

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Networking Know-how
Successful networking requires the understanding from the get-go that it is about what we can do for each other. Networking requires time, patience, and a commitment to helping others.

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Measuring Value for a Networking Group
How do you measure a group's worth to your organization?It is sometimes necessary to measure the value of a group. You may be asking yourself why you would want to measure the value of a group whose purpose is business.

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Networking Group Loyalty Requirements
How can you find out the group loyalty requirements before you venture forth?Many groups have loyalty requirements in order to make sure that the leads you generate are exclusively for the members of the group. It is important that you make sure you know everything about the group before you join, and loyalty requirements can put a damper on other activities you have planned.

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