Latest / Closing Sales in Nigeria - Sales For The Nigerian Business Person: The Sales and Marketing Blueprint / The Networking Survival Guide

Transcript

The Networking Survival Guide · Closing Sales in Nigeria - Sales For The Nigerian Business Person: The Sales and Marketing Blueprint

• 0:01
  Hello and welcome to the show. Today on the podcast, we're
• 0:04
  going to look at a typical scenario that have a bunch of us
• 0:08
  face. That's those of us who are
• 0:09
  business owners, those of us who are starting out in business or
• 0:13
  those of us who are employees in a company and Orgas says go and
• 0:18
  handle this event for me. I deputize you, go and represent
• 0:21
  me. Go and represent the firm.
• 0:23
  So like those of you who are young lawyers or those of you
• 0:26
  who are communications professionals, you know, maybe
• 0:28
  you work in, you know, PR or human resources or something.
• 0:32
  It's a sort of situation you can find yourself in.
• 0:34
  You know, you just show up, you get to work, you sit down.
• 0:37
  As you're checking your e-mail, your guy comes in and says, hey,
• 0:40
  there's this function, I'm supposed to have attended it.
• 0:42
  Hilton H2 PMI can't make it again.
• 0:46
  So why represent the department? It's just networking.
• 0:50
  Go there, talk to Susan, so blah, blah, blah.
• 0:53
  When you come back, brief me and the all guy leaves and then
• 0:56
  you're now scared. As the business owner or as the
• 0:59
  person who has been deputized, Like what the hell?
• 1:02
  Am I going to go and do professional networking events?
• 1:05
  I don't like them. I'm shy.
• 1:07
  Is my dressing correct? Do I have the right shoes?
• 1:11
  Is my suit clean? I don't like public attention.
• 1:14
  I get sweaty in these things. My stomach is now turning.
• 1:17
  I am anxious or wise worker putting me in this situation.
• 1:22
  I don't like attending these things.
• 1:24
  I get drained after the show. I'm introverted.
• 1:27
  I'm the wrong person to send from the department.
• 1:29
  How am I going to deal with all this?
• 1:30
  Wahala? So these are typical issues that
• 1:33
  people face around networking situations.
• 1:36
  And even though I've made podcasting episodes about how to
• 1:39
  deal with this in the past, today we're going to tackle it
• 1:42
  again from a slightly different perspective because I might
• 1:45
  repeat some of the things I've said in the past about how to
• 1:47
  handle networking situations. But I'm going to go into some of
• 1:50
  the nitty gritty and the more personal stuff about how to deal
• 1:55
  with these sorts of things. Now, some of you might be
• 1:57
  wondering where did I get all these scenarios from?
• 2:00
  It was very easy. I was just chilling on LinkedIn.
• 2:02
  Somebody put up a post, a couple of people commented.
• 2:05
  So I'm going to be dealing with specific things that people
• 2:07
  spoke about and how to get through all of them so that we
• 2:12
  can get back to using networking events to promote our
• 2:15
  businesses, to promote our also or to move the agenda forward
• 2:20
  with, you know, the department. Let's say you work with the you
• 2:25
  know, let's say you're in a company that has API department
• 2:27
  and you're the one that has been deputized by Olga to attend the
• 2:30
  event. So let's relax.
• 2:33
  I'll come up with some simple rules, guidelines, principles
• 2:37
  about how we're going to deal with these sorts of
• 2:40
  uncomfortable scenarios. So before we continue, let me
• 2:46
  share a little a little bit about stuff that I've been
• 2:48
  listening to on Spotify. So those of you who want to
• 2:50
  become men or women of acquired taste and lightened taste, the
• 2:56
  sophisticated taste, you can broaden your musical palette.
• 3:00
  So on Spotify last night I was listening to Rival Sons and was
• 3:06
  really, really good stuff. Now, if you like things like
• 3:09
  Jack White and the Datsuns and The Black Keys, you know, if you
• 3:12
  like Blues rock, you know, heavy guitar race and things like
• 3:15
  that, then Rival Sons. This is definitely something you
• 3:18
  should check out on Spotify and if you have not listened to
• 3:23
  these newer bands at all, but maybe when you are small, you
• 3:28
  used to hear Popsy play Jimi Hendrix or used to hear Popsy
• 3:32
  play Carlos Santana, you know, all those sorts of things and
• 3:36
  Carlos Santana, Jimi Hendrix, those things didn't sound too
• 3:38
  bad. Then just whip up your Spotify
• 3:41
  after you're done. Listen to this episode and look
• 3:43
  for Rival Sons. Really correct stuff.
• 3:45
  And also check out Jack White or The Black Keys, especially The
• 3:49
  Black Keys. I really love The Black Keys or
• 3:52
  anything, the Blues rock genre basically.
• 3:55
  Then this morning before I got on the mic, I was listening to
• 3:59
  The Rippingtons. And that is also some correct
• 4:02
  music. But this one is more like what
• 4:05
  people back in the day used to call cool jazz, you know?
• 4:07
  So for those of us who are 80s children, that's what they used
• 4:11
  to call it back then. So I'm not sure what it's called
• 4:13
  now. And if you grew up watching.
• 4:15
  NTA in the 80s definitely you have heard of this kind of
• 4:18
  music. In fact, my sister-in-law when
• 4:20
  she hears things like this, she's like why are you listening
• 4:22
  to elevator music? I'm like no, this is not
• 4:24
  elevator music. Like it's it's cool jazz, it's
• 4:26
  correct stuff like remove your prejudice.
• 4:30
  So if you like stuff like Spyro Gyra as in NTA, they played
• 4:34
  Spyro Gyra die. Like you might not even know
• 4:38
  that you know Spyro Gyra. But if you just try listening to
• 4:42
  any of their albums and you, you hear like, oh, OK, this is the
• 4:44
  one that NTA used to play at so, so, so time at so, so, so time.
• 4:48
  Oh, by the way, NTA is the Nigerian Television Authority.
• 4:50
  That's for those of you who are not Nigerians listening to the
• 4:53
  show. Then the band, the Spyro Gyra,
• 4:55
  it's spelt the same way, you know, like secondary school when
• 4:58
  they taught us about Spyro Gyra. So it's spelt the same way also
• 5:02
  Kenny G. So if you like Kenny G, you also
• 5:05
  like The Rippingtons. So this is mostly instrumental
• 5:08
  music, guitar, although Kenny G is flute.
• 5:12
  I think energy is a flute, but it's cool.
• 5:14
  Jazz wheel, you know, nice stuff, nice mellow.
• 5:18
  Can use it to study for exams or, you know, prepare for work,
• 5:22
  driving to work, all those sorts of things.
• 5:24
  So that's what I've been listening to on Spotify.
• 5:26
  And if you want to become a man or a woman of enlightened and
• 5:30
  sophisticated taste, you should be listening to this kind of
• 5:32
  stuff. This is grown folk music.
• 5:34
  So if you're an 18 year old listening to the show, it's time
• 5:38
  to elevate your taste. You know, not every time I'm a
• 5:40
  piano and popular music on HR radio.
• 5:43
  There's a whole lot more, you know, grow up and becoming an
• 5:45
  adult. Let's listen to some stuff now.
• 5:48
  For those of you who are 65 and above listening to the show, I
• 5:51
  checked the stats. Only 3% of you are 65 and above.
• 5:55
  I'm glad that you guys are here. Don't forget to reach out to me
• 5:57
  at the end of the show. I'd like to know what you guys
• 5:59
  think about the show and I want to know what kind of topics you
• 6:02
  guys want to hear about in moving your business forward,
• 6:05
  especially if you're starting a business after 65.
• 6:07
  I mean, can be unnerving, but still reach out to me.
• 6:11
  I'd like to meet you guys because I'm only meeting the
• 6:13
  young folks now. So I only meet those of you who
• 6:15
  are older, like to know what questions you have and what your
• 6:19
  concerns are. And I trust that you guys will
• 6:23
  really, really like the musical stuff that I've been putting out
• 6:26
  here. Except if you're not a music
• 6:28
  person and if you've lived your whole life not listening to
• 6:32
  music, Dear Mr. or dear Madam 65 year old listening to the
• 6:35
  podcast, it's time that you also grow up in an artistic sense or
• 6:39
  start listening to stuff. All right, now let's get
• 6:43
  straight down to business. So like I said, the scenario
• 6:46
  that we're looking at, at least what I saw on LinkedIn, is this
• 6:49
  whole thing of business owners don't like to go and do
• 6:52
  networking. Or people who work in
• 6:54
  communications departments, public relations departments,
• 6:56
  human resources departments, even accounting department.
• 7:00
  They don't like this whole thing where Olga shows up and yoga
• 7:02
  says, hey, I'm supposed to be a so, so, so event, but I can't
• 7:05
  make it. Or yeah, coolly, I deputize you
• 7:08
  go and attend. For me, it's just networking.
• 7:10
  No problem. Stay there two hours.
• 7:11
  Make sure you talk to Chairman this and talk to Madam Dad.
• 7:15
  When you come back, give me the report.
• 7:17
  And then the Olga leaves, and then you start sweating, and
• 7:20
  then you're shy and you're worrying about public attention.
• 7:23
  And then your palms start to sweat and then you feel like
• 7:26
  pooping. Some people, when they get
• 7:28
  nervous, you know, they feel like pooping.
• 7:29
  They happen to be one of those people.
• 7:31
  And, you know, all kinds of things.
• 7:34
  So how do we deal with all these issues?
• 7:37
  So let's go straight into some very practical stuff about how
• 7:41
  to cope. First off, we have to answer the
• 7:43
  question, is networking necessary?
• 7:45
  Because when your guy just barges into the office and gives
• 7:47
  you this, put you on this long job, this unnecessary
• 7:50
  assignment, you're wondering like all these things necessary
• 7:53
  yourself, like I'm here, I'm doing my work.
• 7:55
  The work is the most important thing.
• 7:57
  Why should I even bother? And the same thing with the
• 7:59
  business owner. You're thinking, look, I'm here,
• 8:01
  I'm making my stuff. I'm sewing my clothes, drying my
• 8:04
  fish, or I'm I'm coding my app. Excuse me, I'm coding my app.
• 8:10
  I'm doing the most important thing.
• 8:11
  Do I have to go and hop Norman, meet with people and talk and
• 8:14
  make conversation with people that I don't even want to hang
• 8:17
  around in the 1st place? Unfortunately for you, the
• 8:20
  answer to the question is networking necessary?
• 8:22
  The answer is yes because it's the easiest way to find people
• 8:25
  to talk to, people who are even willing to talk to you.
• 8:28
  Because when it comes to starting your business, let's
• 8:30
  say you're doing your fintech right now, you're coding your
• 8:32
  app, the Coco. The main thing is not about
• 8:35
  coding the app. The main thing is the person who
• 8:36
  can do GTM. What you tech people like to
• 8:39
  call go to market. Go to market just means sales or
• 8:42
  just means letting the world know that OK, my app is
• 8:45
  finished. This is what it can do.
• 8:47
  These are people that it can help.
• 8:48
  If you're interested, come and buy.
• 8:49
  This is how much it costs. Let us talk about onboarding you
• 8:52
  and this and this and that and that.
• 8:54
  So that's the most important thing.
• 8:56
  So if you're in your house or in your office or in your Co
• 9:00
  working space or whatever, you guys are coding this app, but
• 9:04
  you don't have a good go to market plan, you don't have a
• 9:06
  good sales plan, you don't have a good plan for validating the
• 9:10
  product. That is where people start
• 9:12
  falling apart. Because you guys remember that
• 9:15
  Zuckerberg was not the first social network.
• 9:17
  He was not the only social network.
• 9:19
  It was just the best executed social network.
• 9:21
  They had the plan for how to gain traction in the market and
• 9:26
  how to expand to other markets and things like that.
• 9:28
  So that's good as the main thing.
• 9:30
  So networking is necessary because we need people to talk
• 9:33
  to. And networking is the place
• 9:36
  where you'll find where you'll find it easiest to get people
• 9:40
  who want to talk to you. Because let's face it, if you're
• 9:42
  trying to do this tech thing, you're at home, you're in the
• 9:45
  office or whatever, you're a nerd.
• 9:47
  How many people want to listen to a nerd talk about the attack
• 9:49
  app 0 except your mumsy and your popsy just to encourage you.
• 9:54
  But if you hear that there's a tech hangout that is happening
• 9:58
  in Abuja on so, so, so, so day, you know, 730, you know,
• 10:02
  whatever or you're in Lagos, you hear that there's a tech hangout
• 10:04
  or you're in a nugu era, there's a tech hangout that is the
• 10:07
  easiest place to go and find other nerds that you can talk to
• 10:10
  who'll be interested in hearing about your app.
• 10:12
  So I hope you guys see how it works.
• 10:15
  Well, to be honest, it's not as if networking is necessary per
• 10:17
  SE. I'm not saying is the easiest
• 10:18
  way that you're going to find people who are even willing to
• 10:20
  listen to you talk. So in that sense, if you look at
• 10:23
  that way, I'll say networking is necessary for the business
• 10:27
  owner. And so it was also the same
• 10:29
  thing. If you're the employee, you're
• 10:31
  working communications department, marketing
• 10:33
  departments, public relations, corporate affairs, human
• 10:36
  resources, accounting, Orgas is go and attend this thing.
• 10:39
  The reason why orgas is doing that is because the business is
• 10:42
  not going to make money until you acquire new customers.
• 10:46
  So let's say you work in corporate affairs departments
• 10:50
  and you're in Zenith Bank. Some of you might wonder, why do
• 10:54
  I say Zenith Bank? Well, I have no idea.
• 10:56
  Maybe because one of my sisters worked there a long time ago.
• 10:58
  I don't think they treated her well though, and so I'm angry
• 11:01
  with Zenith Bank. But anyway, Zenith and access
• 11:04
  that the first ones that come to my mind.
• 11:06
  So you work in corporate affairs department, Zenith Bank.
• 11:10
  So the reason why our guy is saying I deputize you go there,
• 11:13
  hobnob or not what not is because for Zenith Bank to make
• 11:16
  more money, you need to acquire more customers.
• 11:18
  You need to be in good standing with other stakeholders, you
• 11:21
  know, stuff like that. And these things are not just
• 11:23
  going to happen by themselves. They'll happen because you guys
• 11:27
  are putting our stuff on social media and you guys are doing
• 11:31
  good PR, being on the news and everything, but also because
• 11:34
  they're human beings that are going to events and shaking
• 11:37
  hands and talking to people and building relationships.
• 11:39
  And that is how the business is going to expand.
• 11:41
  So if you're a business owner, it is necessary.
• 11:46
  If you're the employee, it is necessary.
• 11:50
  Maybe you feel it's not necessary for you to do it, but
• 11:52
  it's necessary for the business to do it.
• 11:54
  And Olga has deputized you. So it's your job, you have to do
• 11:57
  it. So just get up and do it.
• 11:59
  Or if you're tired of this kind of rubbish, just resign.
• 12:02
  That is also an option. I have known people who have
• 12:04
  said, look, I can't put up with this anymore.
• 12:06
  I came here because my job is human resources.
• 12:10
  Human resources means dealing with payroll and salary and this
• 12:17
  and this and that and that. But Olga keeps sending me on
• 12:20
  this errand, on that errand. I can't take it anymore.
• 12:22
  I resign. Excuse me.
• 12:24
  So that's also an option. So if you're an employee, you
• 12:26
  don't like these sorts of things, Olga keeps deputizing
• 12:28
  you, then just resign, leave the business.
• 12:31
  Well, for other people, business owners and employees, we can't
• 12:34
  run away from these sorts of things.
• 12:36
  Now, one thing that we need to, another question we need to
• 12:39
  tackle are all networking events.
• 12:42
  So are all, it's all networking formal events because there's
• 12:45
  some of you that the problem that you have is that it's
• 12:48
  formal that you have to dress up.
• 12:50
  You know, you baffle, you wear shoe, you poop belt, you wear
• 12:53
  tie and you know, you have to make small talk.
• 12:57
  So some people, that's just the only problem.
• 13:00
  So let me speak to the business owner now.
• 13:01
  That's the only problem. The thing is, all networking
• 13:04
  events don't have to be formal events.
• 13:06
  You can network through a variety of means.
• 13:08
  In fact, for those of you who attend pence to cost, sorry,
• 13:11
  Pentecostal churches, you know what people who come to church
• 13:15
  just for the sole reason of this is the right crowd.
• 13:19
  I will mingle with the right people.
• 13:20
  I will make the right business connections and my hustle.
• 13:23
  Is going to pay. So some people go to church for
• 13:27
  networking. By the way, that's not the main
• 13:29
  reason why I should be going to church.
• 13:30
  Well, that's a topic for another episode.
• 13:34
  But yeah, if you're, if you're that ilk and you're like, OK, I
• 13:38
  live in Leckie. We have this church.
• 13:40
  We have this church. We have that church.
• 13:42
  It looks like this is the church that Dangote attends.
• 13:46
  OK, No Dangote is a museum. OK, let me just say it down with
• 13:49
  the anyway, assuming down with the was a Christian down with
• 13:51
  the attends this church. Let me go there networking.
• 13:54
  So you can see networking doesn't have to be at the formal
• 13:56
  event. It can be a church.
• 13:58
  Networking can also be done at the level of school.
• 14:00
  PTA who are the other parents that have showed up for this
• 14:03
  meeting school events, blah blah blah.
• 14:05
  I've been talking about how my son went on a school excursion
• 14:08
  and how I'm in conversations with.
• 14:10
  The. Rapid Broadcasting Network, we
• 14:13
  see how we can put a couple of shows on air and that's how we
• 14:17
  came out. My son went for school
• 14:19
  excursion. The person I hooked up the
• 14:21
  excursion happened to be a parent in the school, although
• 14:24
  at the time I didn't realize this or whatever, the whole
• 14:26
  connection. But by the time I went there and
• 14:29
  you know, I had a chat with him. One or two people have fellow
• 14:31
  parents. You can see that networking is
• 14:33
  going on around children's school.
• 14:37
  Then this morning, exercise in Abuja, different estates in
• 14:40
  Lagos, different estates, people are walking, people are
• 14:42
  strolling. There's networking to be done
• 14:44
  there, you know, having conversations with people.
• 14:47
  You know, you see somebody's face day in, day out, you start
• 14:51
  a conversation with the person. Me, frankly, I don't like those
• 14:53
  kind of things. But you know, my mom is much
• 14:56
  more personal. She's much more of a relatable
• 14:57
  person. So when she was here and she
• 14:59
  used to do her walks in the morning, she actually struck up
• 15:01
  a conversation with a couple of people.
• 15:03
  You know, you're strolling, you see somebody, you see the person
• 15:05
  every day. You just start up a casual
• 15:07
  conversation. But for me, when I'm, when I'm
• 15:10
  doing my workout, I'm doing my workout.
• 15:11
  I don't want anybody to to disturb me.
• 15:14
  So I don't go to the gym. But if a time comes when I go to
• 15:18
  the gym and you see me and I'm bench pressing, please do not
• 15:21
  disturb me. I'm bench pressing.
• 15:23
  Wait, let the workout finish. Then we'll have a conversation.
• 15:26
  But you can be doing networking at the gym, morning exercise and
• 15:30
  stuff like that. Some people can also be doing
• 15:32
  networking at town hall meeting. For those of you who are in
• 15:35
  communities at the East, you know where you do these from
• 15:39
  communities in the east and communities in the Midwestern
• 15:41
  part of of the country. So IBO people, Ishan people, you
• 15:45
  know all that thing. You know what you do children of
• 15:48
  one more here meeting and this and this and that meeting that
• 15:51
  is also networking as well. You know, who is here?
• 15:55
  Who are the people in the room? Or can I be meaning to meet
• 15:57
  Chief? So, so and so, or I'll be
• 15:59
  meaning to meet law law. So, so, so and so, you know, so
• 16:03
  networking, Carbon town hall meeting for those of us who are
• 16:07
  Middle Belt people with this BAM that we have Bam is like, what's
• 16:13
  it called? Like cooperative Isusu, you
• 16:15
  know, people get together, contribute money, things like
• 16:18
  that. You can do networking on that
• 16:19
  level as well. And then I hear in Abuja anyway
• 16:23
  that the Central mosque is in Abuja.
• 16:27
  I hear that it's a, it's a networking powerhouse that
• 16:30
  people don't necessarily go there to pray.
• 16:32
  I mean, yes, they go there to pray, but you also go there
• 16:34
  because you will also get to rub shoulders with a DG or with a
• 16:39
  perm SEC or with a this person or with that person.
• 16:42
  So networking does not have to be a formal event.
• 16:46
  So their business owner, if you're afraid of formal events,
• 16:48
  these are all the avenues that are open to you that you can
• 16:51
  start networking. Although I will repeat again, if
• 16:54
  you're going to church because you want to network or if you're
• 16:56
  going to mosque because you want to network and that is not
• 17:00
  necessarily why you should be there, but still an option.
• 17:03
  So yeah, what about those people who are shy and who don't like
• 17:07
  attention? I have some good news for you.
• 17:10
  If you're shy and you don't like the attention, it's no problem.
• 17:14
  The way to not be burdened by this attention is to deflect is
• 17:20
  simply to focus on the other person and get good at follow up
• 17:24
  questions. Or hello, what brings you here?
• 17:27
  What line of business are you in?
• 17:29
  What did you hope to get out of the conference?
• 17:31
  How do you know? So, so, so, so you know all
• 17:33
  these sorts of questions and get good at follow up questions.
• 17:36
  By doing that, you will find that the other person has the
• 17:39
  burden of carrying the conversation and you don't have
• 17:42
  to say much. So if you're shy and you don't
• 17:44
  like attention, this is your solution.
• 17:46
  Focus on the other person, deflect the conversation.
• 17:49
  Get good at having follow up questions now, even if you're
• 17:52
  not shy and even if you love attention, this is still a very
• 17:57
  good thing to do when you're in a networking situation.
• 17:59
  Because when you're networking, it's not about showing up and
• 18:02
  being the star and letting everybody know that you
• 18:04
  graduated first class and you're the best and the brightest and
• 18:06
  you have the best out up in town or you have the best product or
• 18:09
  service. The goal is to try and figure
• 18:11
  out who is this person that I'm talking to, who else is in the
• 18:15
  room? Who is it that it's a good idea
• 18:18
  to build business relationships with in the future?
• 18:21
  So when you're networking, that is the primary thing that you're
• 18:23
  supposed to be doing. You should be trying to figure
• 18:25
  out of these hundreds of people in the room, who here is worth
• 18:28
  building a relationship with in the future.
• 18:30
  You're not going to know that if you go around talking to
• 18:33
  everybody that I had 2.5 million exit or, you know, I graduated
• 18:38
  first class or my business is the best or my children
• 18:41
  graduated first class in British International Academy and blah,
• 18:44
  blah, blah. So it's nice to boast and to
• 18:46
  brag about our accomplishments and our products and our
• 18:48
  services, but when we're in networking sessions, that is not
• 18:51
  the main reason why we are here. So if you're shy, deflect
• 18:55
  attention to the other person. Get good at follow up questions
• 18:58
  who will help you know who it is you're talking to and who is
• 19:00
  worth building a relationship with in the future. one-on-one.
• 19:03
  In fact, that is the real networking.
• 19:05
  The real networking is not what goes on during the event.
• 19:08
  The real networking is what happens after the event.
• 19:11
  The phone calls that you make after the event, the SMS that
• 19:14
  you make after the event, the e-mail that you make after the
• 19:17
  event, the LinkedIn request or the following people on on
• 19:22
  Instagram or going to the persons office or going to the
• 19:25
  persons house or doing meet up later.
• 19:28
  That is the real networking, not the event.
• 19:31
  It's also the same thing for those of you who are going to
• 19:33
  Pentecost our church network or PTA or morning exercise or town
• 19:37
  hall meeting or cooperative or mosque.
• 19:40
  It's the same thing when you jam the DG at the mosque and you
• 19:44
  guys talk and you know you exchange business cards and
• 19:49
  whatnot. That is not the networking, that
• 19:51
  is just the initial contact. The networking happens when on
• 19:55
  Monday you call up DG and say, oh, DG, this is Alhaji.
• 19:59
  So, so and so we met during Jumaat blah, blah, blah.
• 20:02
  I was a guy, I was talking about this and this is ah, yes, yes,
• 20:05
  yes. Alhaji, I remember you.
• 20:06
  So I really enjoyed our conversation on this, that, that
• 20:10
  this thing that you said about this and this and this, I
• 20:12
  thought about it, you know, it's very, very true.
• 20:14
  I think you and I, we should sit down later to discuss how we can
• 20:16
  move this agenda forward because if we do like this and we do
• 20:19
  like this, it will benefit you like this and it will benefit me
• 20:21
  like this. So Alhaji, how do you see this
• 20:23
  thing? DG how do you see this thing?
• 20:26
  And DG might say, OK, yes, it sounds interesting, but I'm not
• 20:31
  in town right now. OK, no problem.
• 20:33
  When are you coming back? I'm coming back Wednesday next
• 20:35
  week. OK, no problem.
• 20:37
  So how about 2:30? Let me come to your office after
• 20:41
  prayers. 0230 is is fine. Fantastic.
• 20:44
  And then you end the call and then you put it in your diary
• 20:47
  230 you're going to go and see EDG.
• 20:49
  So now that is the real networking.
• 20:51
  That is when the networking begins.
• 20:52
  So it's not when you and EG bombshoed us in the mosque that
• 20:55
  you're networking. It's what you do afterwards that
• 20:58
  is the networking. But then again, I'm going to
• 21:00
  repeat for those of you who are going to Pentecostal churches
• 21:03
  and those of you who are going to mosque because you want to
• 21:05
  network, that is not the main reason why you should be there.
• 21:08
  But you know, podcast episode, that's an episode for another
• 21:12
  day. Where was I?
• 21:15
  Hey, I was talking about shy people.
• 21:16
  So shy people, you have no excuse.
• 21:17
  Deflect. You'll be fine.
• 21:19
  Deflecting my is even good. Even if you love the attention,
• 21:22
  even if you have the correct. Let's say you got a suit by me
• 21:25
  at a four and you paid me at a four 1.5 for the suit and you
• 21:28
  can't wait to brag about it. You know, you're looking fly or
• 21:31
  you have the latest dressed by Vera Wang and you're wearing
• 21:35
  Jimmy shoes and everything and you're looking on points.
• 21:38
  That's for women because I don't know.
• 21:40
  There's men's shoes for Jimmy. I don't know if Jimmy Choo does
• 21:44
  men's shoes and I don't even know if Jimmy Choo is raining
• 21:47
  now. So because I'm not in the event
• 21:49
  space anymore, but when I was a wedding photographer, those are
• 21:52
  things that used to rain where one was raining.
• 21:55
  Jimmy Choo was raining, But I don't know what's up now.
• 21:58
  So, yeah, you can be looking at fly.
• 22:00
  You can be looking like the best.
• 22:01
  And you know, you want all attention to be on you.
• 22:03
  But just for now, deflect. Talk about the other person.
• 22:07
  Figure out who they are, what businesses that they're involved
• 22:09
  in, what are their priorities right now, personal priorities,
• 22:13
  business priorities is by asking those sorts of questions that
• 22:16
  you'll not be able to know that, OK, this person is in this line
• 22:19
  of business. Me, I'm in this line of
• 22:20
  business. So there's an alignment here.
• 22:22
  I can call this guy later on or I can call this Babylon.
• 22:25
  And these are one or two things that we can work on together.
• 22:27
  So that's the idea. So it reflect now.
• 22:31
  What about those of you who are sweaty The sweat man?
• 22:35
  There's nothing we can do about the really.
• 22:37
  So the main thing is once you decided you're going to attend
• 22:41
  the event, once August says I deputize you, just go and buy
• 22:43
  deodorant. Enter the toilet, you know, just
• 22:46
  Blue Bob as in putty deodorants, you know, just rub it, chop,
• 22:49
  chop newspaper, fume and that's it.
• 22:53
  Go for the event. That's the only advice that I
• 22:56
  can give you really. As you learn to stop being
• 23:00
  nervous, the sweating will happen less and less.
• 23:03
  Or another thing, when you get sweaty sometimes because you're
• 23:06
  nervous, so you know that alcohol is a very nice
• 23:11
  lubricant. It helps to take the edge off,
• 23:14
  makes you feel all right, makes you feel a little bit more
• 23:15
  comfortable. So it helps if you get to the
• 23:18
  venue and then you just start sipping some alcohol.
• 23:21
  Please. I said sipping some alcohol.
• 23:23
  I didn't say go and take shots if.
• 23:25
  You go and start taking Jack Daniel.
• 23:27
  You're throwing it, you're throwing it, you're throwing it.
• 23:29
  You will embarrass yourself because if you're a
• 23:31
  featherweight, you go and start our meeting.
• 23:34
  Or if you're one of those people that alcohol.
• 23:36
  Helps you to speak your truth. You're not going to start
• 23:38
  talking about things you're not supposed to talk about.
• 23:40
  So when I say sip alcohol, I mean sip.
• 23:43
  So there's this lady that I know, she doesn't really drink
• 23:47
  alcohol. So what she does is you want to
• 23:50
  take a glass of wine and that glass of wine is the only thing
• 23:53
  she's holding for the whole evening.
• 23:55
  So the the event is a four hour event.
• 23:58
  She's just seeping small, small, small, small, small, only one
• 24:01
  glass. But you know, if you're not
• 24:04
  further with, if you're heavyweight and you can handle
• 24:06
  yourself, then you know, go ahead and Chuck.
• 24:08
  But I'm not saying sip small, take the edge off, you get
• 24:11
  relaxed. Like for me, by the time I have
• 24:13
  a bit of alcohol, normally I wear glasses.
• 24:15
  But for some reason when I take alcohol and I feel all right, I
• 24:18
  feel happy my my eyesight just becomes clear when I can see the
• 24:21
  whole room so I don't need to wear my glasses anymore.
• 24:24
  So if you're like me that will help.
• 24:27
  Then sweaty armpits come early, stand close to the AC, let AC
• 24:32
  blow you small. By the time AC blow you small,
• 24:35
  especially if you did the deuteron thing and you've been
• 24:37
  sipping small alcohol, the sweat should go away.
• 24:42
  Yes, arrive early before everyone.
• 24:44
  For those of us who get sweaty and nervous, part of it is the
• 24:47
  whole thing off. You just get thrown into a crowd
• 24:50
  of people if you come late. By the time the hall is full of
• 24:53
  250 people are there, you'll already feel as if everybody has
• 24:56
  eyes on you. So just relax and make sure you
• 25:01
  come early. Use your deodorant, sip some
• 25:04
  alcohol, stand next to the AC. AC will cool you down.
• 25:07
  You'll be sweaty and smelling anymore then since you came
• 25:11
  early before everyone else arrived, you will feel nervous
• 25:16
  because eyes are not on you. Eyes are on people who are
• 25:18
  entering the hall. So excuse me for those of you
• 25:21
  who are sweaty and nervous, that's how you're going to
• 25:24
  handle that situation. Now let me talk about my people,
• 25:30
  those of us who for us, when we feel nervous, you know she would
• 25:36
  just pack in your belly. You know, you start getting your
• 25:38
  tummy starts running. Everybody deals with nerves
• 25:41
  differently. So there's some of us that
• 25:42
  that's how it happens. The situation, sorry, not
• 25:46
  situation. The solution is this, you might
• 25:48
  not like it, but if these kind of things make you nervous, do
• 25:51
  not eat before the event. Is that simple.
• 25:54
  If you enter into these kind of situations and then you start
• 25:58
  thinking where's the toilet? Where's the toilet?
• 25:59
  I want to pee, I want to poo poo, then don't eat or drink
• 26:02
  before the event. It is that simple.
• 26:04
  Of course, follow these other rules that I gave about showing
• 26:08
  up, Sips, more alcohol, stand next to the AC, you know, and
• 26:11
  all of that. Make sure you come early.
• 26:14
  Oh, by the way, if you don't eat before coming to the event,
• 26:17
  please know yourself. Be careful.
• 26:19
  Some of you can't handle alcohol on an empty stomach.
• 26:22
  Some of you who take alcohol on an empty stomach, you start to
• 26:24
  miss Yan. So just know yourself, if that.
• 26:26
  If you're that kind of person, then I don't know, skip the
• 26:30
  alcohol advice. Maybe show up, stay close to the
• 26:33
  AC, take a chilled glass of Fanta will help cool you down.
• 26:37
  So right before the event, don't worry, you won't faint because
• 26:39
  you're in the event they'll start serving small shops.
• 26:42
  Small shops are not going to come out from the beginning.
• 26:44
  Small shops will come after the event has run small, maybe like
• 26:49
  1520 minutes. At that point you're a little
• 26:51
  bit relaxed. So if you eat small chops now
• 26:53
  you're you're not going to start purging immediately.
• 26:55
  So don't worry. So don't eat anything before the
• 26:58
  event. Show up, sip small alcohol,
• 27:00
  stand next to the AC, make sure you come early.
• 27:03
  Eventually they'll bring out small jobs.
• 27:05
  You eat a little bit and then you're not going to faint when
• 27:07
  you're on the floor. Now, let me talk to those people
• 27:10
  who say I prefer to let my work speak for itself.
• 27:14
  There's some people who say, look, I'm a professional.
• 27:16
  I don't need to attend all these events.
• 27:18
  Let my work speak for itself. I'm accredited.
• 27:21
  I am this published, no problem. Or you say, look, the app is web
• 27:26
  three. It is this.
• 27:27
  It is that that, that that is the best thing in the world.
• 27:29
  I prefer the technical specifications of the app to
• 27:32
  speak for itself. I should not be going and be
• 27:34
  networking around people. Let my work speak for itself.
• 27:37
  So if you're that kind of person, let me level with you
• 27:41
  here. Let me be real, real, real, real
• 27:43
  honest with you. Unfortunately, nowadays, the
• 27:46
  media space is crowded. Whether it's TV or whether it's
• 27:48
  online, the media space is is crowded.
• 27:51
  So it's not realistic to expect that your work will speak for
• 27:54
  itself and that people will be speaking about you.
• 27:57
  Let's get real. I mean, who are you in the grand
• 27:59
  scheme of things? If you've arrived and you're
• 28:02
  somebody, Yeah, yeah, sure, no problem.
• 28:03
  So like Dangote, I mean, doesn't matter what he does, people will
• 28:07
  talk about him. But The thing is, you're not
• 28:09
  Dangote yet. Or let's say more Abutu.
• 28:13
  She, she's the lady behind Ebony live TV and all that.
• 28:17
  So if, if more abutu does something, you know, people will
• 28:20
  talk. If she goes for holiday, people
• 28:21
  will talk. She didn't go for holiday.
• 28:22
  People will talk. If she does procedure, people
• 28:26
  will talk. If she doesn't do procedure,
• 28:28
  people will talk. The same thing with downloading.
• 28:29
  If he takes loan, people will talk.
• 28:31
  If he doesn't take loan, people will talk.
• 28:33
  If he talks in the media, people will talk.
• 28:34
  If he doesn't talk, people will talk.
• 28:36
  But you're not there yet. In the grand scheme of things,
• 28:39
  you're not a big person yet. You've not arrived.
• 28:42
  Media space is crowded, so your work is not going to speak for
• 28:46
  itself. You have to speak about your
• 28:51
  stuff. And then plus, if you want to
• 28:53
  scale your business, you want to grow your business.
• 28:56
  This whole thing of letting your work speak for itself, it's not
• 28:58
  practical. It's not practical at all
• 29:00
  Because yes, one or two people will speak about you, but I was
• 29:03
  just on a small, small level, like if you make this app, and
• 29:06
  this app is truly the greatest thing since sliced bread and I'm
• 29:09
  your blood brother, of course I'll talk to my friends about it
• 29:11
  because I'm proud about what my younger brother does.
• 29:14
  But is that how your business is going to grow?
• 29:16
  Mumsy popsy best friends talking to people.
• 29:19
  That's not how it works. Or people talking about your
• 29:23
  stuff in one or two small areas of professional associations.
• 29:25
  That's not how you're going to grow your business or scale
• 29:28
  whatever it is that you're working on.
• 29:29
  It's not practical. So this thing, the whole thing
• 29:31
  of let your work speak for yourself doesn't work anymore.
• 29:34
  This is not 1976 anymore. This is 2024 or whenever you're
• 29:38
  listening to this podcast, you know, let's say you're listening
• 29:40
  in 20-30, you know this is 2030. So that doesn't work anymore.
• 29:44
  So 1976 is no more. Let your work speak for yourself
• 29:48
  is not going to fly. However, if you say I will not
• 29:53
  do networking, I want my work to speak for itself.
• 29:55
  OK no problem, don't network. But still you need to look for
• 29:58
  other avenues to talk about your work.
• 30:01
  So make sure you are published in trade journals or make sure
• 30:05
  you line up interviews and talk about your stuff on podcasts.
• 30:09
  Try and do some PR people get newspaper interviews, TV
• 30:13
  appearances, radio appearances, those sorts of things.
• 30:16
  Or maybe start a blog around whatever it is that you tried to
• 30:18
  do. So I won't force you to network,
• 30:21
  but I'm just saying that your thing is not going to speak for
• 30:23
  itself. So look for other avenues to
• 30:25
  talk about your stuff please. Then let's see what else.
• 30:31
  Basically, what I'm just saying is that look, self promotion is
• 30:33
  essential today. But for those of you who you
• 30:37
  know, I prefer to let my work speak for itself.
• 30:38
  You know, those of you who are professionals, just keep it
• 30:44
  classy. So if you are a professional
• 30:48
  communications person, let me see.
• 30:54
  Anyway, I'm just saying that you know, in line with your
• 30:56
  personality and your trait and everything, just keep it classy.
• 30:59
  Don't make it look as if you're begging for money.
• 31:00
  But we have to find a classy way to engage in self promotion.
• 31:07
  Then let me see, OK, people are drained after the show.
• 31:10
  Yes, yes, yes. That's a real thing.
• 31:12
  Because there are people who go for networking session and by
• 31:14
  the time it is done, they're like I am tired, I'm dead, I'm
• 31:18
  find out. So this is now for you, For
• 31:21
  those of you who are completely tired and wasted after the show,
• 31:25
  the networking event, this is what you do.
• 31:29
  Call up your boyfriend or your girlfriend.
• 31:31
  That's for those of you who are not married or should have
• 31:33
  spoken to your boyfriend or girlfriend beforehand.
• 31:35
  Let them know that hey babe, I will not be visiting you after
• 31:39
  this event because these kind of events make me very, very tired.
• 31:42
  So by the time I'm done, I'm going to be flagged out.
• 31:44
  I'm going to be tired. So I'm not going to visit you
• 31:47
  after the event and then have that conversation and you'll be
• 31:50
  fine. Then you go home and then you
• 31:52
  sleep so that boyfriend or girlfriend will not disturb you.
• 31:56
  Or there are some people because they're tired, they need TLC,
• 32:00
  they need tenderlovin care. If that's the case, after the
• 32:03
  event, call up said boyfriend or girlfriend.
• 32:05
  I say, babe, I just finished the event and man, I'm really tired.
• 32:10
  I need a cuddle right now. You do house and then you drive
• 32:13
  to the house and then you get your cuddle from boyfriend or
• 32:16
  girlfriend. By the way, for those of you who
• 32:21
  are not married yet, you shouldn't be going to boyfriend
• 32:23
  and girlfriend for overnight cuddles.
• 32:26
  But that is a topic for another episode.
• 32:30
  Yeah, So those are people who are drained after the show.
• 32:32
  For those of you who are married, you should have the
• 32:36
  conversation with your husband or wife beforehand.
• 32:38
  Let them know you're going to be tired and you're going to be
• 32:41
  wasted after the event. So just beg them to arrange the
• 32:44
  kids for you. So if you're the woman, just beg
• 32:47
  hobby so that by the time you get back from this networking
• 32:49
  event, he has bathed the kids and he has put them in bed and
• 32:52
  the children have eaten. So that way you can go and sleep
• 32:55
  if you're the hobby. And make sure you beg wifey so
• 32:58
  that by the time you come back, she has bathed the children, she
• 33:01
  has given them food, they've done homework, you know, stuff
• 33:03
  like that. Then if you're the hobby and
• 33:07
  you're coming home from this event, make sure you arrange
• 33:09
  some small chops so they can share with your wife.
• 33:11
  Though while I was there, they gave us caramel fried chicken
• 33:15
  dessert that that I package some for you.
• 33:17
  So my dearly beloved wife, he has a small chops.
• 33:20
  If your wifey is the same thing, you come, you package the small
• 33:24
  chops, give it to your husband. That's just to pacify them
• 33:26
  because of all the stress, you know, for the children or not.
• 33:29
  So that's what you do if both of if you're married, then if
• 33:34
  events really drain you out, then please go to bed
• 33:37
  immediately. No Netflix.
• 33:39
  You've had a really stressful day of networking.
• 33:42
  Now you've gotten home. If you do Netflix, you say that
• 33:46
  you actually want to relax. That's not relaxing because once
• 33:49
  you put on Netflix, you'll be awake for another three hours.
• 33:52
  The networking event finished at 10, you drove home 1030, you do
• 33:56
  Netflix 3 hours so now you're going to sleep like 1231 and
• 34:00
  then you have to wake up 5:00 to get ready for work.
• 34:03
  I mean let's be realistic. You just give yourself a lot of
• 34:05
  stress. So networking eventually drain
• 34:07
  you out. By the time you get home, go
• 34:09
  straight to bed, cut out Netflix, don't watch CNN, don't
• 34:12
  watch channels news. Just go up.
• 34:14
  Then when you wake up tomorrow, the real work begins.
• 34:18
  Because remember what I said, networking is not the event
• 34:21
  itself. Networking is what you do after
• 34:23
  the event. So when you wake up tomorrow,
• 34:25
  you drive to the office or you sit down in your Home Office.
• 34:28
  You now start calling people. You now start SMS ING people.
• 34:32
  You now start sending out LinkedIn connection requests or
• 34:35
  following people on Instagram or whatever.
• 34:37
  Because remember, the whole point of networking is that we
• 34:40
  are trying to build a business here or we're trying to move a
• 34:43
  certain agenda in the office forward.
• 34:45
  So if you go there, you stay on that AC, you meet new people,
• 34:49
  you eat nice food, but then you don't do all this work
• 34:52
  afterwards. Your networking was 0.
• 34:56
  So please sleep, rest, wake up tomorrow.
• 35:00
  That's when the real networking begins.
• 35:02
  So fall back to the example that I gave you.
• 35:04
  Brushed ADG at the mosque. You guys exchange business
• 35:08
  cards. So tomorrow pick up the phone,
• 35:11
  start calling all these people. I met Alhaji this person, I met
• 35:14
  DG this person and I met Permsec this person.
• 35:17
  So tomorrow start calling said Permsec DG sending connection
• 35:21
  request or sending e-mail to their PA or whatever.
• 35:25
  So the real work begins tomorrow after you sleep then let me see.
• 35:31
  OK finally introverted people because I noticed that
• 35:34
  introverted people keep talking, jumping on these kind of posts.
• 35:37
  So you're introverted? So what?
• 35:39
  I am introverted as well. Oprah is introverted, Beyoncé is
• 35:43
  introverted, Julia Roberts is introverted.
• 35:47
  For those of you who are young as you know, Julia Roberts, but
• 35:50
  she people say she's fine but I think she's OK.
• 35:53
  She acted this movie Pretty Woman back when were kids, her
• 35:56
  and Richard Gere about a businessman that falls in love
• 35:59
  with the guy. What's the word?
• 36:05
  Let me just say a prostitute. Sorry.
• 36:06
  Forgive me. I don't mean to be that brash,
• 36:08
  but I can't think of another word.
• 36:11
  OK. A commercial sex worker.
• 36:13
  Yeah. So we fell in love with a
• 36:14
  commercial sex worker. So I was real popular back when
• 36:16
  we were kids. So go on YouTube.
• 36:19
  I'm sure it'll be on YouTube. Check for you, woman.
• 36:21
  Interesting romantic movie. Cinderella story.
• 36:25
  Although some women don't like the movie.
• 36:27
  Well, anyway, that's a topic for another day.
• 36:30
  Where was I? So what I was saying is Oprah is
• 36:32
  introverted, me ma, I'm introverted.
• 36:34
  Beyoncé is introverted, Jill Roberts is introverted.
• 36:37
  Lots of people are introverted. But it's your job.
• 36:40
  You decided to run a business so do your job.
• 36:42
  Is that simple? Or you work for XYZ corporation
• 36:46
  and yoga has deputized you. It's your job, do your job.
• 36:49
  So you're introverted, Who cares?
• 36:52
  Apart from that, introverts are actually better at networking
• 36:56
  and relationship building because retroverts just go and
• 36:59
  talk about themselves. Talk, talk, talk, talk, talk,
• 37:01
  talk, talk, talk, talk. You haven't built one single
• 37:03
  relationship, but introvert can go there and be quiet and listen
• 37:08
  and say hmm, that sounds interesting, tell me more, you
• 37:11
  know, stuff like that. Get to know people.
• 37:16
  You know, those are the sorts of things, introverted kinds of
• 37:20
  behaviour actually better for networking and relationship
• 37:23
  building. So if you consider yourself an
• 37:25
  introvert, it actually is a benefit for networking,
• 37:30
  socializing, building relationships because you're
• 37:32
  going to spend lots of time not talking.
• 37:35
  That gives the other person an opportunity to talk and that
• 37:38
  gives you a sense of who is important to build relationships
• 37:40
  with. In the future.
• 37:41
  So if you're introverted, nobody cares.
• 37:43
  Do your job. So it's like Oprah.
• 37:45
  Oprah can't say that. Oh, I'm introverted.
• 37:47
  Like, Madam, you're on the TV station.
• 37:49
  Do your job. John Roberts cannot say, oh, I'm
• 37:51
  introverted like you're an actress.
• 37:53
  If you are introverted, why did you pick acting?
• 37:56
  They paid you your money. Do your job.
• 37:57
  So it's the same thing with you. You've decided to be an
• 38:00
  entrepreneur. Who cares?
• 38:01
  Do your job. You work with so, so, so, so
• 38:04
  firm. You know, sorry for you, but no.
• 38:06
  Do your job. If you don't like it, resign.
• 38:10
  But as you're doing the job, realize that as an introvert,
• 38:12
  you are better suited to networking and relationship
• 38:15
  building than your extrovert colleagues.
• 38:19
  But we can talk about more about that in the future broadcast
• 38:22
  episode. If you've listened to all these
• 38:25
  things and you're still scared about networking, Yeah, no
• 38:29
  problem. Call me on WhatsApp.
• 38:31
  Phone number is 08064662140. The country code is +234.
• 38:38
  Sorry. Send me a message first because,
• 38:40
  you know, lots of scammers these days.
• 38:41
  So send me a message first. We'll definitely talk later.
• 38:44
  And then you can also message me on LinkedIn.
• 38:46
  So you can connect by searching for my name.
• 38:51
  My name is Tavishima Agade, the host of the show.
• 38:54
  You just look for my name on the link where you're listening to
• 38:57
  this episode. Highlight, copy, paste it in
• 39:00
  LinkedIn. My profile will come up and
• 39:02
  connect and then send me a message and then we'll be in
• 39:05
  touch. So hopefully I've been able to
• 39:08
  convince you guys and not confuse you guys that networking
• 39:11
  is not something to be afraid of.
• 39:13
  But even if you are afraid because you're shy, because you
• 39:17
  don't like public attention, because you sweat or because you
• 39:19
  feel like pooping, I have given you tactical things that you can
• 39:23
  do to deal with your sweat, to deal with your body odor, to
• 39:27
  deal with your tummy rumblings, to deal with your nervousness,
• 39:30
  and to deal with your shyness. So really, you don't have any
• 39:32
  excuse. But still, just in case there's
• 39:36
  a category of people that I didn't cover in this 40 minute
• 39:39
  episode, reach out to me. Let's have a chat.
• 39:42
  So thanks for your time and attention.
• 39:43
  I'll catch you guys at the next episode.