Sometimes you don’t end up reading a book until at least 5 people recommend it. I’m glad I read “Never Eat Alone” by Keith Ferazzi – it opened up eyes on how to build relationships within my business without the cheesy/fake networking elements.

Keith’s big thing is pushing through the first layer and really getting to know someone – that someone could be a colleague or a thought leader in your industry, etc. He starts out by helping you feel comfortable meeting people every day and dispells the myth that you’ll meet the right people for your network by going to mixers and networking events.

Keith does a great job of pointing out there’s much better places to meet folks, sometimes simply standing in line at the grocery store or at the gym. These are places where you will more likely be yourself and have something in common with the other person. He takes it a step further, if you really want to connect with someone – offer to take them to a baseball game or a yoga class, somewhere you can both have an experience together. That’s really where people bond.

A clear message of the book is to always offer to help others. That’s a golden rule that Keith goes by and we know it works. In addition, it feels good to help other people, especially if it’s a job or resource.

Overall Keith Ferazzi got me to be even more confident to approach new people and find out how I can help and grow their business. Check it out, I bet you’ll learn the same too!

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There are some days when a rolodex makes sense, but since we have so many ways to keep track of business and friend’s email and phone number, is there a place we can organize all of them?

When I started looking for an online solution for this, Plaxo came up.  An actual online networking platform that helps you organize your friend, family and business contacts.

Some nicer features of Plaxo are:

• It allows you to upload photos, blogs, reviews and as well as link into other networking platforms like Twitter, MySpace, Digg, and others.

• Easy to navigate! One would assume that you would get lost or overwhelmed trying to organize your contacts and your feeds, but they did a great job with the user interface and made navigating intuitive.

• It syncs up with your Yahoo, Google, or Outlook Calendar as well as your email on those networks. This is a big deal if you have a lot of contacts on your phone. Plaxo can serve as a way to keep a backup of your contacts. We all know how important that is!

Are you using Plaxo now? What’s your favorite feature?

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As a solo business owner, my office used to be my basement. Every day I would go downstairs and start my day but about a year ago, I realized how isolated I was. I was calling friends a lot, feeling a little bit lonely – I would even plan my day so I would always see someone for coffee/lunch.

I began looking around for office options, I wanted to share office space with other small business people, not be behind the closed door of an office.  I remembered hearing about Souk and that is was co-working (shared space with other entrepreneurs) and located downtown, near the max. I did a trial day and loved it, it felt so good to come home at the end of the day and be done with work. I signed up and became a member.

There are so many benefits I’ve gotten being in a co-working environement. I’ve made friends with other souk members who have helped me out with computer issues or just to bounce ideas or problem solving – two heads are always better than one.
It’s easier to meet people during the day being downtown. I drive less because I use the max and bus. I’ve met some talented folks through other networking groups who come to Souk and have clients referred to me. Overall, I can see huge growth in my business and business support.

You can’t do it alone as a business person, working together is the best way to success. Find out if your city has co-working places or create your own and share with other like-minded business people! Here’s a list of some of the main co-working spaces as well as a collective space to talk about co-working worldwide.

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Biznik – one of the essential tools for small businesses (or as their moto goes -business networking that doesn’t suck). I love sharing this website with other small business owners in Portland.

Biznik.com is a smaller, but upcoming social media website that allows businesses to create online profiles (the basic one is FREE) and connect with other small businesses. But it’s so much more that that!

1) It’s divided up by cities and most of the major ones are represented: New York, LA, Chicago, Boston – even Portland, Oregon has it’s own section! This help you narrow in on business people within your metro area (if you so choose too)

2) Have a question that you would love feedback on or want to join a discussion? Under “Biz Talk” – you can ask questions of your peers and get feedback on marketing, ideas, trading, starting a business, just to name a few.

Visit one of many groups on  a variety of topics such as “The Marketing Group”, “Digital Freelancers”,  “Creative Professionals”. All lead by Biznik members, these groups focus on a particular topic which can include events, discussion, and other features that make up Biznik.

I know, you are probably thinking, another social marketing tool, but it works and is perfect for the small business owner. Try it today!

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