Tom Fleming | Dr. Ivan Misner®

In this short video, referral marketing expert Tom Fleming and I explain what networking ‘up’ is all about and why it’s imperative to the success of your business that you focus on networking up.

Though our natural instinct is often to stay firmly planted in our own comfort zone by associating with people who are either equally as successful or less successful than we are, if we want to achieve higher levels of success, it is crucial that we network up by making an effort to surround ourselves with people who are more successful.

Jack Canfield often says that we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with and that concept holds quite a bit of truth; if you surround yourself with and spend the most time with people who are more successful than you, you are in a perfect position to constantly learn from them, meet other successful and accomplished people through their networks, and continually challenge yourself to achieve higher and higher levels of success.

Take a minute to think about a successful person you admire. What is something they have experience with that you could use their advice on in order to improve your business? You have nothing to lose and everything to gain by contacting them and asking them to share their knowledge with you so what are you waiting for? Make it your goal to connect with them in the next seven days and to start putting consistent effort into nurturing your relationship with them. Next, repeat this process week after week with other successful people you would like to surround yourself with and learn from–I guarantee you will be amazed at the results and pleasantly surprised at their willingness to help.

If you’re already networking up, what are some of the most invaluable things you’ve learned from the successful people you’ve been brave enough to reach out to and build relationships with? Please share your thoughts in the comment forum below–I’d love to hear about your experiences with this!

In this short video, I’m joined by two esteemed referral marketing experts, Phil Bedford and Tom Fleming, each of whom offer memorable metaphors which demonstrate the crucial nature of education in achieving success when it comes to business networking and referral marketing.

Watch the video now to find out how lumberjacks, lots of excuses, driving a vehicle, and one good reason can all combine to help you make time in your schedule to learn more and ultimately earn more.

After watching the video, think about the ways in which you might already seek out education in regard to business networking (e.g., reading the blog posts on this site, etc.) and please leave a comment in the comment forum below sharing your suggestions for great educational resources which may help others learn valuable tools and skills to improve their referral marketing success. I’m always on the lookout for great books, blogs, etc. so if you’ve found educational resources that have been particularly helpful to you, I’d love to hear about them–thanks!

To find out more about the Referral Institute®, the educational organization in which Phil Bedford and Tom Fleming are both highly involved, please visit www.ReferralInstitute.com.