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85 per cent of our success results from a good atmosphere One aspect of becoming an excellent networker is to create a good atmosphere everywhere you go. Your competence is not enough to build up a broad and steady network; it can mean a start but, in the end, it will be the atmosphere that gets you right to the cream of networking. A study by MarketWatch found that more than 85 per cent of what we succeed at results from the ability to create a good atmosphere. What we tend to value highly is professional competence and expertise, yet this counts for only 15 per cent. This is not to say that we should assign professional competence less than 100 per cent value in future – but it means that while starting to create good, new relationships with others, we need to pay attention to prioritising good atmosphere.
How to create a good atmosphere When we contact, or talk to, other people professionally or in networks, we often focus heavily on getting our own message heard. For some years, we have been told we should memorise an elevator pitch, and this can certainly be worthwhile; an elevator speech can clarify our own ideas about our aims for our business life or our company and can there-
By Simone Andersen
by create focus. But giving an elevator speech or talking a lot about yourself and your services will not do much in terms of creating a good atmosphere.
Listening, accepting and understanding Try to think of an occasion where you felt comfortable in a one-to-one meeting. Were you with someone who was talking a lot about themselves, who was selling, and who was not paying attention to what you said? Surely not. When we feel comfortable, it is often because someone is listening to us, someone who asks about what we have said, someone who is positive about us, someone who understands us the way we want to be understood. Good atmosphere comes through accepting and understanding the person you are talking to, and not least through an attitude that lets them know that you understand them. The art is to make other people feel important and special. For example, think of the retired talk show host, Oprah Winfrey. She knows how to create a good atmosphere. She shows openness, empathy, intimacy, and she is a good listener.
Simone Andersen is a journalist and has a master’s degree in media science. She worked for many years at the Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR) as an editor and talk show host. She is an expert in business networking and building relationships, has just written the bestselling The Networking Book, and gives talks on this subject.
Contact: sla@strategisk.dk +45 26161818 www.thenetworkercompany.com
Issue 104 | September 2017 | 89