Haritosh SrivastavFounder & Head Coach, Confident Storytelling Hub

BNi Givers Gain & Chinese Bamboo Tree

16 Jun 2026 · 1 min

Watch on YouTube

1:16

In this brief BNI meeting speech, the speaker invokes BNI’s core value “Ever Change” and uses the Chinese bamboo tree story to illustrate the importance of patience and foundational work. The story explains that a bamboo seed shows no visible growth for up to five years while it develops an extensive root system, then suddenly shoots up to 80 feet in six months. The speaker parallels this to BNI members’ early days: by consistently building relationships, passing referrals, holding one‑to‑one meetings, and making introductions, members lay the groundwork that later enables rapid expansion of their referral network. The message encourages members to focus on steady, behind‑the‑scenes effort rather than expecting immediate results.

Chapters

Good morning, BNI. Good morning. BNI's core value is 'Ever Change.' So how many of you have heard about a story of Chinese bamboo? Anyone? What happens when you put the seed of the Chinese bamboo in the ground? Nothing happens for 1 month, for 6 months, for 1 year, for 2 years, and also nothing for 5 years. But what What happens after 5 years? Yes. Grow very big. In a matter of 6 months, the bamboo tree grows to 80 feet long. Does that mean it was not working for last 4+ years? No, it was building the root. Similarly, in BNI, when you join, you need to think about what relationship can you build, what referral can you pass, what one-to-one, what introduction can you do. Because when you keep doing that, that's when the viewers will come into picture, and that's when your channel goes 20 feet and beyond. Thank you.