How to network like a pro especially if you're an introvert

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Hi docs. Welcome to the Entre MD Podcast where it is all about helping amazing physicians just like you. Embrace entrepreneurship so you can have the freedom to live life and and practice medicine on your terms. I'm your host, Dr. Una.

Welcome back to another episode of the Entre Aundy podcast. I am so excited that you're here and I want to say thank you as always for listening, for sharing, for reviewing and I would like to give a shout out to one of our reviewers on itunes. So this is the encouraging doc. She says every doctor needs to hear this. I enjoy learning from Dr. Una. I followed her on Instagram a while ago but decided to download her podcast during a long drive. Today I learned how normal it is to feel fear, but that it's important to take action. Anyway, I am so elated I found her. I recommend to all attending physicians who want to go to the next level, whether intrapreneurs or extrapreneurs. Thank you Dr. Lum from the IMG Roadmap podcast. So thank you so much encouraging doc for sharing this review and I am so excited that you've decided that action is now your thing because I believe it is the ultimate antidote to fear. It is the ultimate antidote to not getting the results you want in business. So action, action, action. I totally love it. So today we're going to be looking at something that I think all the introverts will enjoy and the extroverts as well, because this is strategic, but it's how to network like a pro, especially if you're an introvert. So if you're an introvert, I got you. We're going to have a great time learning some stuff today. Okay, now, before we get into the gist of it, our tickets for Entre MD Live are available and it is going to sell out. So this is our business of Medicine event. I believe it's the ultimate business of medicine event. And you are going to have an experience that is kind of like this podcast, plus private coaching, plus group coaching, plus networking, plus all of that, like in one melting pot. It is such an amazing experience. So I want you to get your tickets entremd.com get your tickets today. And I look forward to seeing you in Atlanta, June 13, 2020. So back to our networking. Now. This is the way I used to network. I talk about it all the time, about being an introvert. I'm still an introvert. I just don't hang onto it as an excuse anymore. But in the beginning when I went for any kind of event, I had a strategy, and this was my strategy. So there are lots of people in the room. I walk in, I walk to the back of the room to which all the introverts are probably smiling because that's what they do, too. I walk to the back of the room and I'm just standing there by myself. But then I realized, like, wait, if, you know, if I'm standing here by myself, someone's going to feel like I really need to come talk with her and keep her engaged and stuff like that. So I will find one person, just one person, and I'm kind of talking with them or hanging around them so that, that way nobody feels like they have to come talk to me, right? And then once I've stayed there for an amount of time that is socially acceptable, off I go. I'm out. So I'm not talking to people. I'm not trying to meet new people. I'm not exchanging information. I'm not doing any of that. And I don't live my life by having regrets. But if I were to go back, that is one of the things I would have dropped that habit, like, so fast. Because networking is so powerful. It can literally change your life. It puts you in rooms you don't deserve to be in. It puts you in situations you don't deserve to be in. It gives you access to deals you don't deserve to know about. Like, think about it, right? You guys know I like using a lot of basketball stories and analogies, but the story of how Shaq got to invest in some of his big companies. So Shaq goes to, I think he's a Four Seasons or so, and he's in the lobby, and there's this other guy who's in a meeting, but his kid is in the lobby. And Shaq just like, you know, he's a funny guy. So he starts playing with this kid, and he keeps the kid entertained the whole time. And that comes out of a meeting, and he's like, wow, you like kids. You're really good with kids. You know, Shaq, you know, being himself. And he says, well, I like you, so I want to bring you into a room. There's this company we're trying to invest in. This is in the 90s, right? So there's this company we're trying to invest in. You know, a time is coming where you're going to be able to find things on your phone and stuff like that. And the name of the company is Google. So think about it. Playing with a kid, networking with a kid gave him access to Google. Now, Shaq never said how much he made from that deal, but he said it was a lot of money. Now, if some someone who earns $30 million a year says, I had a deal. I made a lot of money. It was a lot of money. Okay? So the point is, networking is insane. What it can do for you, okay? So we're going to be talking about how to do that today. And by the way, I talk about Shaq so much, if any of you know him, connect us, okay? All right, so you should be networking everywhere you go. You should be networking everywhere where your clients, potential clients, people who can refer clients to you, everywhere they are, you need to be networking there. Think about conferences, okay? When I used to be, when I went to conferences, I went for the content. Like, you know, what are they going to teach me? What new thing am I going to find out? And stuff like that. But I don't attend conferences that way anymore. 50% of it is your content, you know, for sure. But the other 50% is networking. What new person do I need in my circle? What new person do I need in my tribe? This is where I'm trying to go. Who are the people I need in my life to help me get there? I make those connections at events. Like, I literally set goals for how many people I want to meet, what kind of people I need to meet. If there's an attendee thing already. I'm like, oh, that person, that person. I don't know them, they don't know me. But we need to know each other, right? It's 50% content, is 50% networking. In fact, for all the events that I put on to foster that, there are networking breaks all through. And what I do is I literally, you know, we take the time, but I will still walk the room and facilitate networking because I look for introverts like I used to be. I know where they are. They're at the back of the room. They're either not talking to anybody or they've hung on to one person for 30 minutes because they don't want to have to deal with anybody else. So we facilitate these things. But it's so powerful, right? So the way you want to start thinking, because you know, no matter what I tell you, you're still going to go like, oh my gosh. But that's nerve wracking. It's not working. And I want you to kind of think above that. Okay, so the biggest problem of your business. Well, aside from you, Right. Because once we get better, our business gets better. So other than those internal problems, the biggest problem your business has is obscurity. There are people who love you. There are people who would love your services and they're willing to pay for it, but they just don't know you exist. They have no idea. And the fix for that is getting attention. So when you go to an event where your clients are potential clients are people who would refer people to you are. Your job is to get attention. And I don't mean in a diva kind of way. Right. Like, that's not what I mean. But they don't know you exist. They have a problem you fix, but they don't know you exist. You need to fix that problem. Okay. And think about it. Your service, amazing. So it's literally a disservice if you don't tell people that you're there. Right. Like, I think about the work that I do. I've had people who've wanted to start business for years, they come into one of our programs and they get their business off the ground. Or I have people who had been terrified of stages and now they're rocking stages. I've had people who didn't realize that what they had could be profitable. So they have a business that they kind of like, you know, just for some side money here and there, you know, that kind of thing. And we've helped them build it to six figures. And I know that There are hundreds and thousands and tens of thousands of doctors just like that. So it is my obligation to let them know that I exist and I can help you. Right, so you really want to be coming from a place of service, a place of adding value when you go for networking events so you don't feel like a fraud, right? Because you're not just doing this for yourself. You're doing this to help people. Right? Remember, we're doctors. We're helpers. At our core, we're helpers. It's just that in business, when you help, you get rewarded financially for it, Right? So you want to be coming from that aspect. I can help. There could be something I say or maybe I introduce to my podcast and it will help, or maybe there's a story I share with you that sparks something. Whatever it is, you're there to help. So you have to network. You owe it to people to network. Okay.

All right.

So having said that, let me walk you through a really simple process for networking. Of course, after you do this, there's more advanced ways of doing this, but this is quick and dirty, something you can learn and you can apply the next time you're an event. I know some of you are like, well, I don't go for networking events. Anytime you go somewhere and there's more than one person in a room, that's an event. Let's just put it that way. When you're with a group of people. So this is whether you're going for a conference, it doesn't have to be called a network event. Right? But you're gonna need to network. Okay? Now, before I go into the how to, let me just throw this out here, because I don't want you to miss this. Your network is your net worth, okay? The people in your life, they determine how rich your life will be, the experiences you have, and all of that stuff. If you're like, I'm tired of my current state. If you will change your network, it will change everything. So you owe it to yourself. I already told you. You owe it to your clients, but you owe it to yourself to be someone who networks, who's building a tribe, who's bringing richer relationships into their lives. And when I say rich, I don't mean money, per se. I mean people who have different kinds of exposures or people who can put you in different situations, open different doors for you. Those kind of people. You want to get those kind of people into your life. So you must network. And the scary thing about people is that you don't Know who's who. That's the thing, you know? I mean, Obama had a teacher. Who knows, maybe that teacher is mean to him. Didn't know that would be the president someday. You know what I'm saying? I literally had people that. I'm like, I'm so glad these people are in my life. I know they have a business and I can help their business be so much better. But they didn't realize that. So they wasted the opportunity and sabotaged the relationship. Not realizing that literally they lost hundreds of thousands of dollars by doing that. You don't know who's who, you know? So anyway, back to networking. So I'm going to give you like a framework. It's like five steps, right? Five steps to becoming a pro at networking. How about that? Right? Okay. So the very first thing, and you're going to do this no matter how you feel, okay? We're on train beef. The first thing is you got to walk up to people. I mean, you go, like, really, Dr. Una? That's the best thing you could come up with? But no, yeah, I mean, like the typical introvert is staying at the back of the room waiting for people to come. And that's not typically the way that works. You're the networker, you're the pro. So walk up to people. Walk up to people. Look at people and walk up to them. And as you're doing it, it's okay to feel scared. It's okay to feel like, I'm not really good at this, maybe this is messy, blah, blah, blah, it's fine. But you need to walk up to people, okay? So that needs to become your new thing. You walk into a room, you walk up to people. That's what you do. You. Now, the second thing, when you walk up to people, give them a big smile. Ching. And a firm handshake. Okay? Now you can do this. Scared. It doesn't matter. And people won't know, except you tell them. Okay? So walk into a room, walk up to people, big smile, firm handshake, and then introduce yourself. Okay? And so far, there's nothing I've said that's complicated. But the truth of the matter is, most people won't do that, okay? Except you. If you didn't do it before, now you're gonna start doing it. So you walk up to people, big smile, firm handshake, introduce yourself. Alright? The third thing, which is critical because this is where if it's not done right, then it becomes sleazy, right? The next thing you want to do is you want to tune into their channel. Every human being is tuned into a channel called wiifm. What's in it for me? Most people have themselves on their mind all the time. So when you walk up to somebody and you initiate a conversation, tune into their channel. Hey, nice to see you here. What do you do? What are you hoping to get out of this conference? I see you're a speaker. What are you going to be speaking about? You know, what kind of business do you have? Tell me more about that. People love to talk about themselves. They do. Okay, so the sleazy version is you walk up to somebody, big smile, firm handshake, and you say, you know, hi, my name is Dr. Un, I'm a business coach. I would really like to work with you. Now that is sleazy. That is awful. You don't even know if they have a business. That's like being a doctor walking into a room saying, hi, my name is, you know, Dr. Smith, I'm an ENT doc and I'm going to take your tonsils out when you don't even know why they're there. Okay, that is so ridiculous. Okay, so I want you to think of this as a doctor. Pretend you're taking an hpi, you're taking a history, okay? So when you start talking them, tune into their channel. Nice to see you here. What kind of business do you have? I see your speaker. What are you speaking about? Has this conference made a difference? Is this your first time at this conference? Ask people questions about themselves, Tune into their channel. Okay, all right. The fourth thing you want to do is after you've done all this engagement, right, You've established, you know, I'm here, I'm confident, I like meeting with people. You know, I care about you. And this is not in a fake way, right? This needs to be genuine. But I care about you. And then the next thing is networking is a two way street. So you gotta let people know what you do. You don't start with that. And it's not the bulk of the conversation, but you need to let people know what you do. Okay, so I'm at a networking event. You know, I get there and I walk up to somebody, big smile from handshake. Hey, My name is Dr. Una. Nice to meet you. Tells me what his name is and I'm like, wow, that's an interesting name. Where is it from? Now, you know, I'm not judging. Look at the consonants in my name. And he's like, yeah, my name is originally from Russia. Oh, that's great. And then they're like, you know, my grandfather moved from Russia and all of this stuff. And that's awesome. So why you, why you have this conference? What are you hoping it would do for your business? And they, you know, talk about their business and this and that and that. And we've had conversation, right? And you know, whatever the person says will kind of direct the way it goes. And I would still go on to say, well, I'm excited to be here too. I'm, you know, I'm a business coach. I work with physician entrepreneurs. I help them build profitable businesses so they can live life and practice medicine on their own terms. That is so interesting. You know, I have a sister who's a doctor. I've been telling her to start a business. She won't listen to me. Oh, wow. Well, hey, connect us. That would be great. I'd love to talk to her, you know, and stuff like that. So you want to, you want to do that? Okay, so you want to tell them what you do. Okay, you want to do that. And then the fifth thing is you want to exchange information somehow so that there's opportunity to follow up. Because typically in a conference, you're not having time for, you know, like a 30 minute conversation or even a 15 minute conversation, but if you guys exchange phone numbers or exchange on LinkedIn or whatever, so that you can say, hey, you know, Dr. Una here, so glad I got to meet you. Looking forward to when we can have coffee or we can have a 15 minute chat or, you know, whatever. But you want to have some kind of way to follow up, because you may have heard this. All the money's in the follow up. You need to be following up. So that's kind of a framework. So number one, walk up to people. Number two, firm handshake, big smile, introduce yourself. Number three, tune into their channel. Number four, make sure you're telling them what you do. Don't leave that out. And number five, connect tangibly. You have to exchange something so that there's that opportunity to follow up. And even with your tune in, you also want to do things like if someone tells you about their business, ask them, so what would be a good referral for you? What kind of person would I meet and it would be right for me to connect both of you. And you're not doing that to be fake or to make an impression so you can get business done. But the thing is, the more you build other people's businesses, the more your business grows. It's just the way it is. And even if that person doesn't give you referrals, someone will. That's just the way that works. So you want to do things like that. There's nothing I've said that is so complicated that you're like, that's why I don't network, because I just can't do that. It's simple. It doesn't mean it's easy, especially if you're introvert. But it's simple. And the more you do it, the more you enjoy doing it. The more you do it, the more you get used to it. And I do this as an introvert. In fact, I was in a meeting, I want to say it was three weeks ago, and I literally connected with at least 50 doctors in one meeting. And this is the person who would just at the back of the door and not do anything. We're talking contact information, some of them subscribing to my podcast, some of them. I even talk to them to be guests on my podcast. Some of them have already done their interviews. You know, you get to. To hear them a little later and did all of them in one event. So you can do this, and it will make your life so much richer. I mean, like, so much richer. Okay, so this is what I'm leaving you with today. I want you to start practicing today. You might go like, woof, I'm off the hook because I don't have an event today. Yeah, but you have work and you're going places. I want you to practice. Practice introducing yourself to people, engaging in conversation. You know, practice it, but start today. Okay? Don't ever go for another event and not get more out of the event than the content. The pros do not attend events to just get content. They go for the content. They go for the networking. They go to build new relationships. So I want you to start doing that today. Now, if you haven't gotten your tickets for ontremd Live, I want you to get your tickets today. It's ontramd.com you can get your tickets today. And when you come, I want you to plan to network. We're going to show you how. We're going to facilitate it, but you're going to be in a room with other physician entrepreneurs who, like you, are either trying to start or scale a business, who are getting out of their comfort zone, who are like, we're going to make it bigger, and we're going to create careers that we truly enjoy. I mean, you know that I think entrepreneurship is the fix for burnout. But anyway, but get your tickets today. Plan to Network. Thank you so much for joining me on this episode of the Entre MD Podcast. Make sure to stay in touch. We're going to have brand new episodes every week. We're going to keep you motivated, inspired and empowered to build businesses that will give you the freedom to live life the way you want to. Alrighty. So I'll see you next week. Get your tickets.

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