Denise Lee Porter

I remember kindergarten like it was yesterday, don’t you? I was petrified, didn’t know why my father had abandoned me by leaving me with a bunch of strangers.Eventually I made a lot of friends, learned to love my teacher (she was my aunt, it was a small town in a small country), figured out that I had to either stay away from the bullies or befriend them. And like 5 year old children in kindergarten classes around the world, I learned The Golden Rule: Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You. We even sang a song about it just to really get it into our heads-:)

That first day of kindergarten feeling of absolute fear is one that we all experience from time to time in; whether it’s at a networking event of some sort, a business meeting, or just picking up the phone to call on prospective network marketing associates.  Why are you fearful when placed in a situation where you must present your business opportunity, product or service to a stranger? Think about it, do you think that your business opportunity is a scam? Do you believe that your products and services are overpriced or don’t work as advertised? Of course you don’t, so quit wearing disbelief  like a cheap suit and those fears will dissipate.

How can you utilize the Golden Rule in your business and life? I love the movie “Beaches” , I especially love this line from Bette Midler because it really describes a specific networking style

“Well enough about me, lets talk about you, what do you think about me?”

1. Never, ever , ever begin or end a conversation by talking about yourself, your opportunity, or your product. Your conversation should be about the person that you are speaking with. You want your prospect to walk away from your conversation with the feeling that YOU really care about HIM. So FOCUS on HIM, do not interject yourself into any part of the conversation.
2. Ask questions that  require  more than a Yes/No answer. For example: How did you get started in your business? What do you enjoy most about being a stay at home Mom? Wow That’s a great suit, where did you get it?
3. Try to go at least 3 deep on each question (but only if the conversation lags, don’t cut them off to ask the next question). So for the firs questions above your three deep may look like this:
   • How did you get started in your business?
   • What do you enjoy most about what you do?
   • What’s your least favorite part of what you do?
   • What advice would you give to someone just getting started in your business? (note that these questions also work as followups to to the stay at home Mom question: what advice would you give to someone who wants to quit working and stay at home with her children?)
4. If your prospect gives short answers , then ask questions that take a part of their answer and extend the conversation. Prospect:  “I love being here when my kids get home from school” You:”When your kids get home from school?” Prospect: “Yeah, they used to come home to an empty house, and now I’m here to help with homework, run them around to soccer, and ballet classes” You: “Soccer and ballet classes? “
5. Ask not what your prospect can do for you, instead ask what you can do for your prospect. As network marketers we tend to want to cut right to the chase, put our opportunity on the table and if they don’t enroll we say “NEXT”.  But remember your prospective associate? Sure you may have something they need, but maybe right now they cannot  A) see it or   B)afford it. That does’t mean that they won’t see it, afford it and get into it with you in the future, but in the meantime you need to find out what you can do for them by asking the question “What can I do for you?” or “How can I identify a good prospect for your business?”
6. That last one kind of threw you for a loop didn’t it? You’re thinking “What?!? Why would I want to find prospects for someone else?” OK, let’s revisit the olden Golden Rule and the Law of Reciprocity - it is a universal law that we get back what we give out. Give of yourself  with no expectation of a return on your investment , and simply because you enjoy helping people to be happy and successful, and the universe will bless you - this I can attest to.

Who can I help today?