4 Simple Networking Strategies I Used to Build a Billion Dollar Rolodex

As a young man, I was the textbook definition of an introvert.

I didn’t know many people and frankly, I didn’t want to.

In fact, my socially anxious tendencies were so bad that when I first started going to live events and mastermind meetings, I would ask for a hotel room on the first floor so I didn’t have to risk talking to strangers in the elevator.

Yeah…that bad.

But I overcame my socially anxious and introverted tendencies and today, I have a billion-dollar network filled with some of the best and brightest minds in the business world.

I don’t say this to impress you.

But to impress upon you that if a shy, socially anxious kid from a farm in rural Canada can break his limiting patterns and become a networking “powerhouse”…so can you.

And today, I’m going to teach you the four key principles you must implement to do it.

1. Flip the Switch and Become a “Go Giver”

 The first step to building your life-changing network is to flip a switch in your mind…

Right now, you probably go into networking events, seminars, and masterminds thinking, “How can I get, get, get?”

“Who can help ME achieve my big goals and dreams?”

But this mentality won’t get you anywhere. It doesn’t serve you and, to build your own 10-figure Rolodex, you must eliminate the “getting” mindset from your subconscious and focus on “giving”.

In every interaction, you need to start asking yourself…

“How can I give more to the people I’m meeting?”

Even if you don’t have any obvious skills or a strong network of your own, you must constantly be on the lookout for ways that you can provide more value to everyone you meet.

For example, my friend Joel Marion, who became one of my clients back in 2009 literally built his empire on generosity.

At the time, he was a broke high school teacher who was just beginning his journey as an entrepreneur.

But despite his apparent lack of resources, I quickly realized that he was one of the most generous and giving people I’d ever met.

He didn’t have any resources, but he was resourceful in the ways that he could be and always found some way to help people.

He became a part-time writer for a fitness magazine and came to me and said, “Craig, I just noticed you launched a brand new book you want to sell on Amazon. Congratulations! You’re doing great, but I think I can help you.”

He didn’t come to me and say, “Craig, I need you to help me” he came and added value to my life. 

And after he grew his company Biotrust to $100 million (in only 18 months), his generosity just kept growing and growing.

He’s always throwing big parties, bringing people together, making connections, and offering feedback and advice whenever he can.

And if you were to ask him, he would tell you that one of THE biggest reasons he’s been able to achieve such high levels of success is because of his commitment to giving generously with no expectation of a return.

In my own business, Joel inspired me to buy 250 copies of my friend Ed Mylett’s book, and send them to people who I thought could benefit from them.

After I did this, I received dozens of emails asking, “Why did you send me this? What’s the catch?” And my response was always the same…

“I thought you would find it valuable and I wanted to help you improve your life.”

And because of this simple action, I ended up generating a 10X return on my investment from new clients who signed up for my coaching. That wasn’t my intention. But because I led with generosity and value, the favor was returned 10 times over.

If you want to grow your network…rub shoulders with the Titans in your industry…and build a huge amount of goodwill with people who can transform your life…

Then start by switching your attitude from “What can I get?” to “What can I give?”

I promise, your business will never be the same.

Add value for other people, expecting nothing in return. Don’t do it because you think it will pay off down the road.

Do it because you want to. Sometimes you’ll get something in return, and sometimes you won’t. Either way, you’ll be doing good for someone else.

2. Increase Your “Market Value” By Developing Your High Income Skills 

Once you’ve become a go-giver, it’s time to develop High-Income Skills (H.I.S.). 

Whether it’s email copywriting, doing videos, becoming a great speaker, writing video sales letters, or simply being able to sell…Figure out where your unique talents lie and how you can develop them to add life changing value to other people.

When you have High-Income Skills you become in demand and desired. And when you combine your H.I.S. with your go-giver mentality to provide value to others…your life, business, and network will accelerate like never before.

For example, if you’ve mastered email copywriting, you can go to someone you admire and say,

“Hey, I love what you do. I love your emails and your products. I was just reading your email copy, and I thought I’d give you a few suggestions to help you get even better results. Try those things and let me know how it goes.”

High-income skills aren’t developed overnight…but in our “Shiny Object Society”, if you’re willing to commit to continual practice and lifelong mastery, you’ll stand out from the sea of “generalists” and open yourself up to opportunities you never imagined.

Pick the skill you want to master and pull out all the stops. Buy all of the best books on that topic, invest in all of the best courses, if you can afford it, hire a coach or mentor who specializes in your skill and can give you objective outside eyes to help you grow faster.

Do whatever it takes to build these skills NOW, because they will literally determine the trajectory of your life.

If you don’t have a high income skill right now, get one. Make it a priority. Make the time for it. Success doesn’t happen to you, you make it happen.

Set aside 15-30 minutes each morning to developing the skills you think are most important to your business and your life and business will never be the same.

3. Establish Your Critical Credibility and Manufacture Celebrity

When I was 25-years-old, I was a broke, struggling, introverted binge-drinking personal trainer. I had a lot to work on at the time, but I was fortunate that I had developed the High-Income Skill of content and copywriting. 

I spent (literally) thousands of hours clacking away behind the keyboard and eventually, I sent one of my articles to Men’s Health Magazine.

They published it within a matter of days and because my content got featured in one of the most prominent fitness publications on the planet…I suddenly became “The guy from Men’s Health” and established my first bit of “Critical Credibility.”

Critical credibility is a form of “manufactured celebrity” that boosts your perception in the public eye and gives you an advantage over your competitors.

You can get this from being on a podcast, in the news, on the radio, or in online publications and magazines.

And once you get it… you need to leverage it. You have to turn one appearance into another, into another, and then turn that into an introduction. When you can do this consistently over time, you’ll be seen as the “go-to” guy or gal in your industry and unlock opportunities and connections you never thought possible.

When you manufacture celebrity and elevate your status, everything becomes easier…Whether you think this is right or not, it’s always been this way. 

Imagine you’re going out to dinner in your town and you walk into a nice restaurant with your significant other. There’s only one table available, and you walk in at the same time as the local news anchor. 

Who are they going to give that one table to? 

Unless you have these things in place, unless you’ve grown your network, it goes to the news anchor every single time because they have manufactured celebrity.

That’s just the way the world works.

When you combine “go giving” with high-income skills and manufactured celebrity by building critical credibility, your network and life will change in ways you never expected.

4. Become a Connection Conduit

The final “secret” to building a billion-dollar Rolodex is to leverage the compound effect by making connections and introductions inside of your network.

Your network is not for you to hoard. It adds value to your life, but you need to use it to bring value to others.

When you know Mrs. Smith could elevate her business by having a conversation with Mr. Jones, it is your duty and obligation to introduce them.

Connecting those two could help her solve huge problems and start earning thousands of more dollars a month. And as a decent human being (and aspiring Empire Builder)

Now, there are a couple of tricks to doing this correctly.

First, you’ve to do what’s called a “double opt-in.” Don’t just give Mrs. Smith Mr. Jones’s number without any explanation. Ask Mrs. Smith if you can introduce her to Mr. Jones. Then let Mr. Jones know you think he could help Mrs. Smith and ask if it’s okay to connect them.

Ninety-nine percent of the time, they’ll say yes, but don’t risk the success of this connection by making a bad introduction.

 I write 250-word introductions that look something like this:

“Hey Mrs. Smith, I want you to meet my friend Mr. Jones. He’s an expert in this, this, and this. You’ve probably read his book, you’ve probably seen him here.”

I like to showcase all of Mr. Jones’s successes and attributes while also explaining to Mrs. Smith why she needs to talk to him. 

Then I say,

“Mr. Jones, I want you to meet Mrs. Smith. She’s this, this, and this. She’s amazing, but she needs a little bit of help with this. I know you’re an expert on this, so I want the two of you to connect.”

They can then connect and make life-changing progress on their business.

Making introductions is part of having a go-giver mentality, but the people you help will also be so grateful and want to give back to you, too. They’re going to ask how they can help you, and you’ll continue to grow your network and your wealth.

Conclusion

These four steps are how I went from the poor, broke, struggling, farm boy, sitting in a first floor hotel room by himself… to building a billion-dollar network.

When I discovered this system, it felt like I’d discovered a “secret” and improved every area of my life: better health, better relationships, better wealth, better success, amazing trips around the world. 

You can do this too.

I don’t care if you live in Tupelo, Mississippi, or England or Australia or Singapore. Stop with the excuses, and start with taking action. Add value, get high-income skills, develop critical credibility, and start making those double opt-in introductions. 

These four steps can change your life FAST. Go out there and start building the value ladder, then see what happens. I can’t wait to hear about it.

Drop a comment below to let me know what your first step will be.

And if you want my help…

Developing your high-income skills, establishing your critical credibility, and getting plugged into my Rolodex of millionaires, billionaires, and game-changers…

There are a few spots left in my Q1 “Millionaire Accelerator Case Study” coaching program.

To qualify, you need to control your own income (you either own a business or are self employed), be making at least 6-figures, and be willing to do the work, listen to criticism, and take massive action on the strategies I’ll share with you.

If this sounds like you and you’re ready to make the leap to 7-figures in 2020, either DM me on Instagram or send an email to support@earlytorise.com with the subject line, “I’m interested.”

Tell me a little bit about your business, goals, and challenges and we’ll talk more to see if you’re a good fit for the program.