This week’s topic is the Classification Cowboy, illustrated by BNI member Dan Fletcher. View and download the slideshow in the next post.

A Classification Cowboy is someone who tries to take more than one profession within a chapter. If you try to take more than one classification in a chapter, you’re blocking the connections and referrals that can be brought to the chapter.

The best way to handle this is to address the problem before the person joins the chapter, rather than after accepting a person with multiple businesses as a member. A chapter with multiple attorneys with different specialties is much stronger than a chapter with someone who doubles as attorney and paralegal.

You can download the slides in the next post to show to your chapter.

Brought to you by Ask Ivan Misner.

Complete Transcription of BNI Podcast Episode 164 -

Priscilla:
Hello everyone, and welcome back to The Official BNI Podcast brought to you by AskIvanMisner.com, a Web site where you can ask Ivan any question you have about networking.

I’m Priscilla Rice, and I’m coming to you from Live Oak Recording Studio in Berkley, California, and I’m joined on the phone today by the founder and the chairman of BNI, Dr. Ivan Misner.

Hello, Ivan. How are you and where are you today?

Ivan:
Well, this week, I am at the South African BNI conference. As you know, last week I did a little safari, which was amazing; done it before; this was my second visit to South Africa. It’s such a beautiful country, and this week I am at the BNI conference for the organization in South Africa. Amazing group of people.

And again, whenever I visit your region, please come up and introduce yourself to me and let me know that you’re listening to these podcasts. I’d love to meet you.

Priscilla:
That sounds wonderful!

So what do you have to share with us?

Ivan:
I have a fun topic this week. It’s Classification Cowboy. Now, there is a PowerPoint presentation or JPEGs that will be up this presentation, so I recommend that if you’re at the Web site, open it up; if not, download the PowerPoint. And if you’re listening to this from a mobile device, print out the PowerPoint presentation so that you can see the slides that I’m talking about.

The first one is a great slide drawn of a Classification Cowboy. And I’ve got to tell you that this was all done by a gentleman by the name of Dan Fletcher, Dan Fletcher, F-L-E-T-C-H-E-R, Dan Fletcher. Dan is a BNI member, of course, in the United Kingdom, and his Web site is CartoonBox.co.uk, CartoonBox.co.uk.

Dan put this all together on his own, and so I really wanted to thank him publicly, because he had seen problems with this whole concept of the Classification Cowboy, and he wanted to draw something that would identify it and describe it.

Now, for those of you who don’t know what I’m talking about, a Classification Cowboy is somebody that tries to take more than one profession.

In the past, in the past, we’ve used the term “Classification Hog.” Don’t do that. As you might suspect, Priscilla, makes people mad when they’re called a Classification Hog. So it’s not a term that we’d recommend that you use, but we like this concept of Classification Cowboy, and the artist on this, Dan, has done a great job of drawing his description what it is. And in his second slide, he talks about while most people accept one person per profession, that’s the spirit and the rule of BNI, the Classification Cowboy doesn’t. The Classification Cowboy insists on two professions, sometimes more, and there’s a great picture of him, Priscilla, with a little bubble over his head saying, “I’m a sharp shooter,” and then another bubble that says, “I’m a rodeo rider” and trying to take more than one classification, that they block potential members from joining the chapters. They deny the chapter of the connections, and that’s what’s really important is that if you try to take two, three, four classifications in a chapter, you’re really blocking the number of connections that can be brought by individuals.

On the eighth slide, he’s got this great diagram of blocking all the referrals that could be brought to [the] chapter over the years if they allowed other people in those classifications. And the Classification Cowboy claims that it is his or her right, it’s their job to take as many classifications as possible, but the truth is, it’s, as Dan says, it’s just darn rustling. It’s taking from the BNI chapter, which is his slide number 10. And he says, “Watch out. If you see him, don’t let him get too big for his boots and don’t bring him into a BNI group.”

This is a great PowerPoint presentation. I would urge members to print this out, take it to their chapter. I would urge members, this is a great educational coordinator’s presentation. It’s only about a dozen slides long. You can do this very quickly in just a few minutes and show it to people. Of course, give Dan credit. His contact information is there on the last slide.

But it really addresses an issue that, I think, when chapters get it – and particularly membership committees, because it’s the membership committees that control the classification issue. And membership committees should have this thing in front of them when they’re looking at a classification that somebody is applying for. Because if somebody’s taking multiple classifications, it restricts the number of people that are going to be in the group. And if it restricts the number of people that are going to be in the group, I guarantee you it will restrict the amount of referrals that are passed.

But even more importantly, I have found that when people try to find ways to work together rather than to compete with each other, that a lot of business can be done. I have seen multiple chapters – I was shocked once when I went to a chapter that had five, Priscilla, five attorneys.

Priscilla:
We have four!

Ivan:
You have four attorneys in your chapter?! I think you and I have talked about this once. That was shocking to me when I first heard it.

But as I start to talk to these attorneys, they tell me they pass more business to each other than any one other person in the group. Has that been the experience in your chapter?

Priscilla:
Yeah, well, they have very distinct categories.

Ivan:
Yeah, and they’re working with each other.

Priscilla:
Right.

Ivan:
It’s amazing how that happens, and so if you can get people in there who say, “Hey, look, this is really my area of expertise”…

Mind you, I’m not suggesting that you break your profession up on those core elements. I wouldn’t even necessarily say that you have to have more than one attorney, but the truth is, if an attorney does wills and trusts and their expertise is not family law, then they’re really different.

Priscilla:
Right.

Ivan:
Family law is a lot different than wills and trusts. And if you’re focus is wills and trusts, bring in a family law attorney. That family law attorney will send wills and trusts to you, and you can send the family law to them. And you end up really becoming working together very closely.

But the ones that are really frustrating to me are the ones that are really clearly different professions. It’s many kudos to your chapter for having four attorneys. That’s wonderful, and that’s an outstanding example of what I’m talking about.

But there are professions where the professions really clearly are two different professions; they’re not the same thing. And people are trying to take both categories, and that’s where it’s critical that that be stopped. And membership committees be active in being responsible for insuring that people don’t take multiple classifications.

Priscilla:
Yeah, it’s a difficult topic, because people will get a little bit defensive around that issue.

Ivan:
They do; they do. And if your chapter can coach them and guide them, that helps. And when push comes to shove, see, you’ve got to do this before you accept them. Once you’ve accepted them, then you’ve got a problem.

Priscilla:
Yeah.

Ivan:
Especially if you’ve accepted them under multiple classifications. Then you have to deal with it again when it comes up for renewal, and that becomes an angry situation that you want to try to avoid if you can.

So as much as possible, active membership committees who can address this issue before the person is made a member [are] much more likely to be successful. And there’s nothing wrong with the membership committee saying, “No, really, this is the classification. We’ll accept this one or this one. Which one is what you focus most on?” And it’s better for a chapter to say, “No, thank you” than to take somebody who has multiple – somebody who’s a Classification Cowboy. In the long run, that’s the better decision to make.

Priscilla:
Yep, I totally agree with you. [It] makes for a much stronger chapter.

Ivan:
Absolutely!

So everybody listening to this, print out the PowerPoint or the slides that we’ll have with this podcast. Feel free to share this in your chapter. And if you have a second, Dan Fletcher’s e-mail is on the last page. Drop Dan an e-mail, thank him for his efforts, because he contributed this all on his own. To me, this is a classic example of Givers Gain. He spent a lot of time doing this because he thought it was an important issue. I want to personally thank Dan, and if you take a look at this, drop Dan a e-mail and thank him as well.

Priscilla:
Okay, great!

Ivan:
Thanks, Priscilla.

Priscilla:
Thank you, Dr. Misner.

I think that’s it for this week. I would just like to remind the listeners that this podcast has been brought to you by AskIvanMisner.com. Thanks so much for listening. This is Priscilla Rice, and we hope you’ll join us next week for another exciting episode of The Official BNI Podcast.

In week two of BNI Fundamentals, Dr. Misner addresses “Full Participation in BNI.” (Remember, Education Coordinators can download all this material in advance from BNI.com.)

1. Be there every week. Out of sight, out of mind. And if you show up late for BNI, we assume you’ll show up late with clients.
2. Participate in the networking time that starts each meeting. Don’t sit down until the president calls the meeting to order. Pay special attention to visit.
3. Participate 100% in the meeting. Treat whoever is speaking as if they were the biggest client you could possibly land.
4. Attend the BNI trainings and embrace a culture of learning.

All four of these practices demonstrate the Givers Gain mentality. The more you put into BNI, the more you’ll get out of it.

Brought to you by Networking Now.

Complete Transcription of BNI Podcast Episode 116 -

Priscilla:
Hello everyone, and welcome back to The Official BNI Podcast brought to you by NetworkingNow.com, which is the leading site on the Net for networking downloadables.

I’m Priscilla Rice, and I’m coming to you from Live Oak Recording Studio in Berkley, California, and I am joined on the phone today by the founder and the chairman of BNI, Dr. Ivan Misner.

Hello, Ivan and how are you?

Ivan:
I’m doing great, Priscilla. This week I’m still up at Big Bear. We’re doing master trainer meetings with the Referral Institute people. One of the companies I run is called The Referral Institute. For BNI members, if you have a chance, go to ReferralInstitute.com, and it’s a great program to help teach people to go really deep in learning how to create referrals for life. I’m meeting with the key master trainers this week in Big Bear for the referrals.

Priscilla:
That sounds great. Well, what would you like to share with us this week?

Ivan:
Well, last week I started the 12 weeks of BNI Fundamentals, and this is week number 2, which is called Full Participation in BNI. If you’re an education coordinator, you can download these 12 weeks ahead of time by going to BNI.com and putting your user name and password for education coordinators. If you don’t have that, go to you local BNI director and get that information. And you can get this ahead of time and then follow along with us and help train and support members on these podcasts as we do them.

Last week we made the point that success in BNI comes when the rest of the chapter members trust you enough to open up their best referrals to you. You have to remember that until we’ve experienced your work, you have to earn that trust by showing us how professional you are and by treating us like prized clients. So we talked about the things not to do to be a good member in BNI.

This week the subject is how to really play full out, full participation in BNI for fun and for profit. The first simply is showing up each week at our meetings. That means be there every week; be there on time; actually participate. Why? Two reasons. First, if you’re not there, you’re not fresh in everyone’s mind, and you’re not in the minds of the members each and every week. We won’t think of you when we’re standing smack in the middle of a great referral for you.

The second reason is if you don’t show up or you show up late, we assume that’s just your style. This is really important. If you don’t show up or you show up late, we assume that’s just your style and that that’s the way that you’ll operate in a referral that we give you, that you’ll do the same thing with people we might refer to you. Remember, your actions here are all we have to go on to judge your professionalism with our referrals. So it’s very important that you walk the talk. There’s a great quote in a book called Inside the Magic Kingdom by a friend of mine, Tom Connellan, and it says, “What you do thunders above your head so loudly, I cannot hear the words you speak.” And that’s what this is really about, is you want to make sure to show that you’re a professional. Be there on time, and be fully present in the meetings.

The second way is to participate in the networking time that starts each meeting. I’m going to give you a quiz.

Priscilla:
Okay.

Ivan:
Are you ready for this, Priscilla? I didn’t tell you there’s a quiz in this podcast.

Priscilla:
Okay, Ivan, I’m ready.

Ivan:
Which of these four things should you be doing in the first 15 minutes of your meeting?

Priscilla:
Okay, what are they?

Ivan:
1, paying for the meeting; 2, getting your breakfast; 3, catching up with the other members about chapter issues, or 4, networking.

Now, this is an easy one, Priscilla.

Priscilla:
Yes, I think I’m going to pick number 4.

Ivan:
Very good! Nothing else matters. In fact, networking is the sole purpose of this part of the meeting. A good rule of thumb is if you don’t sit down until the president calls the second part of the meeting to order, you’re doing the right thing. You don’t sit down and don’t just chit-chat; you want to network. You particularly want to connect with the visitors. There’s so many reasons why you want to connect with the visitors, but one is make them feel welcome. Another is to start to connect with them. Find out what they do. They may be interested in your business; you may be interested in their business. It’s not called net-sit or net-eat; it’s called net-work. So the first 15 minutes of the BNI meeting is all about networking.

Sure, you food might grow cold if it’s left alone, but so will a visitor. Your food won’t bring you any business, but the visitor and the members will.

Priscilla:
Right.

Ivan:
The third thing is to participate 100 percent in the meeting. That means you treat whomever is speaking as if they were the biggest client you could possibly land. Would you walk out on a big client?

Priscilla:
No.

Ivan:
Would you take a phone call?

Priscilla:
No.

Ivan:
Would you send text messages while your clients are talking about their needs?

Priscilla:
No.

Ivan:
If you do it here with us at a BNI meeting, we have to assume you’d do it with any client we might send you. Now, you may think, “They may not do that,” but let me tell you, they will. I would. If I was at a meeting and I saw somebody completely distracted and not paying attention, I’m going to think that’s their normal MO, that’s their normal MO.

Another way of full participation is attending the BNI trainings and embracing a culture of learning. First, it means new contacts, and secondly, all the education enhances both your business and your skills as a networker. Full participation means listening to these podcasts, sharing these podcasts. That’s one of the ways you immerse and engage in a full culture of learning.

Of course, I’m speaking, and Priscilla, you’re helping me talk to the choir. People that are listening to this already believe in that, and so those of you are listening to this podcast or reading this transcript, the more you can engage other BNI members into participating in these podcasts and listening, the more they will have a full out participation in BNI.

Priscilla:
Great! Is there more?

Ivan:
Well, I think I’d wrap it up with just a summary. Show up to the meetings on time; network, participate, attend trainings. Why do all these things? Because it’s Giver’s Gain. You give and you gain visibility, credibility, and profitability in return.

Just in closing, let me suggest that you know you’re a BNI member if you go out to dinner with your family and you show to your table you don’t sit down for the first few minutes; instead you connect with anybody you know in the restaurant. Then you definitely know you’re a BNI member, because it’s all about networking, even when you have a meal.

Priscilla:
That’s great. Well, Ivan, can I ask you something very quickly?

Ivan:
Sure.

Priscilla:
If you have a chapter that’s been together for almost six years and you feel like the members are a little stale with each other because they possibly heard – we do 30 seconds – over a period of time, they’ve heard it many, many times. Can you think of one thing that spark the meeting or spark the relationships, one thing that we could do in our meeting?

Ivan:
Yeah, absolutely. I would recommend that the chapter start looking at the meeting stimulants that we have. Meeting stimulants are exercises that – by the way, Priscilla, they’re not good drugs, although some chapters could possibly use them. Meeting stimulants are exercises that we make available, so talk to your local director. They’re available as a download at BNI.com, and there’s about 45 or so of them, and I would recommend that the chapters use one or two of these meeting stimulants about every six weeks; use one about every six weeks or so. If you do them every week, it’s way, way too much. Even every month, it’s too much. But some of the meeting stimulants are a great way to get people to break out of their normal routine of doing a 60-second presentation.

Just to give you a sense of what some of them might be, one that I really like is where everybody reaches into a basket and they pull out a card and whoever’s card they pull out, they have to do that person’s 60-second presentation.

Priscilla:
Yeah.

Ivan:
That one is done a lot, and the great thing about that is it gives you a sense of how well are you communicating what you do. Because if somebody gets your card and they can’t say what you do, then either that person’s not paying attention or you’re not doing a good job of explaining what you do and what a good referral is.

Also, the NET radio, I love NET radio. The idea with that is that the president or the chapter director, the title varies from country to country, the person running the meeting is the DJ or host, and every member has a 60-second commercial, no 30 seconds or 45 seconds, but 60 seconds. So if you don’t use the whole 60 seconds, it’s dead air. So you have 60 seconds to do a commercial about your business. And I’m telling you I’ve heard some of the best 60-second presentations during the NET radio.

There’s another 40-plus meeting stimulants. Use those from time to time, and it shakes up the gray matter a little bit, shakes the dust off, and it gets people focused on doing what they should be doing but doing it in an interesting and different way.

Priscilla:
That’s great, Ivan. Thank you very much.

Ivan:
Thank you, Priscilla.

Priscilla:
I’ll go back to my meeting tomorrow and talk about it.

Ivan:
All right. Meeting stimulants, take a look at them and let me know how they work out.

Priscilla:
Okay, good.

All right. Well, I think that’s it for this week. This podcast has been brought to you by NetworkingNow.com, the leading site on the Net for networking downloadables. Thanks so much for listening. This is Priscilla Rice, and we hope you’ll join us next week for another exciting episode of The Official BNI Podcast.