Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign hey, folks, welcome to another episode of Biz Talk. We are always having a great time having these conversations with tons of business professionals, business owners that are always educating us on how to drive business forward and or educating us on their journey that they've had throughout their years. And we've got a great guest that's going to be joining us today. But prior to that, I want to introduce myself. My name is Rick Gutierrez. I am your host and your business advocate and man, when I tell you that I am always learning from all of these folks and today is no exception. We've got a great lineup and the visitor that actually not a visitor, the person who is joining us here today has been on the show before and educated us in quite a few things when it comes to referral networking or professional business networking. And she's been around for a very long time in the world of networking. And she is a great friend of mine, a mentor of mine, and I call her Ms. Leadership herself, Ms. Emily Glinda. Welcome back to the show, ma'am.
[00:01:20] Speaker B: Hey, Rick. It's good to be back. Glad to be here.
[00:01:23] Speaker A: It feels like a long time since you were on the show, but, you know, you and I talk all the time. But there is something that our viewers need to know and that is your journey as to how you got here. Let's talk about first business a little bit and then we'll get into the networking aspect of it. Right. So we want to know how you got here. I know you've got a sales and marketing background, which is phenomenal, but our viewers would really like to hear that part as to how you got here and why you are known as misleadership.
[00:01:56] Speaker B: Now or I love that you, you're like the only one that calls me that. But I do love leadership. So how did I get here? I started my, my professional career, I would say 15 years ago in sales and marketing. So I was a sales consultant for a very large corporation called Web.com. we sold digital marketing solutions, websites, SEO, pay per click, social media just as it was coming. If you can remember 15 years ago, we were all still trying to figure it out. This was the biggest and best in the at the time, so ended up having to talk to business owners all day long. That's what I do every day and have done for the last 15 years is learning about lots of different industries, learning about the business struggles of owners and things like that, providing solutions to them in whatever way I could. At that time, it was digital solutions. And then I tripped into professional networking Literally, just because of my job, I needed to go find new business owners to talk to. And as it turns out, it's really easy to find them hanging out in networking events. So I found my way to professional networking and really enjoyed that. And it was before I went into my professional career. I was a bartender, right? All we do all day long is like, talk to people. And that's really all this is, is just making friends and talking to people and learning their story and then figuring out if there's a way that you can help them. So stepped into the leadership role of a local networking organization here in Houston and led over 1200 members into helping their businesses flourish by leveraging a professional network. And became Ms. Leadership and met you and did that because I think that because being a business owner is really, really hard, it's very challenging thing to do.
Having a network of people to rely on, to depend on to help you and give you these resources, and then having somebody in charge to inspire you to keep going is necessary in being an entrepreneur. Somebody's got to do it. And if it's always you, then it's a lonely road out here. So that's the role I feel in my new. In my business now.
[00:04:10] Speaker A: Fantastic. So you mentioned so many amazing things, but one of the things that actually stood out is that, I guess the message here for a lot of young people, or maybe people of all ages that are just, you know, your regular, traditional folks that are just working a regular job that could potentially find themselves in a way, you know, in some way shape or form in a leadership role and manage, you know, a very big team and also help as many business professionals as you did and business owners through just, you know, working hard and dedication and learning and building relationships and all of those great things. So kudos to you for all of the hard work that you've put in and just, you know, leaning into the opportunities that are presented to you on a daily basis. So that's pretty cool. The other thing that you mentioned was being able to help business professionals grow, flourish, you know, help them flourish their business, help them grow their business. The reason why I find that interesting is because, you know, we're business owners ourselves, right? And we call ourselves business advocates. We know how hard it is to gain a new customer, let alone retain a customer every single year. And so we, we know all of the challenges that there is with being a business owner, but we also know all of the successes as well. And so I would like for you to share to our audience real quick. You know, you know, explain what a typical business owner would go through from either a sales and marketing standpoint or just from running a business itself. What a business owner goes through that are, that causes the most challenges and then also share what you have seen by helping those business owners and this their successes that you have helped them achieve.
[00:05:54] Speaker B: I mean there are lots. If you lean, like you said, if you lean into the opportunity of really leveraging a good network, a good professional networking group or organization like Network in Action, if you really lean into that, it can really. I, I know that it sounds dramatic, but I truly believe that that can be life changing. It was life changing for me by leaning into it and really just doing exactly what was being like learning, right? And being coached to do these things like show up and you know, participate and dive head first in and learn as much as you can from everyone around you. And it made me more successful. So my own story is proof of that. But like I think about one of our members right now who, you know, he's been in business, he's been in his industry, he's a commercial landscape architect and he's been in his industry for 20, almost 20 years. He's owned his own business for five. And his story is no different than any other story I've ever heard from every business professional that we don't make. You know, I make enough money, I make a lot of money, but I don't know where it goes. My cash flow is out of control. I don't know how to get new customers. Like this is what keeps me up at night, right. And I don't know where to go, I don't know what to do. And every single person that I've ever talked to about this that all say a variation of that story because again, it's not hard, it's not easy to do the entrepreneur thing. Here's the deal. He's an amazing landscape architect and you're probably an amazing, you know, there's amazing lawyers and doctors and, but they don't teach you how to be a business owner right at those different types of schools when you are getting into being a plumber or an H VAC guy.
And so when he came to us, he was super excited about the opportunity of as I like share passionately to him about what this is. And he comes into network and action into our organization and it's such an amazing experience and it's still not perfect, I'm going to be honest. Like there's a process to, to learning this skill of networking.
But he's getting all these resources and I think that's the thing that most people don't really appreciate or don't see as like a huge benefit. But like we're getting the money things figured out, we're getting the marketing thing figured out. He's starting to get more and more leads every single month from being connected to the right people. And you know, he's being supported and has somebody to bounce conversations off of you and me and everybody else in the network and he can mind share with them and we're connecting them with other people. We're doing that for him to make sure that he can go to bed at night thinking, wow, at least I have people supporting me, I have people helping me. And, and I just know in the next, you know, five to six months, it's just, it's going to be a completely different business than it ever was. Because things, transitions take time, right? You implementing these new processes and things. But I just, I, and I've seen that time after time after time, if the people who lean in and learn, it changes their life and their business.
[00:08:53] Speaker A: Absolutely. So that is basically what we call, what you and I call redefining professional business networking. Right. Because we know that there are so many different networking events out in the world. But you know, it's, it's sometimes you just go into those events and, and you shake a bunch of hands, grab a bunch of business cards, but you really don't get anything out of it. Right. And so what you're talking about, your Commercial Landscaping member, is that you're not only teaching the skills of networking and being intentional and purposeful in networking, but you are also taking the time to connect him with the right resources to help him, you know, scale his business in a way to where he's getting out all the systems and processes together. But you are also connecting him with the right members that are going to help him drive business forward. So it's not just about, hey, I need you guys to meet for a one to one and. And that's it. You're actually connecting him with people that can actually mutually benefit from one another. Is that correct?
[00:09:56] Speaker B: Yes, thank you for bringing that up. Because yes, everything that I just described is pretty unique is, is unique to network in action and next level nia, the, the business that you.
That is not the typical networking experience. You kind of described it a little bit. I think when most people, if anybody has ever heard of networking, they think of going to a chamber event and you know, working a room and having a cocktail or Breakfast and passing out cards and, you know, hoping that that works and turns into business or there's other organizations that you can go to where you sit and just listen to a meeting for 90 minutes and so. And you're still having to do the work on the outside of the meeting. What I just described was, is definitely in the professional networking space is. Is unique solely to next level nia. So that's what we believe is how networking and being a member of a networking organization should occur. If we're. I'm paying a membership to be a part of this organization, like, where's the help? Where's the help in my business? And that's what we can do for our members. And we're seeing it happen every day and it moves the needle faster and people are getting more results and we're proving that it works.
[00:11:08] Speaker A: Yeah. Because I can tell you from my own personal experience, when I was in the print, graphics and signage industry and I first learned about networking and I joined a networking group, I always felt that there was something missing. I always felt like there should have been more of someone either holding my hand and or telling. Telling me who I need to meet strategically to build connections with, build relationships with that we're actually going to drive business forward rather than what I was, you know, involved in was basically meeting with friends on a weekly basis where we would just socialize more than anything. And then it became to the point to where, oh, do you just have to go? Because that's your one time a month where you get to meet with friends. But there was really no business being driven. And that's where I think get. Things got lost for me. So when you and I talked about building this business, we talked about, you know, doing something a little bit different. And I think we're going to pick that up as to what and how different it is, what we're doing on our next segment. Because we've actually come to the close of this segment and I appreciate it.
[00:12:11] Speaker B: All right.
[00:12:12] Speaker A: And I think it was valuable information, but we are definitely going to pick it up on our next segment and we're going to talk about what is Next level NIA and how are we redefining professional networking. Sound good?
[00:12:26] Speaker B: Sounds great. Like, look forward to seeing you then.
[00:12:29] Speaker A: All right. All right, folks, we have come to the end of this particular segment. We're going to take a quick commercial break. Stay right there. We'll be right back.
[00:12:49] Speaker C: Hey, folks, welcome back to Biz Talk. Thank you for staying tuned in and thank you for joining us this week. We've got a great lineup of business professionals, business owners that are going to showcase their expertise. They've been there, they've done that, and so why not learn from them? It's like going to a library and just picking out a subject and having a great conversation with someone who's got all of the expertise. And my good friend Alana with Success Compass is with us this week and she's going to be sharing a little bit about her story. But before that, we want to hear from her. We want to know from her. She is a rock star in her industry. So we want to know a little bit more about Alana.
[00:13:26] Speaker A: Welcome to the show.
[00:13:28] Speaker D: Thank you so much, Rick. I am here to talk a little bit about my new companies or my new branding success Compass, which is helping you navigate towards success.
So if it's okay, I thought I would share a story with you.
[00:13:44] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. I love stories and I think people.
[00:13:47] Speaker A: Love stories as well.
[00:13:48] Speaker C: And so that's how people stay engaged. Right. So your story, it's about pivoting in business, right?
[00:13:55] Speaker D: Yes. In fact, I thought I would tell you a little story about my first professional pivot because people have to pivot all the time, whether they want to or not.
And this has led me to where I am today. So with that, I wanted to share this, this little story.
[00:14:11] Speaker C: Okay.
[00:14:12] Speaker D: Before I was even born, the bar was set for me, like super high. In fact, it wasn't a function of if I was going to college, but more of a question of where was I going to graduate school. So really high expectations. And my mom would always say that her three children would be a doctor, a lawyer, or an Indian chief. And the youngest of three. The doctor and lawyer slots were already filled and I'm not Indian nor Native American, so I had to be an Indian chief. But there's like no direction. Like, what does that mean? I don't know. I didn't know. But it's always kind of been in the back of my mind.
And so when I graduated college, I went into graduate school for psychology. I was in a PhD program and I had worked my way to get a scholarship and it was this really impressive, prestigious opportunity. And I'm starting this program. And as part of the scholarship, I had a teaching assistantship, which meant that I had a part time teaching job teaching psychology while I was studying towards my doctorate.
So I go to my first teaching class, I sit in on the lecture and then I go to the lab and I'm in front of like 40 undergraduate students. And I was Only a year or so older than most of them. And I'm short, so I'm also small. Standing at the front of the room, in front of all of these people, it was really, really scary. And I opened my mouth to start talking and it was like magic. I loved it. I was engaged. It was fun. I enjoyed breaking down difficult concepts and sharing the information. And the students had a great time. And I discovered that I loved teaching. Like, this was awesome. So I spent the first year in grad school loving that, studying material that was interesting. But I had another five years or so to achieve a PhD level. And upon completion of that, I could teach and do research or I could teach now. Like with a bachelor's, I was already teaching and I already loved it. And so five more years or go for it now. For me, that was like a no brainer. I was like, oh, I'm going to go for it now. So I left my program.
I old fashioned, pulled up a newspaper, I circled a job and found myself in a position where I was going to be teaching English as a second language to new immigrants in South Central Los Angeles. Very, very, very different from the PhD, yes, than this PhD program. But I was so stoked. I thought this was the coolest thing. I was really, really excited and I could not wait to tell my parents who did not think it was that good a thing.
They were really, really freaked out and devastated and concerned and thought I had like jumped off the deep end and I was throwing away this incredible opportunity. And in their minds, I had taken this amazing, this amazing trajectory. And I had taken it on a piece of paper and crumpled it up and just thrown it in the trash. I had squandered this prestigious, really impressive degree, potential degree.
What were they going to say to their friends? How would they tell people this change where I was going to be teaching immigrants in South Central Los Angeles? And I was devastated. I called a friend of mine and I was like in tears. And I said, I just, I feel like such a failure. Like, I took this great opportunity and I pivoted, I changed it, and I now feel like the worst person in the world. And he said to me, alana, do you like what you're doing? And I'm like, yeah. And he said, are you good at it?
Yeah. Do you think it's something you could do more of? Yeah. And he said, those are three ingredients for success, right? Like, amazing. So that to me was my first pivot, my first professional pivot, and really a sampling of what does success mean to you? It's personal. It's not necessarily what's been ingrained in your head or what the expectations are by your family or culture or society. It's really how you define it. So here we are, 2025. I have success compass. And what I do is I work with people to help them define and then pursue success on their terms.
[00:18:34] Speaker C: What an amazing story that, you know, I was just listening. I'm just blown away with, with your story. And one of the things that I remember from your story is that your first teaching job, being nervous as you can be, but when you started talking, all of a sudden you started shining at the same time. And that basically is a great leading indicator to let us know as to what we are capable of and how far we can go if we just remove ourselves from getting in our own way. Right. And sometimes our chatter in our own head is what keeps us from achieving some great things. And so congratulations on all of the success. Super proud of you. I know that we just met, but that was an amazing story and I love stories. And so that's, that's, that's awesome. So you. Yeah, yeah. So 6s compass, you're. You're helping folks navigate, you know, through success and finding success for themselves. What is one of the first initial pieces of conversations or perhaps maybe a couple of questions that you ask your clients to determine where that conversation is going to go or what they're looking for?
[00:19:44] Speaker A: For.
[00:19:45] Speaker D: Yeah. And, and it's exactly that. It's. Sometimes we get in our own way and that that barrier can be self imposed or it can be self imposed based on somebody else's expectations. So one of the first things that I like to find out is what are you currently doing and why are you currently doing it? What drove you to it? And where do you see yourself? Not where do you see yourself when you're in an interview, where do you see yourself five years from now? I want to move up the ladder, et cetera. But like, really, where do you see yourself and where does this fit in the bigger picture of your life? Because work is not 24 hours a day for anybody and we all have to sleep. And hopefully there are other things in our lives outside of just work. And it is a big part of our lives. So hopefully it's something that you enjoy or that brings you satisfaction or fulfillment in some capacities. So one of the first things is really understanding why are you doing what you're doing? What about it brings you joy? If nothing is bringing you joy, what brought you to it in the first place, something had to compel you to start doing what you're doing. Once you have some of that information, you can dig a little bit deeper or take some turns and understand a little bit more.
[00:21:01] Speaker C: Yeah, pivoting. Right.
So let me ask you, because I know someone in particular who started a business and was completely passionate about that business and helping others and doing some really amazing things. I happened to notice here, recent, in the last, you know, maybe year or so, that that person doesn't seem to be as happy and. Or as passionate as when they started the business. Right. So how can you help someone who, you know, you. It's still very passionate about what they do, but maybe they're in a stage of burnout or maybe they just lost track of a vision or something like that. Can you help someone like that? And if you can, how do you start that conversation or how can you help them?
[00:21:47] Speaker D: Yeah. So what changed? Why did that change? What drew you to it? Let's identify what that is, because as you just indicated, there's still that passion there. And what changed about when did that change happen? What changed about what you're doing and how can we get you back to that? The root of the passion may still be the same, but maybe there's another vehicle to deliver to get you there. So once we can understand what the end goal or the deeper goal is, then we can try and figure out different pathways to get there. Sometimes you'll be working in a particular pathway or particular career route, and it is the right route, but who you're working for may change, or the company may change, or the strategic direction of the company may change. And suddenly, even though you love what you're doing, you don't love who you're doing it for.
That that can tell you a very different pathway on what you can do for your next steps based on what has changed. Does that make sense?
[00:22:48] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. So there's something that changed within the. Either the organization or maybe if it's a product or a service or maybe.
[00:22:55] Speaker A: A service provider, it could be a.
[00:22:57] Speaker C: Vendor that's providing you something completely different. And now you're not so sure about what you're selling or how you selling it and whatnot.
[00:23:04] Speaker A: So.
[00:23:05] Speaker C: But I think you can agree, Alana, that there are many times where even the individual does not know that they have lost a little bit of that spark.
[00:23:15] Speaker A: Right.
[00:23:16] Speaker C: But others have noticed it. Right. How do you. And potentially this could potentially be for like another topic or another segment, because we're coming close to the end of this particular segment and when we're going to go into a commercial so that when we come back, we're going to continue this conversation because I think it's crucial, I think a lot of people do this. So, Elana, just hang tight. We're going to go into a commercial break and we'll continue the conversations. Folks, stick with us. We're going to continue this conversation with Alana and helping folks navigating, you know, support success. Stay tuned. We'll be right back.
Hey, folks, we are back. Thank you for staying tuned in. We're having a great conversation with Alana Polak. I mean, we're having, we're taking, we're peeling the orange and we're just diving right in because these are crucial conversations. Alana, thank you for staying on the show and thank you for continuing the conversation. The question that I had for you was, you know, let's say, for example, you have a company leader, could be.
[00:24:26] Speaker A: The C suite or it could be.
[00:24:28] Speaker C: A manager and a department manager. And they know that there is a lot of pressure, a lot of things going on, a lot of things happening. They're being pulled in different directions sometimes. And sometimes, you know, it's, it's, you get lost in translation, but you don't know that you're missing some of your marks. You're not necessarily as enthusiast anymore. You're not, you know, as passionate anymore, but you think you are. But the ones behind you or the ones underneath you are noticing that there is something going on. They just don't know how to address that particular individual on how to have that conversation. So, Alana, you must have some experience in this field.
[00:25:08] Speaker D: It's tricky, for sure. And I think managers sometimes tiptoe around it or sometimes approach it. And it's always difficult, it's always difficult thing to tell somebody that they're not hitting their marks. The reality is the person may act like they don't know. They usually know. They usually know internally. I had a client not that long ago who was encountering some real blocks in his career. And it turned out when we were having our sessions that he was dealing with some real mental health issues, things outside of work that were carrying over into work. And he didn't want to share it. He didn't want to be discriminated against, but it was absolutely impacting his performance. And his manager had said to him, like, you need to fix this. And he didn't know what to do, he didn't know how to fix it or really what the issue was. So we started talking and one of his challenges was because he wasn't hitting his marks and he knew it, it was really taking a hit on his confidence. Yeah, that happens a lot with people. So we worked on his confidence.
[00:26:18] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. And it could potentially be, you know, something that happened that caused his confidence to get to a lower level and, you know, sense of security and knowing and taking pride in own ownership and everything that he was doing or he is doing. But there are some times to where, you know, there are some underlaying things that happen, you know, that could potentially cause someone to not be hitting their goals or their quotas or things like that. So I think it's a great conversation because as I mentioned, there are many people that go through this, yet they don't know it themselves. The question is, can we help them? How do we help them? And I think the expert, Elana with 6S compass, could potentially have those conversations and uncover, you know, peel the orange and find out what's covered, what's going on. So, Alana, I think one of those part of that conversation too is that in my experience, why was it always much easier for a manager or the owner of the company to have those conversations with people that work for them and not so successful for the ones that work under them to have those conversations with the managers?
[00:27:32] Speaker D: Oh, well, that's, that's a whole, that's a whole balance of power dynamic.
[00:27:38] Speaker A: Right.
[00:27:38] Speaker D: I think it can be really intimidating to manage up and to manage up in a way where the person above you maybe is not hitting their marks. So that, that, that's a very difficult situation. I think when people are in that scenario, there are several different approaches. They can kind of go laterally, they can go to somebody above that person. But at the end of the day, if you can address that person directly in confidence, right? Not, not say anything in a public setting that would, that would disparage them or embarrass them. It opens the door to have dialogue and to be a little bit more self reflective. For sure.
[00:28:19] Speaker C: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, when you say that there is a, you know, the balance of power there, I mean there are, there is very intimidating for an employee to go to their manager and say, hey, I happen to notice this or that. And before you were not doing this and you were not doing that. So there is a very delicate way in having that conversation to where it becomes constructive criticism in order to be able to help that manager level up their game and allow them to see where they could potentially there is room for improvement. Right. So.
And it's a.
[00:28:53] Speaker D: And a good manager will be receptive to hearing the feedback and will be able to take a pause and consider, oh, I didn't realize that I was having this impact or that I'm having this influence or this reputation because of my actions. It takes a mature person though, or a somebody with self esteem who feels comfortable to be able to receive that feedback and be reflective and utilize that to, to improve themselves. It's very challenging.
[00:29:24] Speaker C: It's very challenging. But you know, if, if one was to be open to feedback, which is the only way to grow, in my opinion, you need to be able, you need to be in a situation and be in a position to where you are receptive to accepting all kinds of feedback. That is the only way that we can move forward and, you know, take responsibility where we're lacking and improve on them and whatnot.
But if you don't, if you don't, or if you're not open to feedback, then that's going to potentially backfire. But as long as whoever is bringing that to the attention of the manager or the business owner, whoever it may be, as long as they bring it to their attention and know that it's well intended and it's, you know, to make them better, to let them know that others look up to them for motivation and inspiration, then they need to be reminded every once in a while. We all need to be reminded every once in a while that we are here and we are in a position to inspire and motivate others. Nobody really likes being told what to do. They want to be inspired to go out and do some great things. Right. And I think that's one of, that's, I think that's one of the things that you do with your clients. You motivate and you inspire people.
[00:30:35] Speaker A: Right.
[00:30:36] Speaker D: Thank you. I take that as a big compliment. And I think to your point as well, it's very challenging to give somebody constructive feedback. But I think one of the ways to do that is A, give them positive feedback as well so that there is a little something to hold on to and B, make it not personal, especially if it's in a business setting. This is, you may be impacting people and to your point, influencing them and people look up to you. In addition, what you're doing is not as effective for the business or the team or the end goal. It's not a function of you're a bad human. It's a function of this behavior is impacting the team in a way that is not as constructive. How can we fix it so that collectively we are hitting our goals or we are improving a process or we are doing what we're supposed to do from a work perspective.
So keeping it really neutral.
[00:31:35] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, it all has to be well balanced.
[00:31:39] Speaker A: Right.
[00:31:39] Speaker C: It's like an engine on the car. It's got to be all synced and in tune. A one team culture always is going to work much better than a team that basically don't have any direction or any leadership. Right.
And one of the things that I do know in terms of this particular conversation is that there are those that lead from the front, those that lead from behind, and those that lead from the side. I happen to think that the ones that lead from the side are the most effective because they are on the lines with everyone else, just making sure that everybody's staying on task and hitting their marks and, you know, everybody knows what the goals are for the quarter or the six months or whatever it may be.
[00:32:22] Speaker A: I think so too.
[00:32:24] Speaker D: I think it breeds a lot of trust when you're holding somebody's hand and walking alongside them as opposed to pulling. Come on, this is the way to go. Or, you know, go, you go. I agree with you. I think walking alongside your team is the strongest way to get your team to go together.
[00:32:41] Speaker C: So, Alana, a lot of folks want to know, who are you working with and who do you want to work with? What we call an icp. Your ideal client profile. Are you working more with individuals or organizations?
[00:32:55] Speaker D: My ideal client is somebody who's stuck, whether an individual coming to me solo or through an organization, whether it's a recommendation or referral from a boss or manager or just somebody on their own volition who needs to bounce things off of someone with experience.
What I do is I can mirror back to them how they're coming across and I can help them identify where some of the stopping points are, where some of the challenges are, and work with them to correct them. And that goes for public speaking, communication skills in or outside of the workplace, or if they're trying to get a new job as well.
[00:33:36] Speaker C: Awesome. So that gives us a broad idea as to the people that you are working with or looking to work with. And I can almost assure you that they are having success just by having us this conversation. I could already tell that you're passionate about what you do and helping others. Others as well. And, you know, motivating those to. To find their success and more than anything, to be happy in anything and everything that they do. Right. That's the ultimate goal. And I really love that. And so I want to thank you so much for everything that you have given us.
[00:34:08] Speaker A: It's just I'm like a sponge just.
[00:34:10] Speaker C: Trying to absorb everything. And that's the reason why I love doing this show because I get to meet so many great people like you to help us, you know, continue to move forward in business and have great conversations with you. It's just an added bonus. So I want to thank you for of your knowledge and everything that you're doing for your clients. Thank you on behalf of me and all of them even though I don't know them, but I'm sure that they're happy with your service. So thank you.
[00:34:34] Speaker D: Thank you for having me on the show, Rick.
[00:34:36] Speaker C: Absolutely. We'd love to have you on the show in future segments if you're open to it and you know, have great conversations. So thank you again for being here. All right folks, we have come to this the end of this segment. Thank you so much for tuning in. We are going to be right back with another subject matter expert. Stay right there. We'll be right back.
[00:35:06] Speaker A: Hey folks, thank you for staying tuned in. My name is Rick Gutierrez. I am your host and your business advocate in case you are just now tuning in. We're having a great conversation with plenty business professionals, business owners. But I am happy to bring back the one and only Ms. Leadership herself, Ms. Emily Glindo. She going to talk to us about what is next level NIA and how we are redefining professional business networking and what all we are doing for our members. So welcome back to the show, Emily.
[00:35:33] Speaker B: Thank you. Great to see you again.
[00:35:36] Speaker A: Likewise. I think we have, we, you and I have had this conversation over and over and we discussed about what all we could do for our members and how we can level up that industry of professional networking rather than just, you know, going to a networking event and walking out of there completely empty handed to actually building strategic business connections that actually drift drive business forward. So but we actually also do many other things that help our members drive business by marketing, you know, doing marketing for them and whatnot.
[00:36:09] Speaker C: And one of the things that I.
[00:36:10] Speaker A: Know that we do specifically is have additional resources that many other organizations don't have and that is ties to a local TV station. We have a podcast going on and we've advertised ourselves in magazines to help our members even get more referrals. Right. But one of the things that the audience wants to know for those that are business owners and thinking about which referral networking organization to join, what would you say, is the ultimate thing that you love the most about how we, we are doing things nowadays.
[00:36:45] Speaker B: I mean, wow, you just made a huge list of a lot of things that we are already doing that are above and beyond any other organization is offering. Right. The TV show, the podcast, the marketing, ourselves on magazines, those are all really great things. For me personally and having worked in the biggest and led the biggest organization in this field, for me, I think the thing that makes a difference, which is why we're getting such different results than others, is the professional leadership. Right. Like this is my full time job, this is your full time job, this is what we do for a living. And when you have somebody who's dependent on those membership dues in the group to pay to send my kid to school or to, you know, pay to put, to pay our mortgage or anything like that, like, I am genuinely invested in the success of our members and so are you. And having people who have done this work before, who understand the foundation of it, who believe in leadership, who want to help genuinely help you grow your business, you're not going to get that in any other organization. You're just not. Because typically those people, this is their side gig or the second thing they're doing because they own an insurance company or they're a real estate agent or whatever and they're doing, putting on and, and either volunteering to run. But that's not their gig, that's not their thing. That's not, they're just stepping into that volunteer role to do it just because it has somebody has to do it, that does not get the same results as somebody who's genuinely invested in your success. And I think that us being in that and being passionate about what we do dramatically impacts the results that our members get.
[00:38:21] Speaker A: Yeah.
[00:38:22] Speaker C: And I think one of the other.
[00:38:23] Speaker A: Things too that, you know, the way that we come across and we let people know that, hey, we want to make sure that you know what your time value is, right. So we want to make sure that we educate everyone and help them break down as to what that hourly rate is. Because that amount of time that you spent in professional business networking, you should be able to get a good return of investment because it's considered to be available marketing hour, two hours or three hours, whatever it may be, right. You're out marketing for your business and if you're just going out there and doing the old traditional type of networking and not getting anything out of return, well, then that just seems like it's time wasted. Right. And that's one of the reasons why we help our members understand that their time is valuable. And that is one of the reasons why we don't hold weekly meetings. Our meetings are monthly because we value everyone's time. And rather than, you know, spending time every single week, we rather them spend time strategically meeting with other members that can actually help them drive business forward, not just meeting with anyone. Right. So talk to me a little bit about the focus that, you know, that you have, that I have in terms of actually helping our business partners, I would say, which are our members.
[00:39:43] Speaker B: Yeah.
[00:39:43] Speaker A: To help them drive business forward in a sense to where when you connect one member to another, how do you know that they can actually help each other grow each other's business?
[00:39:56] Speaker B: Believe that's done through our interview process. Right. So, I mean, when you and I are vetting incoming new members, we have a pretty extensive consult that goes on understanding their business, their values, their goals. And by. Just because I've done that for so many years. You've done that for so many years. I'm very good at, you know, asking the right questions to ensure that I'm going to. With the purpose. And the purpose typically is I'm interviewing this person to determine if they're going to be the right fit for the person that I already know needs their services in my group and whether or not they're going to be willing to help them. So, you know, by having that previous conversation with a member, I already know what kind of things they need to know to be able to partner them together. So I think that our interview, that we do a background check, and then we do an extensive consult and interview, that then makes it very easy for us to bridge the gap, make those connections, make those introductions with a purpose. And because our members, right. We have a standard of, you got to be in business for at least five years. You got to really be a professional. This is where people are going when they're ready to, like, scale their business to the next level. And at that point, you should know how to operate as a professional. And it's. It makes it very easy to kind of say, hey, Rick, I need you to meet with Susie. Because she's got this thing that I'm aware of, and you guys need to talk about that. So that way there's an agenda already set. You guys can dive right in. That table has been. You guys have already been. The credibility is already there because we've talked to them, and I think that the members just easily go, great, thank you so much for making my life easier. Not having to sift through that kind of stuff and they make that one to one connection, they talk about that business and it's just off to the races for them.
[00:41:36] Speaker A: Yeah, I think you hit the nail in the head, I mean, just with the interview process alone, right. So we want to make sure that we ask the right questions. And how do we know we're asking the right questions? Well, like you said, we've been doing this for a very long time. Right. The second thing is the actual background check that you mentioned. We actually, there is nobody else above you and I, you and I are the ones that interview, do the background check. And here's the reason why. Our fiduciary responsibility is to our members, right? And when we bring a new member onto any of the groups that we have, our members know that this new member has been properly vetted, he has been interviewed properly to ensure that it's going to be the right fit for that particular group. And I think that's one of the most phenomenal things that our members actually, we get great comments from our members when we connect two members together and say we think you two can actually benefit from one another and help each other grow each other's business is because we've gotten comments where say, hey, thank you so much for that connection. We've already connected, we're actually doing business together and so on. And that's really what it's all about. I think it's just being a high level professional is what I like to say in terms of who we talk to, who we invite. Because you and I go out into the world and invite folks, you mentioned that this is our full time job, right? So you and I go out and network two to three, five networking events per week to meet the right people that our members want to meet. And I think that's another thing that is setting us completely apart, that when we gain members, we work for our members, they are our clients, we work for them, not the other way around, right?
[00:43:24] Speaker B: So right now like even there are some like we need an estate planning attorney in one of our groups because I've got a couple of different, you know, a medicare supplement person, a health insurance person that are all, you know, that would benefit by, they have clients that they need state help with. And so even if I don't bump into one like where I'm, I'm cold calling, I'm building a list, I'm asking for referrals to an introduction to a great estate planning attorney to eventually find the right one to bring in to Say, hey, these guys have business for you, we have business for you. Like you have business for us. We want to partner and bring you in. So like, yes, we are out here working to bring the right people into the right room so that everybody can benefit. And that's what the membership is.
[00:44:06] Speaker A: Yeah, absolutely. I think, you know, having that in mind, I think that's what our members really appreciate the most, is that when they are connected, they're connected with purpose and the right connection. And then when they come to the meetings too, all they have to do is come in and enjoy the meeting. You know, get to learn some valuable business education, connect with the right people, enjoy a drink or coffee, whatever time the meeting may be and you know, make and build those connections. Right. And you and I are the ones that deliver those meetings and you and I are the ones always suggesting people to meet together, get together and do a one to one and all of those great things. So I think we are on the right track. And the reason why I say that is because every single month, we continue to grow, every single month we get some really great comments, some really great feedback and it's all because of the vision, the mission and vision that you and I took the time to sit down and say, hey, this is what's missing in this particular industry, in the networking industry. And this is what I think we should build to make it, you know, next level type of, you know, thing. And it's working.
[00:45:12] Speaker B: And it's, you're right, it's working, it's working. People are having a great time.
We keep growing and are always looking for high level professionals to, to come be a part of our organization. So hopefully somebody sees this today and if this aligns with them, they can reach out to us. And I would love to interview them to see if we have a spot.
[00:45:31] Speaker A: Yeah, and we will always have spot because we're always in growth mode, right. If, if it's, if the group, if the groups are, are filled, I mean, we're going to launch new groups anyway, so there will always be a spot. But most importantly, we want people to know that we are business advocates. We call ourselves business advocates because we love business. That is what drives the economy forward. Right. When everyone is doing well, that's because the economy is good. And if Emily and I had something to do with helping local business owners, you know, in, in that aspect, then, you know, that's what makes us happy, that's what makes it go around, that's what makes everything go around. So, right. Your, your thoughts in Terms as to, for those that are watching that are business owners or even business professionals. You know, you can be an employee, but you're in business development, you're in sales and you want to come out and check out some of what we're doing. And you know what I tell folks, Emily? I mean, because I'm not a hardcore salesperson, I think you know that you're not either. But one of the things that we do tell people is like, you know, come out and check out what we're doing. If you like and you see, you like what you see, then we would love to have you. And if not, that's okay. We're still going to be friends. I'll run into you at another networking event or something like that. And I think those talk tracks there have actually helped us gain new members because there's absolutely no pressure.
Would you say that that is, you know, one aspect that is allowing us to be completely open, honest and transparent about how we go about our networking venture.
[00:47:06] Speaker B: So that may be, hate to say this to you like now like that may be that that is one angle that does work. I, I appreciate the, the when I tell people our meeting is for our members. Right. We have talked about, we want to make sure that we're delivering value to our members and that their time is not being wasted. So there are other organizations that those meetings are for the visitors. And that's not, that's not what we do here. We try to bring value to our members because they're the paying customer. So I like to think of if you get invited to a visit to one of our groups, to one of our meetings to check it out, you better consider yourself honored and privileged because you're getting a free opportunity that are those members are paying to be a part of and that's what you're coming to check out is, is the high level value that we're delivering on a monthly basis. And so our members are paying for that. And so if you're a visitor, you, you should feel honored to be. That means you're a high level professional and might want to seriously consider being a part of that group. Because those that's being invited is a, is a, is a privilege.
[00:48:10] Speaker A: Yeah. So if you are invited, you know, it's, it's because we know that you would be a great fit. Right? Yeah. If you're invited, that means we consider you a high level business professional and you can be at the same level as our members in every single one of our groups. And that's, you know, what we. What we mentioned, there's all levels of networking, right. And there's even other levels of networking that are way beyond us for more like C suite type of, you know, CEO, CEOs, CEOs and CFOs, and, you know, all kinds of, you know, executives. There's that type of networking and then there is, you know, chambers and other networking events. But what we're trying to do here is really provide a great value to all of our members every single month. Emily and I are trying to figure out ways to bring additional value to all of our members. And I think, you know, we're on the right track and we're setting ourselves apart by just being member focused. First and foremost, our members.
[00:49:08] Speaker B: It's always. That's always gonna be the way to win.
[00:49:10] Speaker A: Yeah. And so any final thoughts before we wrap up? I think we're coming to the end of this segment as well. Just wanted to kind of provide some information as to what sets us apart and, you know, how we're doing things different. But what do you think, Emily? Any final thought?
[00:49:26] Speaker B: You gotta find the thing that works for you in terms of networking. Like you said, there's a ton of different options out there. What we do may not, I mean, may not be the right fit for where you are in your business journey just yet. And so I. But I still want to encourage everybody to consider that there is something for everybody out there in. In the networking world.
I think that what we do is definitely higher level. You get better results for, and way more resources. But please just encourage us to go out and meet people. Build your network, have people that you can refer to and have them refer to you. And not every person that you meet is the same value. So, like, I don't know, I always just consider every event is a networking event. You never know who they know or what they know or how they can help. But don't be afraid to ask. I guess would be the last thing that I would tell people.
[00:50:15] Speaker A: Absolutely. All right, Emily, well, I appreciate you again. Thank you so much for being on the show. We always learn a lot from you when you are on the show. And I hope we see you again in future segments. Hopefully.
[00:50:27] Speaker B: Hopefully we'll be here.
[00:50:28] Speaker A: All right. All right, folks, we have come to.
[00:50:30] Speaker C: The end of this episode.
[00:50:31] Speaker A: Thank you so much for joining. Hopefully we all learned something about a little bit of networking and a little bit about Ms. Alana as well. So thank you so much. We appreciate you. We'll catch you next week. Until next time, take care of each other.
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