Andrew Hennigan's Blog

One of the cornerstones of relationship networking is the concept of helping the people in your network with no expectation of a direct return. To people unfamiliar with this approach this can seem odd. Many times in workshops people have asked me if this proactive aid isn't just a way to force someone to do something for you by creating an obligation to reciprocate. But it isn't and the reason why this " payforward " mentality works is very interesting. If you are in a position to help someone you should do so anyway, and not wait until they can help you. Helping someone so that they help you, the 'tit for tat' approach both makes people feel uncomfortable and at the same time it is not the most productive way. It is much more effective and satisfying to simply reach out to help people in your network when you can without even thinking what they could do for you. This payforward approach does not give you an immediate return, though it does strengthen...

Most advice about breaking the ice with audiences concentrates on what you do once you start to speak. But if you prepare in advance you can make sure that the ice is at least partly broken even before you step up to the microphone. Here are three ways to do this. 1. BE KNOWN TO THE AUDIENCE .  If you are a Malcolm Gladwell the audience already knows you so the ice is effectively broken before you even open your mouth. Maybe you are not going to be as well known as he is, but you can certainly move in the right direction. Make sure that you are visible to the audience through social media, traditional media, promotional materials for the event and any other channel that you can find. Start months in advance if you can. At the very least you must have a clear online presence so that when people Google your name they see something reassuring. If the audience already knows who you are they do not spend the first five minutes wondering who you are and why they should listen to you...