WEBVTT 00:00:16.750 --> 00:00:19.829 Welcome back to Networking Unleashed, Building 00:00:19.829 --> 00:00:22.969 Profitable Connections. I'm your host, Michael 00:00:22.969 --> 00:00:25.789 Foreman, and today we're diving into the future 00:00:25.789 --> 00:00:30.230 of networking. What if you could use AI and automation 00:00:30.230 --> 00:00:33.969 not just to grow your network, but to monetize 00:00:33.969 --> 00:00:37.429 it, turning your connections into real measurable 00:00:37.429 --> 00:00:41.929 revenue? My guest today is an expert at doing 00:00:41.929 --> 00:00:45.710 exactly that. We're talking about scaling relationships 00:00:45.710 --> 00:00:49.549 without losing authenticity, using technology 00:00:49.549 --> 00:00:52.649 to deepen trust, and building a network that 00:00:52.649 --> 00:00:56.109 actually works for you. If you've ever wondered 00:00:56.109 --> 00:00:59.549 how to stay human in an automated world, this 00:00:59.549 --> 00:01:02.590 episode will change how you think about connection, 00:01:02.969 --> 00:01:06.349 influence, and income. So let's get into it. 00:01:06.829 --> 00:01:10.329 Arias. Let me just welcome you to the podcast. 00:01:10.689 --> 00:01:13.670 I'm so thankful to have you on. And why don't 00:01:13.670 --> 00:01:16.189 you give us a little about your background and 00:01:16.189 --> 00:01:19.609 what got you here today? Sure, Michael. Thank 00:01:19.609 --> 00:01:21.069 you for having me. It's an honor to be here. 00:01:21.290 --> 00:01:23.409 I really appreciate you've been teaching for 00:01:23.409 --> 00:01:27.030 years that this Know, Trust You framework. And 00:01:27.030 --> 00:01:28.810 that's something that I personally subscribe 00:01:28.810 --> 00:01:31.840 to. So I'm really happy to be here. So in terms 00:01:31.840 --> 00:01:34.239 of me, I have around the world and back again, 00:01:34.400 --> 00:01:36.280 I've been through trials and tribulations. But 00:01:36.280 --> 00:01:39.200 as we said before, we jumped on every day that 00:01:39.200 --> 00:01:41.040 you are on this side of the dirt and vertical 00:01:41.040 --> 00:01:44.439 is a gift. I'm just a kid from Dallas, Texas. 00:01:44.659 --> 00:01:47.739 I grew up in San Diego, California. So I always 00:01:47.739 --> 00:01:49.719 tell people that I get my heart from Texas and 00:01:49.719 --> 00:01:51.879 I get my brain and my hustle from California. 00:01:52.819 --> 00:01:55.579 And I'm just I'm in love with business. I love 00:01:55.579 --> 00:01:57.540 all things commerce. I love the free market. 00:01:57.959 --> 00:02:00.900 I love seeing entrepreneurs take their dreams 00:02:00.900 --> 00:02:03.540 and their hopes and build it into something that 00:02:03.540 --> 00:02:07.760 helps add value to other people's lives. Sounds 00:02:07.760 --> 00:02:10.340 great. That sounds like great. And it's a great 00:02:10.340 --> 00:02:13.800 beginning to this podcast since right now we're 00:02:13.800 --> 00:02:17.539 all about you. But let's start to go from relationships 00:02:17.539 --> 00:02:21.180 to revenue. You teach that a professional network 00:02:21.180 --> 00:02:24.819 isn't just a collection of contacts. It's a revenue 00:02:24.819 --> 00:02:28.500 generating asset. What's the first mental shift 00:02:28.500 --> 00:02:32.840 someone needs to make to start treating their 00:02:32.840 --> 00:02:35.860 network that way? First mental shift they need 00:02:35.860 --> 00:02:38.979 to make to start treating their network that 00:02:38.979 --> 00:02:42.620 way. I would say that you have to, we all know 00:02:42.620 --> 00:02:46.680 that the money is in the follow -up and in that 00:02:46.680 --> 00:02:50.419 follow -up, you need to look to deepen the relationship 00:02:50.419 --> 00:02:53.539 first before you ever start looking for money. 00:02:54.669 --> 00:02:56.530 There's no shortage of people that are out in 00:02:56.530 --> 00:02:59.250 your inbox, following you around on social media, 00:02:59.509 --> 00:03:01.569 calling you and leaving voicemails that are looking 00:03:01.569 --> 00:03:04.830 to get your money. But there's very few people 00:03:04.830 --> 00:03:07.900 that are honestly. trying to develop a relationship 00:03:07.900 --> 00:03:10.620 and figure out what it is that they may actually 00:03:10.620 --> 00:03:13.439 be able to help you with so when you are networking 00:03:13.439 --> 00:03:15.780 and you come across someone who wants to exchange 00:03:15.780 --> 00:03:19.000 information take the time to actually build the 00:03:19.000 --> 00:03:22.419 relationship first and the best way you can do 00:03:22.419 --> 00:03:25.479 that is by ensuring that you automatically follow 00:03:25.479 --> 00:03:28.389 up with them I cannot tell you how many times 00:03:28.389 --> 00:03:30.669 I personally, before I built the companies that 00:03:30.669 --> 00:03:33.949 I've built, would get a business card or put 00:03:33.949 --> 00:03:36.849 a number in my phone and I'm tired. I go to sleep 00:03:36.849 --> 00:03:39.229 and the next day I've got meetings and it's three, 00:03:39.330 --> 00:03:41.770 four or five days before I remember to follow 00:03:41.770 --> 00:03:45.189 up with them. And these days I realize I'm bad 00:03:45.189 --> 00:03:48.909 at it. So I put a system in place to make sure 00:03:48.909 --> 00:03:52.389 that the very next day an automated message goes 00:03:52.389 --> 00:03:55.050 out. And it's not me trying to pretend it's. 00:03:55.449 --> 00:03:58.330 me in something heartfelt. It's just there to 00:03:58.330 --> 00:04:00.449 get the conversation going, right? That message 00:04:00.449 --> 00:04:02.409 gets triggered, an email and a text message goes 00:04:02.409 --> 00:04:05.629 out so that I'm on their radar, they're on mine, 00:04:05.669 --> 00:04:09.389 and hopefully a conversation can ensue. Absolutely. 00:04:09.629 --> 00:04:13.150 And I'm a firm believer that the follow -up is 00:04:13.150 --> 00:04:15.789 probably more important than actually meeting 00:04:15.789 --> 00:04:19.069 the person themselves, right? Because the answer 00:04:19.069 --> 00:04:22.829 is in the follow -up. It's how quick and when 00:04:22.829 --> 00:04:26.040 you follow up. will determine whether or not 00:04:26.040 --> 00:04:29.800 you'll have success in that relationship. But 00:04:29.800 --> 00:04:32.680 we'll go into that a little bit later on. AI 00:04:32.680 --> 00:04:35.639 is helping people build networks faster than 00:04:35.639 --> 00:04:39.120 ever. But speed doesn't always mean substance. 00:04:39.639 --> 00:04:43.379 How do you balance efficiency with genuine human 00:04:43.379 --> 00:04:49.100 connection? That's a hard one. It's all about 00:04:49.100 --> 00:04:53.410 how do you keep relationships personal. How do 00:04:53.410 --> 00:04:56.970 you keep it from being robotic? And that's a 00:04:56.970 --> 00:05:00.670 fine line. You want the efficiency and the speed 00:05:00.670 --> 00:05:03.490 and accuracy of automation, but you still want 00:05:03.490 --> 00:05:08.110 it to be you, for lack of a better term. And 00:05:08.110 --> 00:05:09.810 that's a fine line to walk. It's something that 00:05:09.810 --> 00:05:13.110 we do all the time. Actually, currently, we are 00:05:13.110 --> 00:05:17.209 building out models to handle incoming inquiries 00:05:17.209 --> 00:05:19.350 and a lot of people on social media. So we have 00:05:19.350 --> 00:05:22.579 multiple social media accounts. I don't know, 00:05:22.600 --> 00:05:24.639 maybe 100 to 200 people having conversations 00:05:24.639 --> 00:05:27.240 through those accounts every single day. It can 00:05:27.240 --> 00:05:29.399 get daunting unless I want to hire an army of 00:05:29.399 --> 00:05:33.079 people to handle those conversations. So it is 00:05:33.079 --> 00:05:35.139 the best way that I can say instead of giving 00:05:35.139 --> 00:05:38.120 you some generic answers is you need to figure 00:05:38.120 --> 00:05:42.670 out how to distill down your brand voice. You 00:05:42.670 --> 00:05:46.250 have terms that you use. You have a background 00:05:46.250 --> 00:05:49.829 and a story and an origin that makes you uniquely 00:05:49.829 --> 00:05:51.970 you. There's a certain way you speak. There are 00:05:51.970 --> 00:05:55.149 certain terms that you go to and reach for automatically. 00:05:55.750 --> 00:05:57.550 You have to figure out how to take those things 00:05:57.550 --> 00:06:00.430 and put it into a document so that if, let's 00:06:00.430 --> 00:06:02.889 say, an AI agent is responding on your behalf, 00:06:03.089 --> 00:06:05.670 it sounds like you. But you also need to put 00:06:05.670 --> 00:06:09.149 some limits on its abilities. It doesn't need 00:06:09.149 --> 00:06:11.970 to pretend. that you need to be honest with people, 00:06:12.009 --> 00:06:15.629 have integrity. If it's an AI agent, say so. 00:06:15.769 --> 00:06:17.889 But you can make a joke out of it and say, hey, 00:06:17.910 --> 00:06:20.750 but I've got all of Michael's best qualities 00:06:20.750 --> 00:06:24.509 and none of his worst ones. So it is trying to 00:06:24.509 --> 00:06:27.269 pull as much of your personality in lending this 00:06:27.269 --> 00:06:31.529 to AI as possible while also maintaining integrity 00:06:31.529 --> 00:06:33.910 and using the best parts of its efficiency and 00:06:33.910 --> 00:06:38.029 automation. That sounds great. When you go into 00:06:38.029 --> 00:06:44.339 a... networking event i i coach i mentor i teach 00:06:44.339 --> 00:06:48.240 but i always tell them to go in with a servant's 00:06:48.240 --> 00:06:53.660 heart to not expect to receive anything but expect 00:06:53.660 --> 00:06:58.720 to give when i have them at a table or something 00:06:58.720 --> 00:07:01.879 and i'm speaking with somebody i use another 00:07:01.879 --> 00:07:07.970 form situation like that but After I'm active 00:07:07.970 --> 00:07:11.069 listening to them and I listen to what they have 00:07:11.069 --> 00:07:15.089 to say, I say that I like them. I like how they 00:07:15.089 --> 00:07:19.230 do business. How can I make you more successful? 00:07:20.050 --> 00:07:23.149 How can I be a good referral source for you? 00:07:23.389 --> 00:07:25.730 And they're like blown away. They used to say, 00:07:25.810 --> 00:07:27.629 Mike, you know what? I don't even know what the 00:07:27.629 --> 00:07:29.990 hell you do yet. And you're already trying to 00:07:29.990 --> 00:07:32.949 make me better. Yes, I'm trying to make you a 00:07:32.949 --> 00:07:35.930 better version of yourself. So if you go into 00:07:35.930 --> 00:07:38.730 a networking event with that, you take all the 00:07:38.730 --> 00:07:42.509 pressure off and you go on your way. All right, 00:07:42.529 --> 00:07:47.689 enough about me. Indeed. When someone automates 00:07:47.689 --> 00:07:51.350 outreach or follow -up, how can they keep from 00:07:51.350 --> 00:07:58.230 sounding robotic or transactional? Yeah, I think 00:07:58.230 --> 00:08:01.810 it's all about authenticity. Authenticity comes 00:08:01.810 --> 00:08:07.610 from... relevance. And you being able to, one, 00:08:07.689 --> 00:08:10.430 know what is relevant for that person very much 00:08:10.430 --> 00:08:14.670 to what you just said, go in looking as to what 00:08:14.670 --> 00:08:16.790 you can add rather than what you can get out. 00:08:17.110 --> 00:08:21.490 Staying in and making that the core objective, 00:08:21.769 --> 00:08:24.189 or at least one of them, when you're building 00:08:24.189 --> 00:08:27.509 out some of these automations in AI, makes it 00:08:27.509 --> 00:08:32.090 so that it takes that with it. If you set the 00:08:32.090 --> 00:08:34.669 core objectives of, hey, get some contact information, 00:08:35.110 --> 00:08:39.029 book a call, sell them on something, then that's 00:08:39.029 --> 00:08:42.649 the language. That's the basis. If you go in 00:08:42.649 --> 00:08:45.389 and you infuse, hey, how can you figure out what 00:08:45.389 --> 00:08:48.909 it is that they need? How can we add value? What 00:08:48.909 --> 00:08:51.009 pain points are they having? What are they struggling 00:08:51.009 --> 00:08:53.750 with? How can we pair maybe some of the things 00:08:53.750 --> 00:08:58.570 that we offer with those pain points? And even 00:08:58.570 --> 00:08:59.970 something that most people don't think about, 00:09:00.070 --> 00:09:04.529 telling it to back off. Hey, if you don't see 00:09:04.529 --> 00:09:07.289 an actual need, something that we can actually 00:09:07.289 --> 00:09:10.230 help with, it's okay for you to end the conversation. 00:09:11.570 --> 00:09:15.230 Again, that integrity, that authenticity of taking 00:09:15.230 --> 00:09:19.490 that good part of you and lending that to these 00:09:19.490 --> 00:09:21.809 AI models, right? They're just like children. 00:09:22.049 --> 00:09:24.769 If you teach your children a curse and you teach 00:09:24.769 --> 00:09:27.990 them to not respect their elders. By your actions, 00:09:28.009 --> 00:09:30.509 they're going to mimic that. And these automated 00:09:30.509 --> 00:09:33.490 and AI models are very much the same in that 00:09:33.490 --> 00:09:35.929 whatever you feed it, they're going to obey and 00:09:35.929 --> 00:09:40.029 mimic. Absolutely. And really what you're talking 00:09:40.029 --> 00:09:43.629 about is so spot on. But you have to realize 00:09:43.629 --> 00:09:46.929 that when you back away from a situation, from 00:09:46.929 --> 00:09:49.429 a problem that they're having, knowing that truly 00:09:49.429 --> 00:09:53.129 that you cannot solve that problem, because after 00:09:53.129 --> 00:09:57.429 all, we are. problem solvers. So if we can't 00:09:57.429 --> 00:10:00.309 solve the problem because of all your networking, 00:10:00.690 --> 00:10:05.190 you know somebody who can. So you can then put 00:10:05.190 --> 00:10:09.309 those two people together. I'm in my area known 00:10:09.309 --> 00:10:12.370 as a super connector, right? Because every week 00:10:12.370 --> 00:10:15.690 I try to find two people, one with a problem, 00:10:15.870 --> 00:10:18.570 one with the solve to that problem, and I put 00:10:18.570 --> 00:10:22.659 them together and I back away. I say, look, I 00:10:22.659 --> 00:10:24.399 don't want anything from it. I'm just putting 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:28.259 you two together. So that's what enables you 00:10:28.259 --> 00:10:31.960 to do exactly what you said. You can say something 00:10:31.960 --> 00:10:35.779 you're best off if I don't help you, but I know 00:10:35.779 --> 00:10:40.279 someone who can. Again, that integrity is what 00:10:40.279 --> 00:10:42.759 draws people to you. You may not be able to help 00:10:42.759 --> 00:10:45.120 them today, but they'll remember the fact that 00:10:45.120 --> 00:10:46.879 you didn't try to sell them something that they 00:10:46.879 --> 00:10:49.220 didn't need. And when they do have a need for 00:10:49.220 --> 00:10:52.159 your services. They are wide open to you because 00:10:52.159 --> 00:10:55.000 you live with integrity. And they trust you. 00:10:55.320 --> 00:10:57.919 And that's the biggest thing. Know you like you 00:10:57.919 --> 00:11:00.600 trust you, then they'll do business with you. 00:11:00.700 --> 00:11:03.860 So you've really gotten right to the point. All 00:11:03.860 --> 00:11:07.899 right. Everyone talks about building at scale. 00:11:08.399 --> 00:11:12.740 What does scale with integrity look like in networking? 00:11:15.440 --> 00:11:18.320 That's a good one. What does scale with integrity 00:11:18.320 --> 00:11:21.159 look like? I came up with a couple of good ones. 00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:24.639 Actually, I think it's what we just spoke of. 00:11:24.740 --> 00:11:30.899 I believe that it is utilizing your taking the 00:11:30.899 --> 00:11:34.440 integrity and the honesty that you have as a 00:11:34.440 --> 00:11:37.659 business owner and just as a human and putting 00:11:37.659 --> 00:11:40.919 that into your system, but using the system and 00:11:40.919 --> 00:11:43.139 making sure that you are doing the same thing 00:11:43.139 --> 00:11:47.200 every time. My networking. took off when I had 00:11:47.200 --> 00:11:51.000 the ability to no longer have to take a whole 00:11:51.000 --> 00:11:52.820 bunch of business cards and go home and try to 00:11:52.820 --> 00:11:54.960 enter it into my system and then put it on my 00:11:54.960 --> 00:11:57.559 call sheet for the next day and figure out what, 00:11:57.580 --> 00:12:00.659 hold on, what was it that guy said? Was that 00:12:00.659 --> 00:12:03.100 Tuesday he said to call or was it Wednesday? 00:12:04.200 --> 00:12:07.759 I've had 40 conversations over a few hours. It 00:12:07.759 --> 00:12:11.970 can get hard to keep them straight. Setting up 00:12:11.970 --> 00:12:14.370 a system. So in my business specifically, what 00:12:14.370 --> 00:12:18.070 I do is I have a form and a QR code. So it's 00:12:18.070 --> 00:12:20.169 a funnel of sorts. So the first page is a QR 00:12:20.169 --> 00:12:22.409 code. So when I meet someone, I say, hey, we'll 00:12:22.409 --> 00:12:25.009 scan this. When they scan it, it takes them to 00:12:25.009 --> 00:12:28.110 the next page, which is just a simple form. Name, 00:12:28.169 --> 00:12:31.169 phone number, email, and maybe the name of your 00:12:31.169 --> 00:12:34.590 business or your website. Once that happens, 00:12:34.870 --> 00:12:38.069 it immediately sends a text and an email. and 00:12:38.069 --> 00:12:42.350 then it puts it on my pipeline tomorrow to follow 00:12:42.350 --> 00:12:45.190 up. And then it also has an email and a text 00:12:45.190 --> 00:12:47.870 message set to trigger 9 a .m. in the morning. 00:12:48.490 --> 00:12:53.230 So it then frees me up to really engage with 00:12:53.230 --> 00:12:55.850 them, knowing that I don't have to try to, okay, 00:12:55.909 --> 00:12:57.710 what was the guy's name and all these different 00:12:57.710 --> 00:13:00.809 things. And then what I do at the end, at the 00:13:00.809 --> 00:13:02.330 end of the night, I usually try to go through 00:13:02.330 --> 00:13:05.080 and make some notes if I can remember them. And 00:13:05.080 --> 00:13:07.039 then that way I go to sleep, I wake up tomorrow, 00:13:07.240 --> 00:13:09.899 I forgot most of the conversations I've had, 00:13:10.000 --> 00:13:12.960 but maybe I have a couple quick notes that I 00:13:12.960 --> 00:13:15.940 can enter in reference. So I think that's it 00:13:15.940 --> 00:13:20.179 at scale. And then if you have a follow -up sequence 00:13:20.179 --> 00:13:23.039 that's already built, an email follow -up sequence 00:13:23.039 --> 00:13:26.059 that's not just that first email, maybe the conversation 00:13:26.059 --> 00:13:29.080 stalls or goes cold, maybe over the next few 00:13:29.080 --> 00:13:31.580 weeks, you send a few more emails that are value 00:13:31.580 --> 00:13:33.679 -based in order to rekindle that conversation. 00:13:35.259 --> 00:13:38.320 That's exactly right. If I could just add something 00:13:38.320 --> 00:13:41.559 to what you said. You said at the end of the 00:13:41.559 --> 00:13:43.120 night, you're going to write down all these notes. 00:13:43.379 --> 00:13:47.200 My suggestion is after you take their business 00:13:47.200 --> 00:13:50.960 card, write down the date, the name of the function, 00:13:51.039 --> 00:13:53.700 and something you spoke about. Write on that 00:13:53.700 --> 00:13:57.940 card right after your conversation. Because really, 00:13:58.159 --> 00:14:01.759 a three or four hour event, you shouldn't talk 00:14:01.759 --> 00:14:04.950 to more than... 15 or 20 people, because that 00:14:04.950 --> 00:14:07.950 meant that you have that relationship with those 00:14:07.950 --> 00:14:11.230 people. But if you write down those notes, as 00:14:11.230 --> 00:14:12.950 soon as you get back that evening or the next 00:14:12.950 --> 00:14:15.389 morning, you have it all right. Oh, that's right. 00:14:15.450 --> 00:14:17.649 That was that guy. Oh, that's right. Oh, that's 00:14:17.649 --> 00:14:19.210 right. He's the one with the big nose. Oh, yeah, 00:14:19.250 --> 00:14:21.190 I know. I got it. But it's something to make 00:14:21.190 --> 00:14:24.110 you remember. And then if you include something 00:14:24.110 --> 00:14:27.669 in your email about what you spoke about, he 00:14:27.669 --> 00:14:30.669 will remember you. He or she will remember you. 00:14:31.399 --> 00:14:33.759 And so it goes back and forth that way. So it's 00:14:33.759 --> 00:14:38.600 good. Okay. What are the signals that tell you 00:14:38.600 --> 00:14:41.039 a relationship is ready to move from connection 00:14:41.039 --> 00:14:46.480 to collaboration or from rapport to revenue? 00:14:49.620 --> 00:14:53.120 Signals from, okay. I would say that they are 00:14:53.120 --> 00:14:58.139 asking for the details once the you have explained 00:14:58.139 --> 00:15:01.450 what it is that you do. Maybe some of the features 00:15:01.450 --> 00:15:04.509 and benefits. Once they start inquiring about 00:15:04.509 --> 00:15:07.929 cost, more of the features and benefits, does 00:15:07.929 --> 00:15:10.610 it do this? Does it integrate with that? I've 00:15:10.610 --> 00:15:13.610 tried something like this in the past, and the 00:15:13.610 --> 00:15:17.590 issue that we had was XYZ. We're not getting 00:15:17.590 --> 00:15:20.710 into the weeds. of your actual offer, your product, 00:15:20.769 --> 00:15:23.330 your service, that's when it's time to turn up 00:15:23.330 --> 00:15:25.250 the heat a little bit and really get down to 00:15:25.250 --> 00:15:27.570 sitting at the table and figuring out if this 00:15:27.570 --> 00:15:29.730 will actually work for them. Your goal is not 00:15:29.730 --> 00:15:33.990 to push people into the sales environment. It's 00:15:33.990 --> 00:15:38.029 to gently guide and nudge. And once they start 00:15:38.029 --> 00:15:40.610 asking more questions and they start inquiring 00:15:40.610 --> 00:15:43.610 more, you've got them in a buy state of mind. 00:15:43.769 --> 00:15:45.769 If people are interested, they're going to make 00:15:45.769 --> 00:15:47.830 it clear. They're going to ask lots of questions, 00:15:48.049 --> 00:15:50.669 especially the more high ticket you're offered. 00:15:51.129 --> 00:15:52.929 And if they're not doing those things, you're 00:15:52.929 --> 00:15:54.629 talking to them, you're pitching, you're emailing, 00:15:54.629 --> 00:15:58.429 and the responses are dry. They're short. They're 00:15:58.429 --> 00:16:00.429 not asking any follow -up questions. That tells 00:16:00.429 --> 00:16:02.009 you that they're either not interested or you 00:16:02.009 --> 00:16:04.250 have not come to the point where you've explained 00:16:04.250 --> 00:16:08.330 the benefits to them adequately. Absolutely. 00:16:08.590 --> 00:16:11.889 Absolutely correct on both sides. So I can't 00:16:11.889 --> 00:16:14.289 even add anything to it because you were spot 00:16:14.289 --> 00:16:17.570 on. You said it exactly the way it is. Okay, 00:16:17.649 --> 00:16:24.710 so AI thrives on data, but people thrive on emotion. 00:16:25.289 --> 00:16:28.730 How do you bridge that gap when using data -driven 00:16:28.730 --> 00:16:34.970 tools to deepen relationships? How do you bridge 00:16:34.970 --> 00:16:39.039 that gap when you're using... AI is data and 00:16:39.039 --> 00:16:42.759 people look for emotions. So you're trying to 00:16:42.759 --> 00:16:47.000 bridge the gap between the data and the data 00:16:47.000 --> 00:16:51.340 -driven tools to deepen the relationships. How 00:16:51.340 --> 00:16:55.480 can you do that? Yeah, I was a salesman and a 00:16:55.480 --> 00:16:59.019 sales manager for many years. And that was the 00:16:59.019 --> 00:17:04.730 secret sauce, if you will, of the great. salespeople 00:17:04.730 --> 00:17:07.450 that I've met, their ability to get down to the 00:17:07.450 --> 00:17:10.849 emotional parts. And after you have so many conversations, 00:17:11.269 --> 00:17:15.009 you realize that you kind of have a script or 00:17:15.009 --> 00:17:17.049 you have a talk track, some points that you hit 00:17:17.049 --> 00:17:21.009 in your pitch. And typically people only have 00:17:21.009 --> 00:17:24.190 a few answers. They fall into a few categories. 00:17:24.710 --> 00:17:26.930 And when you start realizing those categories, 00:17:27.150 --> 00:17:30.509 then it makes it very easy for you to figure 00:17:30.509 --> 00:17:33.509 out what those responses to their response is 00:17:33.509 --> 00:17:35.950 going to be. What is your rebuttal? And what 00:17:35.950 --> 00:17:38.970 are those emotional triggers and pain points 00:17:38.970 --> 00:17:41.869 that fall in that particular part of the conversation? 00:17:43.569 --> 00:17:47.049 When you start to figure those things out, that's 00:17:47.049 --> 00:17:50.789 the data. Once you've had 10, 20, 30, 100, 200, 00:17:51.130 --> 00:17:54.230 1 ,000 conversations, you've collected an enormous 00:17:54.230 --> 00:17:56.990 amount of data about how this thing typically 00:17:56.990 --> 00:17:59.910 goes. And if you're paying attention, then it 00:17:59.910 --> 00:18:02.170 allows you to navigate the conversation. When 00:18:02.170 --> 00:18:05.930 you hear those key phrases or things come up, 00:18:06.029 --> 00:18:08.680 you know what they're really saying. what they 00:18:08.680 --> 00:18:11.599 may not be actually saying. You're able to read 00:18:11.599 --> 00:18:14.920 between the lines. That data allows you to personalize 00:18:14.920 --> 00:18:18.619 it. It allows you to strike a chord with them, 00:18:18.700 --> 00:18:20.960 get them into an emotional state. We all know 00:18:20.960 --> 00:18:23.299 that when people are buying, if they're in an 00:18:23.299 --> 00:18:25.059 emotional state, it's more likely that they will. 00:18:26.220 --> 00:18:30.039 When it comes to networking, I always tell everybody 00:18:30.039 --> 00:18:33.880 there are three words that will help them succeed 00:18:33.880 --> 00:18:38.289 in networking. Practice. Because the more you 00:18:38.289 --> 00:18:39.970 go out and practice, look, the first time you 00:18:39.970 --> 00:18:41.349 go out, you're going to suck. That's horrible. 00:18:41.490 --> 00:18:44.930 But move on. You're going to find out. But when 00:18:44.930 --> 00:18:47.490 you get your answers, as you said, when you're 00:18:47.490 --> 00:18:50.589 talking to them and they're giving you data back, 00:18:50.789 --> 00:18:54.569 and if it's not landing, you have to go back 00:18:54.569 --> 00:18:59.069 and say, okay, they said this. I said that. But 00:18:59.069 --> 00:19:02.750 that was probably wrong. You have to get the 00:19:02.750 --> 00:19:06.259 answers. to those questions so the next time 00:19:06.259 --> 00:19:09.059 when you go networking somebody will give you 00:19:09.059 --> 00:19:11.519 those same questions you'll have a better answer 00:19:11.519 --> 00:19:16.680 practice absolutely okay most opportunities are 00:19:16.680 --> 00:19:19.859 lost in the follow -up funny we're just talking 00:19:19.859 --> 00:19:23.940 about that how can ai help professionals stay 00:19:23.940 --> 00:19:27.839 consistent without coming across as pushy or 00:19:27.839 --> 00:19:32.299 keep it short Keep it short. One of the things 00:19:32.299 --> 00:19:35.240 that we've learned is most people, when they're, 00:19:35.240 --> 00:19:39.160 especially in text, in more informal modes of 00:19:39.160 --> 00:19:41.440 communication or social media, they're not really 00:19:41.440 --> 00:19:46.319 long winded. And AI is. It is lengthy. It decides 00:19:46.319 --> 00:19:49.619 it wants to give a whole diatribe on a simple 00:19:49.619 --> 00:19:53.839 hello. I would focus on trying to keep it short 00:19:53.839 --> 00:19:58.299 and simple and sweet. Try to boil down that. 00:19:58.859 --> 00:20:04.460 four sentence response to one to one and a half 00:20:04.460 --> 00:20:10.740 so that it seems more natural it seems more human 00:20:10.740 --> 00:20:19.660 and it's not overly verbose sure that that that's 00:20:19.660 --> 00:20:23.380 probably the best advice that i can even think 00:20:23.380 --> 00:20:27.039 of is because listen i tell my wife all the time 00:20:27.039 --> 00:20:30.799 why Do you explain things in three paragraphs 00:20:30.799 --> 00:20:33.339 when you can do it in two sentences? Right. But 00:20:33.339 --> 00:20:36.700 I don't say that too often because it's hard. 00:20:37.319 --> 00:20:41.039 Okay. But that is the way that I'm used to going. 00:20:41.160 --> 00:20:43.160 Let me give it to you in a few short sentences 00:20:43.160 --> 00:20:46.680 and just tell me what you think. So that's really 00:20:46.680 --> 00:20:50.539 what you're saying that AI is turning into for 00:20:50.539 --> 00:20:53.299 you to start your conversation. AI won't replace 00:20:53.299 --> 00:20:56.460 your conversation, but they can help you start 00:20:56.460 --> 00:21:01.880 it. Absolutely. Absolutely. So as AI begins to 00:21:01.880 --> 00:21:05.819 predict who we should connect with, what role 00:21:05.819 --> 00:21:10.660 will intuition play in future networking? I would 00:21:10.660 --> 00:21:13.680 say that the savvy entrepreneur is learning to 00:21:13.680 --> 00:21:18.420 niche down. And you can go into networking events 00:21:18.420 --> 00:21:22.519 just looking to connect with everyone, or you 00:21:22.519 --> 00:21:25.789 can have your antennas up. to find people that 00:21:25.789 --> 00:21:28.609 are in maybe a specific industry, specific vertical 00:21:28.609 --> 00:21:32.430 that you can help. If you can tailor your solutions 00:21:32.430 --> 00:21:39.150 to provide specific solutions or to solve specific 00:21:39.150 --> 00:21:41.549 problems for that industry or that vertical, 00:21:41.769 --> 00:21:45.569 now your intuition is that antenna. You're in 00:21:45.569 --> 00:21:47.390 the room and you're looking for this particular 00:21:47.390 --> 00:21:49.819 type of person. And not that you can't interact 00:21:49.819 --> 00:21:51.799 with other people, right? You want to add value 00:21:51.799 --> 00:21:54.319 to everyone. You can have just a good conversation 00:21:54.319 --> 00:21:59.440 and that's okay. But knowing who your archetype 00:21:59.440 --> 00:22:01.839 is, who your persona that you're looking for, 00:22:01.960 --> 00:22:04.619 the specific person that you can most likely 00:22:04.619 --> 00:22:07.039 help. And also on the flip side, those that you 00:22:07.039 --> 00:22:10.619 can't, right? Knowing that asking those strategic 00:22:10.619 --> 00:22:13.160 questions about where they are in their journey 00:22:13.160 --> 00:22:16.650 to say, hey, you may be a little too early. in 00:22:16.650 --> 00:22:18.470 your journey for you to be a good fit for me. 00:22:18.549 --> 00:22:20.529 But you know what? There's a smaller company 00:22:20.529 --> 00:22:22.410 that does something similar to us that only works 00:22:22.410 --> 00:22:24.569 with people that are where you are. And maybe 00:22:24.569 --> 00:22:28.650 I can connect you. I think that is going to be 00:22:28.650 --> 00:22:31.710 something that in networking is going to help 00:22:31.710 --> 00:22:34.329 you. It's going to help you filter the list of 00:22:34.329 --> 00:22:35.990 people that end up in your database in the first 00:22:35.990 --> 00:22:38.430 place, which then allows AI to give you better 00:22:38.430 --> 00:22:42.289 results. That's right. And I'm going to revert 00:22:42.289 --> 00:22:45.160 back to what I said before. Because the more 00:22:45.160 --> 00:22:48.140 you practice, the more you're going to see more. 00:22:48.279 --> 00:22:49.960 When you walk into a room, you're going to say, 00:22:50.059 --> 00:22:52.859 OK, that's the person that I want to talk to. 00:22:53.079 --> 00:22:55.759 That's not the person I want to talk to. And 00:22:55.759 --> 00:22:58.279 the only way you're going to get there is to 00:22:58.279 --> 00:23:01.200 practice, practice so you can get the answers 00:23:01.200 --> 00:23:05.799 you're looking for. OK, there's a fine line between 00:23:05.799 --> 00:23:08.900 automation that serves people and automation 00:23:08.900 --> 00:23:12.900 that manipulates them. How do you keep networking 00:23:12.900 --> 00:23:19.559 technology ethical and authentic? How do you 00:23:19.559 --> 00:23:26.339 keep tech from manipulating people? That's essentially 00:23:26.339 --> 00:23:30.039 what the question is. I think that it comes down 00:23:30.039 --> 00:23:34.789 to something we touched on earlier. One. It's 00:23:34.789 --> 00:23:36.549 okay to let people know that you're using some 00:23:36.549 --> 00:23:38.950 automation. It's becoming common practice. So 00:23:38.950 --> 00:23:41.109 don't lie about it. That's actually probably 00:23:41.109 --> 00:23:43.789 the best way to lose a connection with someone 00:23:43.789 --> 00:23:46.789 is to be dishonest. I would say that overall, 00:23:47.329 --> 00:23:49.289 I've seen a lot of that. And a lot of people 00:23:49.289 --> 00:23:51.349 that are using AI for the first time, especially 00:23:51.349 --> 00:23:55.769 when it's personal, they feel like it makes it 00:23:55.769 --> 00:23:59.829 awkward. So be honest about that. But I think 00:23:59.829 --> 00:24:03.349 that the... The way that you can keep it from 00:24:03.349 --> 00:24:06.650 manipulating people is giving it very tight parameters, 00:24:06.990 --> 00:24:11.829 telling it what is off limits. If you don't have 00:24:11.829 --> 00:24:14.950 a guarantee of certain things, or maybe you do 00:24:14.950 --> 00:24:17.170 have a guarantee, but they're looking for 10x 00:24:17.170 --> 00:24:20.789 what you know you can deliver, say that. Put 00:24:20.789 --> 00:24:24.670 that into the model. If you know that 2 out of 00:24:24.670 --> 00:24:27.670 10 times your product or service doesn't work 00:24:27.670 --> 00:24:30.849 for someone. Built that in. Hey, we've got an 00:24:30.849 --> 00:24:34.549 80 % effective efficacy rate. Just try. These 00:24:34.549 --> 00:24:37.190 are things that you know because you've been 00:24:37.190 --> 00:24:40.609 doing it for a long time. But when we're taking 00:24:40.609 --> 00:24:42.609 these systems and we're deploying them, many 00:24:42.609 --> 00:24:45.289 times we forget these little nuances, these little 00:24:45.289 --> 00:24:49.049 pieces that we've collected over time of doing 00:24:49.049 --> 00:24:52.430 this time and time again. So it's about taking 00:24:52.430 --> 00:24:54.859 all of that. infusing it, making sure you put 00:24:54.859 --> 00:24:57.559 some guardrails on, making sure that you are 00:24:57.559 --> 00:25:00.759 regularly analyzing its responses. Don't just 00:25:00.759 --> 00:25:02.700 set it and forget it because it can just have 00:25:02.700 --> 00:25:05.619 all kinds of wild conversations on your behalf. 00:25:05.920 --> 00:25:07.900 Check in on this thing regularly and make sure 00:25:07.900 --> 00:25:10.500 that it's still on track. It's not saying things 00:25:10.500 --> 00:25:14.240 that are not accurate. And it's not being dishonest. 00:25:14.240 --> 00:25:16.819 Again, just like a human, if the conversation 00:25:16.819 --> 00:25:19.319 goes a certain way and that's a place where you 00:25:19.319 --> 00:25:21.539 haven't set guardrails or it's a question that 00:25:21.539 --> 00:25:24.380 it's never been asked before, who knows what 00:25:24.380 --> 00:25:27.380 it could say? The more conversations it has, 00:25:27.500 --> 00:25:29.940 the better it's going to get. But if you're regularly 00:25:29.940 --> 00:25:32.579 checking on it and making adjustments, it's going 00:25:32.579 --> 00:25:35.859 to get better and better. Perfect. Perfect answer. 00:25:36.140 --> 00:25:39.279 Okay, so I'm going to bring this podcast full 00:25:39.279 --> 00:25:42.150 circle. And I'm going to ask you the last question. 00:25:42.849 --> 00:25:47.470 If we fast forward five years, what do you think 00:25:47.470 --> 00:25:52.150 a top performing networker will look like? Someone 00:25:52.150 --> 00:25:56.349 who truly masters both human connection and intelligent 00:25:56.349 --> 00:26:01.710 automation. Five years from now, what does a 00:26:01.710 --> 00:26:05.509 master networker look like? Yeah, I think that. 00:26:07.720 --> 00:26:10.440 That looks like someone where you can't tell 00:26:10.440 --> 00:26:14.859 where they begin and the AI ends. I think that 00:26:14.859 --> 00:26:17.660 it's a seamless transition and we're getting 00:26:17.660 --> 00:26:20.480 pretty close to that right now. On my social 00:26:20.480 --> 00:26:22.019 media, a lot of times people will reach out. 00:26:22.640 --> 00:26:26.099 Sometimes I respond because we've got time periods 00:26:26.099 --> 00:26:29.019 and or sometimes it'll say something and I'm 00:26:29.019 --> 00:26:30.779 like, oh, I got an answer for that and I'll cut 00:26:30.779 --> 00:26:33.660 it off. But they are none the wiser. And that's 00:26:33.660 --> 00:26:37.859 the goal. The goal is for it to. have the versatility 00:26:37.859 --> 00:26:43.339 to answer whatever you throw at it, but also 00:26:43.339 --> 00:26:48.460 allows you to bring your unique personality to 00:26:48.460 --> 00:26:51.759 it. And that's not going to be done in one day. 00:26:51.900 --> 00:26:56.460 It takes a long -term commitment to you training 00:26:56.460 --> 00:26:59.960 and educating and developing and tweaking and 00:26:59.960 --> 00:27:03.579 filtering with this technology so that it truly 00:27:03.579 --> 00:27:07.930 becomes an extension of you and your brand. Absolutely. 00:27:08.049 --> 00:27:12.049 I 100 % agree with you because we don't know 00:27:12.049 --> 00:27:14.450 where AI is going. Okay. We have a good idea. 00:27:14.690 --> 00:27:17.509 We don't know, but we know what networking can 00:27:17.509 --> 00:27:21.049 do for you and how you can do it. So as you said, 00:27:21.250 --> 00:27:24.670 when it becomes seamless, that I think is the 00:27:24.670 --> 00:27:28.150 perfect networker five years from now. So I'll 00:27:28.150 --> 00:27:32.069 tell you how I do in five years. Okay. All right. 00:27:32.150 --> 00:27:35.829 So, Arias, let me ask you a question. If somebody 00:27:35.829 --> 00:27:38.859 wants... to get with you. They want to talk to 00:27:38.859 --> 00:27:41.740 you about networking, about AI or both, or have 00:27:41.740 --> 00:27:44.539 you coach them or whatever the case may be. What's 00:27:44.539 --> 00:27:47.599 the best way that they can get hold of you? Sure. 00:27:47.839 --> 00:27:50.220 I'm not hard to find on the internet. If you 00:27:50.220 --> 00:27:54.200 look up Arias Webster Berry, A -R -I -A -S, last 00:27:54.200 --> 00:27:56.559 name is Webster like the dictionary, and then 00:27:56.559 --> 00:27:59.880 B -E -R -R -Y, all one word. My personal sites 00:27:59.880 --> 00:28:02.839 and social media comes up. But if you're specifically 00:28:02.839 --> 00:28:05.400 wanting to talk about how maybe you can use AI 00:28:05.400 --> 00:28:08.509 in your networking, how you can create some systems 00:28:08.509 --> 00:28:11.569 that help you do more faster, do so ethically. 00:28:11.690 --> 00:28:14.230 Then Ignite Funnels, one of my companies, is 00:28:14.230 --> 00:28:18.869 amazing. We are developing omni -channel AI agents, 00:28:18.930 --> 00:28:21.069 which means that they can have conversations 00:28:21.069 --> 00:28:25.130 across social media, email, text, WhatsApp, live 00:28:25.130 --> 00:28:28.130 chat on your website, and keep all of those conversations 00:28:28.130 --> 00:28:30.029 straight and know that they're coming from one 00:28:30.029 --> 00:28:33.019 person. If you're looking to maybe deploy one 00:28:33.019 --> 00:28:34.339 of these things and you don't want to break the 00:28:34.339 --> 00:28:38.099 bank in the process, ignitefunnels .com is your 00:28:38.099 --> 00:28:41.380 best bet. Go there, set up a demo. Me or someone 00:28:41.380 --> 00:28:42.960 on my team will be more than happy to speak with 00:28:42.960 --> 00:28:46.180 you and see if we can help. Perfect. Thank you, 00:28:46.180 --> 00:28:49.160 Arias. I can probably talk to you for another 00:28:49.160 --> 00:28:52.660 hour because you are so in tune with what you 00:28:52.660 --> 00:28:55.819 do and from the sounds of it, you do it very 00:28:55.819 --> 00:28:59.740 well. So I implore everybody who's listening 00:28:59.740 --> 00:29:02.799 to give him a call and just give him a shout 00:29:02.799 --> 00:29:06.000 and just say, hey, I'm trying to do this. How 00:29:06.000 --> 00:29:09.140 can I do it? So I want to thank you for coming 00:29:09.140 --> 00:29:13.140 on the podcast and we'll talk soon. Thank you 00:29:13.140 --> 00:29:18.839 for having me, Michael. Well, hold on, folks. 00:29:19.079 --> 00:29:22.059 Don't go anywhere. Let's hear from our sponsors. 00:29:22.519 --> 00:29:26.500 David Neal, co -founder Revved Up Kids. Revved 00:29:26.500 --> 00:29:29.460 Up Kids is on a mission to protect children and 00:29:29.460 --> 00:29:33.420 teens from sexual abuse, exploitation, and trafficking. 00:29:33.700 --> 00:29:36.880 They provide prevention training programs for 00:29:36.880 --> 00:29:40.440 children, teens, and adults. To learn more, go 00:29:40.440 --> 00:29:44.799 to revvedupkids .org. Henry Kaplan, Century 21. 00:29:45.309 --> 00:29:47.529 When it comes to making the biggest financial 00:29:47.529 --> 00:29:50.509 decision of your life, leave it in the hands 00:29:50.509 --> 00:29:53.829 of a proven professional, Henry Kaplan. Henry 00:29:53.829 --> 00:29:56.990 is a global real estate agent with Century 21, 00:29:57.190 --> 00:30:01.170 celebrating his 41st year in business. No matter 00:30:01.170 --> 00:30:03.869 where you're moving, Henry has the right connections 00:30:03.869 --> 00:30:10.869 for you. You can contact Henry at 561 -427 -4888. 00:30:12.210 --> 00:30:15.420 We're out, folks. A huge thank you to our guests 00:30:15.420 --> 00:30:18.740 for sharing such incredible insights today. And 00:30:18.740 --> 00:30:21.559 of course, a big shout out to you, our amazing 00:30:21.559 --> 00:30:24.579 listeners, for tuning in and spending your time 00:30:24.579 --> 00:30:27.660 with us. If you're interested in my digital courses, 00:30:27.940 --> 00:30:30.839 being coached, or having me come and talk to 00:30:30.839 --> 00:30:34.279 your company, just go to Michael and fill out 00:30:34.279 --> 00:30:37.799 the request form. Remember, networking isn't 00:30:37.799 --> 00:30:40.500 about being perfect. It's about being present. 00:30:40.960 --> 00:30:43.650 So take what you've learned today. get out there, 00:30:43.750 --> 00:30:46.789 and make some meaningful connections. If you've 00:30:46.789 --> 00:30:49.549 enjoyed this episode, please don't forget to 00:30:49.549 --> 00:30:52.730 subscribe, leave us a review, and share it with 00:30:52.730 --> 00:30:55.049 someone who could use a little networking inspiration. 00:30:55.869 --> 00:30:58.950 Let's keep the conversation going. You can find 00:30:58.950 --> 00:31:03.289 me on Apple, Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, or my 00:31:03.289 --> 00:31:07.170 website, foreman .com slash podcasts.