[OSL]

When you guys go to a new country and don't know anyone, how do you build yourself a social circle?

In the context of careers or business, how do you build a professional circle?

Has this been an issue for anyone here?

[Mr.GM]

Great thread , I was thinking about opening a thread to ask that. I have this "dream" to live in NYC or Miami at some point in my life , and one of the question that I have is exactly how do you start from scratch , without connections in a city like NYC?

Anyway , besides linkedin and going to job fairs and job interviews , I don1t have any other idea.

[Deb Auchery]

You can try Internations, they cover major cities in most worldwide countries.

[thegmanifesto]

(02-29-2012 08:24 AM)youngmobileglobal Wrote:  

In the context of careers or business, how do you build a professional circle?

Depends heavily on the type of "business" you are in.

For instance, someone who wants to open a salon is going to be different than a drug dealer and different from a hedge fund guy.

But generally speaking:

1. Meet a well connected Biz Lawyer. Many of my friends are. They know what is shaking.

2. Young professional groups. Sure there are going to be a lot of lightweights, but it will get you in the right direction.

3. Museum/Art Socials. A higher quality of cat. Or girl.

4. The Racetrack. The Turf Club fool. Not gen pop.

5. High-End Restaurants/Hotel Lobby Bars. Gold mines. Have to put the work in though.

6. Country club/Yacht Club. Not my type of drug, but logic dictates they would be good.

7. The University Club. Or private biz club. Go on a day its open for new members. You can easily meet #1 there.

8. Political Fundraisers. Local or Statewide. Heavies at these. Usually a small donation is all it takes.

9. Restaurants Old School. The Judges and old school real estate developers hang at these. Find out which one. It will usually be the place that has been open for at least 50 years and they serve old school dishes like meatloaf.

10. Charity Fund Raisers. We have talked about that a lot on here.

Just an "off the top of the dome piece", Data Sheet for your brain.

Side note:

I have done every single one of these personally, so I am not just speculating.

[Hotwheels]

Thanks for the list G. I'm kinda kicking around getting into the export biz so getting foreign contacts is going to be important if I am going to swoop the local economy.

And from what I have seen you won't get your contacts for this online. Have to be on the ground and grease some palms.

[OSL]

Great feedback, guys.

G, my approach is very similar to that - as well as the internations suggestion listed earlier.

Let's expand on the topic in terms of process - let's say you are at an embassy, chamber of commerce, alumni, internations function, etc -

1. How do you engage these people?

2. Do you get their info "just to hang out?" Or do you come up with a specific event and reason why you will meet these contacts again in the near future?

3. Upon following up with these individuals in the second meetup, do you have an agenda or plan? Or is it "just coffee?"

Obviously, the answers will all depend on the individual, the context, and very often yourself and your personal preferences. When I meet someone I think is high-value and cool, depending on how much I trust them, I'll invite them to come to a semi-private or fully private event that will be occurring in the next week or so.

I'd love to hear feedback about what you guys do to follow up with and nurture these new contacts in your destinations abroad.

I think it would benefit all of us to formulate a high-impact, highly effective social networking strategy so that we can all "plant flags" in new countries and cities. Ideally, in every city you travel to, you'll have a strong network of business contacts, socialites, women, party boys, and "activity partners" - in my case, muay thai practitioners.

I have a lot of "party friends" in a lot of cities who are more like drinking acquiantances than anything else. I also have business contacts who I've serendipitously met or been introduced to.

However, I'm formulating a more formal blueprint for breaking into networks - similar to that "network infiltration" blueprint that Simon Black made, albeit without the need to throw 5 grand at a local lawyer, and perhaps a bit more focused on making great friends and not only business contacts. The two, after all, are not necessarily mutually exclusive.

Anybody got any ideas, strategies, or stories of their own about how they set roots in a new destination abroad?

[Aliblahba]

@YMG- My success in networking has been simply beating the streets and talking to people. The better you dress, and carry yourself, the more receptive people will be. I travel in my line of work, and hit the airport bars HARD, to the point of scheduling long layovers. Carry your credentials on 1GHz thumb drives. People lose business cards, but they won't lose a piece of hardware.

Do your research before landing. Know the culture, history, and current events of where you are. This impresses those that may offer you into their social circle, or employment.

Of course, if your background and credentials are solid, they will speak for themselves.

I'll be in Dubai in a few days, doing exactly what this thread is about. I'll give play by play reports on my experience. If you guys have any experimental ideas, let me know, and I'll give them a go.

Already, tonight, I have a meeting with a British colleague that is getting ready to drop some serious intel on employment. He's already networked into another job field, and is passing it onto me.

[Vacancier Permanent]

YMG,
I would suggest that you have a valid reason to see/meet these high profile guys. Do your research on them in advance, come up with a relevant topic of interest to both and schedule a meeting to talk about that. Or even better, show them your value in the short meeting you have with them and let them know you would be happy to discuss this more (how to help them) in whatever they're doing. Give first and you shall receive after. What you need is an opening to get some one on one time with these people. These are very busy people and only hang out with their clique. If a new guy that they know nothing about comes and asks them that they want to hang out with them, they'd just laugh at him, maybe not directly but indirectly. So you get the idea.

AliB, looking forward to reading your play by play report from your networking in Dubai.

[Ami5]

What are the usual topics that might be of major interest with such people in the situation?

Just like as in picking up girls (talking shit like about travel, exotic appeal, bringing conversation into more sexual topics +kino etc), what could be the general process for conversing with these guys?

[OSL]

There are a lot of highly powerful and single guys in their late thirties to late forties in Asia who are full blown expats and still party their asses off. Their colleagues and coworkers are either married or not really into that scene, so when they can hook up with guys in their mid twenties to mid thirties who are in the party scene and can keep their insanity discreet, they become great friends. I've randomly bumped into guys like this (McKinsey directors, editors of well-known travel mags, CTOs of large electronics companies) and we've become token party buddies.

You'd be surprised at how lonely a lot of these guys are.

[hunter7]

edit

[pitt]

As G manifesto said, ''depends heavily on what type of business you are in''

Myself for example, i have no interest in meeting most of directors of big companies because i dont see them as real business people, i like to associate with real business people.

My areas of business are typical everyday business, so i try to learn from the people that run these type of businesses. I try to be inquisitive as much as i can and most of these business owners love to share ideas with young ambitious entrepreneurs. (Note that these everyday business people are not the best people to learn from as most of them may make big profits but they dont multiply their businesses, they stay stacked to one single business for years and many dont even think about automating their business, they really have jobs, no businesses, not all are like that of course, i have met super business people that run several small businesses)

Be indirect as you make your approach, fuck, i think i have been approaching more business people lately than women (well, its rare to see hot women where im at anyway).

So my approach is indirect and i always try to come up with a compliment as i introduce myself (i wouldnt call that faking, its just a way for you to make a strong introduction). Yesterday for example i was walking past this shop that sells italian clothes, the clothes in this shop go fast and the owner has top taste in buying clothes. I never knew who was the owner so yesterday i walked inside his shop and made a compliment in spanish (i knew he had spanish background), about how i admire his selling skills and that he has been doing a great job, he thanked me and we started talking, he was telling me where he buys his clothes from, that he makes good profit, advised me about good locations to run this type of business, etc

I also tend to target medium to lower people within a company. As an example, there are various private rentacar companies where i live that will rent your car if you bring it to them but most of the time you need a connection inside for them to rent your car, so if you befriend one of these rentacar drivers, they can help you signing a contract with their company (you pay him a commission after you close the deal).

Resuming: I stay inquisitive, i approach indirectly and preferably with a compliment if there is a reason for it, i will throw an idea of what business i am doing or what i am planning to do if i find it necessary, i listen more, i talk less, always act as if you are the learner and he is the teacher.

I personally wouldnt like to have a bunch of professional people as contacts if they have no use in my life, fuck knowing the national director of macdonalds if he aint going to bring any value to my life (this example may not make sense but i think you get the point).

[Thomas the Rhymer]

(02-29-2012 08:24 AM)youngmobileglobal Wrote:  

When you guys go to a new country and don't know anyone, how do you build yourself a social circle?

In the context of careers or business, how do you build a professional circle?

Has this been an issue for anyone here?

Something happened to me today that made me think of this thread.

A friend of mine dared me to take the MENSA test with him, so I tagged along.

Unexpectedly, both of us got some networking in. The overall test consisted of 2 separate tests with breaks after each part, where we could mingle. We met a civil engineer, some It guys, an electronic engineer student, a communications consultant, an aviation engineer, a lawyer and an entrepreneur.

If you get into the MENSA, you then have access to its worldwide network. As long as you pay up your measly membership dues you have this access of generally successful people to network with at regular meetings. MENSA also has an international hospitality program, basically you can notify them ahead of time and they make arrangements to introduce to the kind of people you want to meet, provided they are within MENSA too.

I managed to pass the test, and I will suss out the networking opportunities available over the course of the near-future.

You don't necessarily need to be intelligent. Every intelligence test can be hacked. The pattern recognition test was used today and if you passed that then you're allowed in (you only have to pass one of the tests, at least to join the branch I wrote at). You can easily fake a high score on the pattern recognition test by studying the underlying principles of the test and by practicing.

Here's a good breakdown of the pattern recognition test (the explanation will make more sense as you practice the test):
http://www.jperla.com/blog/post/how-to-ace-an-iq-test

Here's an example test to practice with:
http://www.iqtest.dk/main.swf

The pattern recognition stuff is a lot like math, you may be naturally good at it or you may need someone to explain it to you and with a lot of practice only then do you get it. Do the same with the pattern recognition test, then you can join MENSA and network. The quality of people may vary greatly from city to city though. I guess some countries may also prefer not to use the pattern recognition tests.

[Deb Auchery]

Damn I only got 109 with the practice one. Luckily I'm handsome and have a big one

[AlphaTravel]

100 on the pattern recognition one for me.

[Ami5]

119 on Practice Test

May take again!

[NuMbEr7]

edit

[Thomas the Rhymer]

Inspired by Fred Demara, I've been researching using religion as a networking tool.

My preliminary report/data sheet for hacking religion for networking purposes:

http://thomastherhymer.weebly.com/1/post...works.html

I also think meetup.com is a useful tool for networking, and it hasn't been mentioned yet in this thread.

[Thomas the Rhymer]

Business Networking International may be useful for some people...

Basically, you are only allowed to join a local BNI group if your business is unlike anyone's in that group. I haven't tried it myself, but this barrier to entry probably improves the quality of the networking.

The website:
http://www.bni.com/

[Belize King]

For Americans it's pretty easy for networkin abroad. While in BKK I just talked to expats and got a bunch of leads on jobs and a few on business opportunties. As long as you are open, friendly, and willing to listen, networking is as easy as starting a convo and probe. This forum is great for networking also.

[AmoAsBundas]

Thank you G for the list. Gave me several ideas and a plan on how to run entourage game. Let's see how this works out.

Thank you again!

[Courage Reborn]

Great thread.

G, quality post, as usual.

Understand that in this context your value comes from making connections for other people. I'll chime in on my own personal strategy;

Every new person I meet who isn't a girl I'm trying to fuck goes into 1 of 2 categories; potential friend, or business contact.

I then ask 2 critical questions; "what kind of people are you looking to meet?". And "maybe I know someone like that. Do you want to exchange contact info?". We exchange business cards.

From there, I enter what it is they do (script writer, hairdresser, private equity guy) along with their contact information to a CRM database. (If that sounds like overkill, excel works too). I send a generic follow up email. I only invite out people with friend potential.

To date, I have a database or hundreds of contacts who I can match up personally via email introduction. Script writers with producers. Hairdressers with MUA's. Private equity guys with business owners.

Through making connections for other people, you become a trusted business contact. And they owe you now. You can cash in on this goodwill with free haircuts, movie premiers, free golfing. The big payoff of course, is them personally referring a key client/customer for your own business.

It takes a long time to build up a big reference network, but through helping others, you will help yourself and your own business faster than going it alone.

[xmlenigma]

Which CRM are you using? And would love to hear more details on this subject.

I do connect people to people all the time. It comes very naturally to me. I just have not made it so methodical and tactical. Which in some way I think is good.

(09-19-2013 04:28 PM)Courage Reborn Wrote:  

Great thread.

G, quality post, as usual.

Understand that in this context your value comes from making connections for other people. I'll chime in on my own personal strategy;

Every new person I meet who isn't a girl I'm trying to fuck goes into 1 of 2 categories; potential friend, or business contact.

I then ask 2 critical questions; "what kind of people are you looking to meet?". And "maybe I know someone like that. Do you want to exchange contact info?". We exchange business cards.

From there, I enter what it is they do (script writer, hairdresser, private equity guy) along with their contact information to a CRM database. (If that sounds like overkill, excel works too). I send a generic follow up email. I only invite out people with friend potential.

To date, I have a database or hundreds of contacts who I can match up personally via email introduction. Script writers with producers. Hairdressers with MUA's. Private equity guys with business owners.

Through making connections for other people, you become a trusted business contact. And they owe you now. You can cash in on this goodwill with free haircuts, movie premiers, free golfing. The big payoff of course, is them personally referring a key client/customer for your own business.

It takes a long time to build up a big reference network, but through helping others, you will help yourself and your own business faster than going it alone.

[OSL]

(09-19-2013 04:28 PM)Courage Reborn Wrote:  

Great thread.

G, quality post, as usual.

Understand that in this context your value comes from making connections for other people. I'll chime in on my own personal strategy;

Every new person I meet who isn't a girl I'm trying to fuck goes into 1 of 2 categories; potential friend, or business contact.

I then ask 2 critical questions; "what kind of people are you looking to meet?". And "maybe I know someone like that. Do you want to exchange contact info?". We exchange business cards.

From there, I enter what it is they do (script writer, hairdresser, private equity guy) along with their contact information to a CRM database. (If that sounds like overkill, excel works too). I send a generic follow up email. I only invite out people with friend potential.

To date, I have a database or hundreds of contacts who I can match up personally via email introduction. Script writers with producers. Hairdressers with MUA's. Private equity guys with business owners.

Through making connections for other people, you become a trusted business contact. And they owe you now. You can cash in on this goodwill with free haircuts, movie premiers, free golfing. The big payoff of course, is them personally referring a key client/customer for your own business.

It takes a long time to build up a big reference network, but through helping others, you will help yourself and your own business faster than going it alone.

Why do you need a CRM to keep track of your contacts?

I feel like Linkedin is more than enough and also gives you the benefit of gaining a lot of secondary information about the person's contacts.

[bojangles]

My current favourite method is going to the best bar in that city which is occupied by the countries social elite. Getting friendly with the bar manager (not just a bartender), becoming friends with him and then he spends the next week introducing you to every high flyer who comes to order a drink.

I first tested this in Croatia, Matt came over to Zagreb for a few days and we've become friends with one of Croatia's most influential men. We obviously offered value to this guy and to the bar manager, we didn't go in there dressed like backpackers, we left an impression, so much so that I was told I can have the pick of one of 50 yachts in the Adriatic next year. It helps though that we visit Croatia a lot and we know a hell of a lot of girls too.