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Welcome back to Build Your Network with Travis Chappell. In this episode, Travis interviews Dr. Ivan Misner, the founder and Chief Visionary Officer of BNI, the world’s largest business networking organization, which now has over 8000 chapters throughout every populated continent of the world. In 2015 BNI members generated more than $11.1billion in closed business. He is a New York Times best-selling author, a columnist for Entrepreneur.com and has taught business management at several universities throughout the United States. He’s been featured in The LA Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times as well as numerous TV and radio shows including MSNBC, CNN, BBC and the Today Show on NBC. Called the father of modern networking by CNN and one of the top networking experts to watch by Forbes, Dr. Misner is considered to be one of the world’s leading experts on business networking and has been a keynote speaker for many major associations throughout the world. Dr. Misner is also on the Board of Trustees for The University of Lavern, he is the co-founder of the BNI Charitable Foundation and was recently named Humanitarian of the Year by the Red Cross and awarded the John C Maxwell Leadership Award. He and his wife Elizabeth are now empty nesters, with 3 grown children. In this episode he shares his wisdom and some very valuable lessons on networking and success.

This is what Travis and Ivan discuss in this episode:

• Why Ivan started BNI, and what life looked like prior to that
• What BNI is and how a chapter works
• The many books Ivan has written and his top 3 suggestions
• Why Ivan believes that how well you know each other is more important than what or who you know
• How Ivan has experienced what he calls “The Butterfly Effect of Networking” that led to being invited to Necker Island with Richard Branson
• The human instincts when making decisions, and why you need to do things differently
• The way many people are using networking ineffectively, based on a misconception that it is face-to-face cold calling
• Why networking is more about farming than it is about hunting
• The VCP Process—Visibility, Credibility and Profitability—that good networkers use to be extremely successful
• The secret to success in networking according to the father of networking
• How to introduce yourself effectively
• The Eyebrow Response Test to help you evaluate your Unique Selling Proposition and make it most effective
• Why Ivan is a huge fan of life-long learning
• How Ivan developed a networking situation where extroverts can do well but that is also very inviting to introverts
• The reason Richard Branson is the best networker Ivan knows
• What to do if you ever have a Butterfly Effect of Networking moment

Links and recommended resources:

• Masters of Success, by various authors including Ivan Misner Jack Canfield, Brian Tracy, Erin Brockovich and Buzz Aldrin
• Networking Like a Pro, and 29% Solution by Ivan Misner
• Chicken Soup for the Soul, and The Success Principles by Jack Canfield

Where to find Ivan Misner:

The best place to find Ivan is on his website: www.IvanMisner.com