“You don’t have to like networking to be good at it ”
So says Charlie Lawson, the Unnatural Networker and my guest this week on the Legal Imposters Podcast.
Charlie is the ex-BNI boss and unnatural networking expert with 2 books to his name on doing the things many of us find hard: networking and promoting yourself.
In this episode Charlie takes the fear out of networking by explaining what networking really is (having a conversation, building relationships) and how to network when you’re shy, an introvert or you just don’t like networking (an unnatural networker).
You won’t be surprised to learn I met Charlie while networking on LinkedIn. He is a brilliant example of the power of building relationships and the infinite potential of networking to catapult your career or business.
Tune in to find out:
1. Why I felt compelled to interview him on the podcast
2. What an unnatural networker is (and how many of you are out there)
3. Why you don’t have to like networking to make it work for you
4. The right mindset for successful networking
5. A better conversation starter than “what do you do”?
6. Why networking is not about who’s in the room.
Mentioned in this episode:
Books:
The Unnatural Networker by Charlie Lawson
The Unnatural Promoter by Charlie Lawson
The Networking Test – click here to visit
About Charlie Lawson Charlie Lawson is a very Unnatural Networker.
Most experts talk about networking as though it is easy to talk to strangers. Charlie helps other Unnatural Networkers gain confidence by putting networking across from the point of view of someone who’d rather avoid it completely. His first book, The Unnatural Networker, was released in 2014, and has helped countless business owners learn how to network effectively. His second book, The Unnatural Promoter, was released in 2021, and focuses on helping people that don’t like to blow their own trumpet to be brilliant at self-promotion.
Charlie is a renowned and highly regarded keynote speaker, and gained his expertise from 13 years as UK national director of BNI, the international business networking organisation. In his spare time, he’ll mostly be found swimming / biking / running in triathlons, while keeping his fingers crossed that Spurs finish above Arsenal in the league.
