Last month we introduced Ola, one of our members here at BNI Capital. We shared some of her thoughts and success stories from the last 18 months that she has been with us.

This week we would like to introduce another member of the BNI Capital family. Robin has been with the Chapter for over 8 years now, making him one of our longest standing members. Robin holds the litigation seat at Magrath LLP Solicitors (http://www.magrath.co.uk/) and through Capital BNI promotes many of the various services his firm offers.

First Success

When we asked Robin to describe his first success with BNI Capital, he did admit that he received a rather amazing lead surprisingly early on.

“It was within 3 weeks of joining BNI Capital that I got my first referral – a loan dispute case worth £90k which I won for the client. Speaking to other BNI members, I realised I had been very lucky getting this kind of quality lead almost immediately.“

Usually it takes longer for members to develop relationships with other members, which normally involves undertaking a number of one-to-ones and building a level of trust within the group. However, Robin’s success shows that it is sometimes just a case of being in the right place at the right time – in this case at the BNI Capital Chapter.

Why did you join?

“I originally joined BNI to learn vital networking skills, and now I believe I can consider myself a very competent networker. Anyone who joins BNI Capital will leave each week’s meetings a better networking professional. If I’m being honest, the additional business I have picked up has been a bonus.”

At BNI Capital, all members are encouraged and expected to build up their networking and presentation skills. Whatever industry sector you represent and whatever your job role at BNI, all come as equals. You are expected to develop your skills through 10-minute presentations, one-to-one sessions and through conversations both in and out of the meeting.

This focus on personal development helps to increase your confidence in a supportive environment, making you a better networker and help you to gain more referrals whether through BNI or externally.

How do you make BNI work for you?

“The more that I network BNI members in with other members of my firm, the more I can increase the power of the collective whole. For example David Little who sits on our employment law seat has been meeting some of the other BNI members. We have a freelance HR lady, who has met members of the group and Adele Martins has had a number of discussions about restrictive covenants.

“In fact, Adele has also been the recipient of my latest referral. An events company was passed onto us after raising concerns over their freelancer relationships. It looks as though Adele will be helping the company by protecting their client relationships after putting the appropriate restrictions in place.”

If you would like to harness the power of the BNI Capital networking group why not come along to our next meeting this coming Wednesday? You can register quickly and easily here.

You can also now join our social networks on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn for more information and updates on BNI Capital Chapter.