“If not me, then who? If not now, when?”
—Hillel the Elder, Ancient Babylonian leader
Habit #8: Become a Hub for Other Influencers
A more advanced form of connecting the connectors involves bringing together and serving the greater community of influencers in your field. High influencers serve their community of influence by becoming a hub for other influencers. Bringing the community together will help you build that golden Rolodex of influencers and the massive following that comes from others seeing you as someone who is of high service to the influential. You become someone who others pursue because they see you as a leader in their industry - the quintessential mover and shaker.
Large campaigns, teleseminar series and multi-speaker events, all become easily possible— either as a host or a guest—when you become the hub. As the hub, attention and focus start to move toward you.
You can do this on a small scale or a big scale; it’s up to you. Remember, you are just trying on coats. This is the one of the best coats you can choose. Even if the concepts and exercises in this section feel like they might not be a fit for you, try them out at least on paper and in conversation. You can make the decision not to follow through later, but do the initial parts of these exercises because they will help you understand where big influence comes from and how to move into the Influence Game on a larger scale.
Even if the concepts and exercises in this section feel like they might not be a fit for you, try them out at least on paper and in conversation. You can make the decision not to follow through later, but do the initial parts of these exercises because they will help you understand where big influence comes from.
Become Influential By Gathering Influencers
The person who brings other influencers together gains a level of credibility equal to or even above those they gather. It’s easy to confuse expertise with influence, but they are distinct. In other words, your expertise might not be equal with some of those you gather, but your level of influence will be.
Oprah Winfrey was on the air for 25 years with the most popular talk show in history and is arguably the most influential woman in the world. Oprah became influential by gathering influencers together in various conversations—health, spirituality and personal empowerment. She herself started to be seen as influential in the conversations of health, spirituality and empowerment, even though many of her guests were more educated in those fields. Because she’s a hub, because her reach is much bigger, she’s far more influential, even though her expertise may not be as great.
Unspoken Rule #13
The person who brings other influencers together gains a level of influence equal to or above those they gather.
How To Become A Hub
When working to become a hub of influencers, be careful not to work with experts who are so insecure about their own credentials that they will damage your credibility. Work with influencers who will help you, not stand on your shoulders and push you down.
Never let someone you’re helping hurt your credibility by talking down to you or acting like you are not his or her equal. Everyone has different strengths. Having greater expertise in one area doesn’t mean you don’t have greater influence in that conversation. You’re doing them a favor by helping them and giving them influence. They should not do you a disservice by talking down to you or dismissing you in any way, especially if they’re on your stage, engaging in one of your teleseminar series or participating in any public event.
Consider who you want to play with and become discerning. People who don’t understand the concept of creating powerful cycles of reciprocity, of respecting and preserving each other’s credibility and reputation are going to harm you in the long run. You also don’t want to be recommending them to other influential people since they’ll harm your colleagues’ credibility as well.
Be careful not to give away your personal power because you think you’re not smart enough, big enough or important enough to connect other influencers. People just starting out in a specific industry or conversation can become highly influential very rapidly because they have the courage to connect the big influencers.
You don’t have to be the smartest person in your industry to be of service and create influence. It simply takes guts and an understanding of the rules. You become a leader within your industry by coming from a place of service and generosity. Be of high service to the influencers around you and you’ll find that influence flows to you rapidly.
Consider that everyone else may be suffering from the same self-doubts as you.
I spoke about starting the Evolutionary Business Council for years before I had the guts to take the leap. Who could ever be big enough, smart enough, influential enough to create a community of thought-leaders and emerging thought leaders? Finally some of my closest colleagues did an intervention on me. They simply asked, “So when are you going to do that, Teresa?”
I immediately knew that the answer was “now.”
Not surprisingly, those same colleagues became the first Board of Directors for the organization.
There are probably dozens of people wishing there was a great connection of the experts and influencers in that field, but none of them feels quite big enough to be the one who connects them all together. Try it and watch what happens. You’ll be amazed how rapidly your own influence grows.
Designing a Hub of Connectors
What would it look like if you were to become a hub of connectors in your industry or area of expertise? We’ll work through your design in Exercise 16.
Answer the following:
1. WHAT: First of all, decide if it is going to be a formal or an informal community. Choose what you’re most comfortable with; you can always change your mind later.
Secondly, what type of community do you want to create? Your community can range from a mastermind to a large network of other influencers.
Generally a mastermind is six people who routinely meet in person or by phone. The concept was first written about by Napoleon Hill. Each person is given a specified period to talk about their needs and what they’re trying to generate. The other five people on the mastermind do everything they can to assist that person in those needs. The most common structure is six people, who meet on the phone once a month for an hour and each person is the focus of conversation for eight to ten minutes.
Masterminds are a powerful business tool. If you’re the creator of the mastermind, you inadvertently gain a level of leadership and respect and become an integral component.
A second form of influential hub would be to create a learning community, where you bring many people from your area of expertise together to collaborate and learn from one another, tackling questions such as what works in your niche market, what doesn’t and how to market or grow your businesses.
A learning community can be run live, such as conferences, meet-up groups and training events, or online, such as hosting webinars and teleseminars that you would share with each other, creating an environment where you could all learn together.
A network is another form of hub. Networks work well for people who want to do referral marketing; they’re looking for one-on-one clients or people with whom to consult. Networking groups are where people go to make connections in business, but it’s not necessarily connection with other influencers, so it’s a specific type of community.
A council is the final option. It’s a many-person group with a specific objective. Generally a council is about solving a specific problem for people or intensely looking at a specific topic area.
2. WHY: The next factor you have to determine is why you exist:
For example, if you were focused on cancer and cancer research, the problem that you solve for the public at large might be better information or better information dissemination on cancer prevention and cure. You might also focus on after-care or family support.
3. THE OUTCOME: What is the outcome that you create as a group? It might be a world without cancer or a world where cancer sufferers have better access to the resources and support they need. It might be a different approach to operating in business or sustainability in a certain industry. Choose the outcome that your group is creating so that everyone has a clear picture what they’re signing onto when they join.
4. LOGISTICS: Finally, decide the logistics:
Be creative and think of as many ideas as you can. If you can’t specifically choose between two options, then pick both for now. Move forward in the conversation that you’re debating between A or B and flush out both. The process of beginning both will show you which one feels like a better fit for you.
Exercise 16: Design a Conceptual Hub of Influencers for What You Do
What would it look like if you were to become a hub of connectors in your industry or area of expertise?
Answer the what:
• Formal • Learning Community • Mastermind
• Informal • Network • Council
Why:
What is the problem that you stand for the solution of?
_________________________________________________
Where:
• Live Location • Online Location
When:
• One-time event • Weekly • Monthly • Annual
Who:
• Leadership • Marketing Partner • Speakers or experts
• Membership • Other