I ni che

In 1991 I spent 4 weeks with my brother and his wife, a pair of Peace Corps Volunteers, in Mali in West Africa. The local language is Bambara and the greeting is "I ni che". What's cool about this is that the direct translation is, "You and yourself" -- the equivalent of, "I see you." In other parts of the world not too distant from Africa, the greeting is "Namaste." Translation: "The light in me sees the light in you." 

I see you is at the very foundation of community.

I remember a passage from the book Out of Africa by Isak Dinesen where it is told that when the 19th century British colonists incarcerated East African Swahili in prison for breaking the law, the prisoner would die because they perceived time differently and did not know that the period of captivity would end.

When the members of a tribe are codependent on one another for survival, punishment become banishment, ignoring the perpetrator's existence. On the opposite end of the spectrum is the greeting -- I see you.

Why is this important?

Long before MySpace, Classmates.com and Facebook, long before post-industrial suburbia, we lived in tribes and community was distilled into a single phrase -- I see you.

The benefits of seeing others is that the reciprocation and being seen in return. Being seen leads others to offer you help, to send you a new client, to introduce you to a potential new partner, to share with you a new resource or idea. 

Independent business is not static. Innovation will help you stay current, new opportunities will help you grow your business. Your business peers are often the ones who introduce you to innovation and new opportunities. The peers who trust you are in the best position to send you new referrals.

90% of success is showing up

Woody Allen is given credit for the famous adage: "90% of success is showing up." On the flip side of I see you is showing up. Inside your business tribe, how do you show up, and how active are you in seeing others?

In Biznik-land, as well as other online communities, showing up means logging in and participating in online conversations. (Like the conversation that follows this article!) It means viewing the profiles of other members who catch your interest, reviewing any needs they post, and reaching out in assistance. It means introducing others, and asking how you can help. 

Communities that bridge online and off-line have events. Showing up, means picking a couple events to attend each month, then honoring your RSVP. (Being one of the "no shows" who failed to cancel their RSVP is the antithesis of showing up.)  

When an event includes an online listing with a social network (i.e. Meetup, Eventbrite and Biznik), showing up means doing some homework before the event. Find out who's going to be there and introduce yourself ahead of time. (Dropping a quick, "I'm looking forward to meeting you at tomorrow's event," can provide powerful incentive for others to avoid being a "no show" too!) 

What happens after an event is even more powerful than what happens in person. Think of the equivalent in your personal life, such as the house party where you met a romantic partner or spouse. The event may have ended with an exchange of phone numbers and a promise to call. But if the relationship turned into more than a one-night stand, what happened after the event, is where the real stuff occurred.

Real business follows happenstance meetings at networking events, but only during follow up. It's a bit of a no-brainer. Follow up results in referrals, new opportunities, and collaboration with new partners.

It's not just you in the tribe

In Mali, the greeting often expanded beyond "I ni che." The simple I see you was often followed by a period of inquisition about the well-being of each others' closest relatives. Search for a Bambara phrasebook and you'll find a long list greetings for each each member of the family.

This was a constant source of amusement for us. You might be on your way to the outhouse but if you pass an elder, it could take you 5 minutes to get through the greetings! That inconvenience is necessary to the survival of the community. It's important for the well-being of all the members, that they stay abreast of how the others in the community are fairing. 

We do this inside our social spheres all the time. I have three friends from college that I see more often the gaggle I pledged a sorority with 20+ years ago. One is now my optometrist. During last month's eye exam we spent 30 minutes swapping stories about those we both know. How fun to hear of Carrie's new baby and Noel's new job, that Elizabeth is happy in Portland but that Tracy had returned to DC. (Hey! I know someone in DC who might want to work with Tracy. That's called networking.)

How often do you participate in this activity inside your business communities? My guess is that it's not often enough. But here's what may come of it if you do it more... 

You may learn that Dan has moved on to filmmaking and is available for extraordinary commercial pieces; that Elisa just finished a 6-month contract with a local startup and is looking for a new gig; that Melody published her book and is getting the word out.

When you actively participate in a community -- meaning, when you show up -- your name comes up in conversation too. If your friends know what kinds of clients you're looking for, they can pass that on in conversation. But others won't talk about you and spread the word about what you need, if you don't show up. This is the fundamental difference between social networking and social media marketing. 

Social media marketing vs. social networking

Forget your customers for a minute. (You can do it for a minute.) Forget that some of the others in your tribe might be in a position to hire you. Look beyond yourself and take ahold of the power of the tribe.

Social media tools like Facebook, Twitter and blogs are powerful marketing engines enabling you to engage in conversation with your customers. With the exception of the social media "mavens," and those with "klout", the majority of the population underutilizes the power of social media tools for peer-to-peer networking. 

If marketing is about fishing where the fish are, then business networking is about finding like-minded fishermen and sharing your tools.

Of all the criticism I hear about Biznik, the one that pains me the most is: "My customers aren't on Biznik." Your customers aren't supposed to be on Biznik! If they are, you're an exception -- and you have a higher responsibility to behave with integrity and not peddle your wares on your peers because you can.

As a peer-to-peer business networking community, it's inappropriate to treat each other like customers. 

If your business is B2B, meaning your customers are independent business owners or entrepreneurs, you may think you hit the jackpot when you found Biznik -- 100,000 potential customers at your fingertips. For the bargain price of $10/month, you can invite them all to your network and spam them with notifications of your upcoming workshops and promotions that you designed just for them. 

Dan and I are partly to blame. The events calendar is open to anyone who can lead a workshop on a business-related topic. And the articles forum is open to authors who can write on a business-related topic. In both arenas we've stressed the 95/5 Principle -- that 95% of the contribution be helpful and relevant to growing an independent business; that self-promotion be limited to 5%. It's beautiful how many hosts and authors get this.

Unfortunately that small part of the site leaves those without expertise related to business feeling like there's no place for them here. They're missing the point. The purpose of the events and the articles is to for the consumers of that content -- the members of the community -- to meet one another at an in-person event or in an online discussion. Cultivating event hosts and authors from inside the community helps preserve the integrity of the community. 

If you're an independent business person, I hope you a part of a business tribe. And I hope you're participating, showing up and seeing others. If you're questioning how much you're getting from the tribe, then I challenge you to take a closer look at your level of participation. 90% of success is showing up. Start with finding a peer, taking a closer look at them and their needs, then saying, "I see you."