ST. PETERSBURG — Before the morning sun has risen in its place, a group of business owners are already in motion meeting people whom they had not known to share ideas that had not been heard, to make life better for people they have not met.
The group is called Circle of Success, and they share the concept that it’s more profitable to focus on giving than receiving. Givers indeed gain much more.
“I think we have all picked the right time to be in the Circle of Success,” said Tom Berry, a financial planner and president of the group. “There are a lot of things to be excited about in our chapter. The tone of our last leadership meeting was to heat things up in the chapter, laser focus on getting more referrals, intentional one to ones. It’s an exciting time for us.”
With over 180,000 members worldwide, BNI (Business Network International) is the largest business networking organization in the world. Last year alone, they generated 6.6 million referrals resulting in $8.6 billion dollars’ worth of business for its members. We offer members the opportunity to share ideas, contacts and most importantly, business referrals.
The philosophy of BNI is built upon the idea of “giver’s gain.” By giving business to others, you will get business in return. This is predicated on the age-old idea of, “What goes around comes around.”
The mission is to help members increase their business through a structured, positive, and professional word-of-mouth program that enables them to develop long-term, meaningful relationships with quality business professionals.
“It’s powerful when people are dedicated in a network to help one another, and that’s what happens in Circle of Success,” stated Roy James, Jr., an insurance broker and one of the core starters of the group. “We welcome business associates with a heart to do good and committed to be successful.”
Dr. Ivan Misner is the founder and chief visionary officer of BNI, which is the world’s largest business networking organ. Founded in 1985, they now have over 7,000 chapters throughout every populated continent of the world.
Misner’s is a New York Times bestselling author who has written 20 books including his latest release “Who’s In Your Room?”
He is a columnist for Entrepreneur.com and Fox Business News. He is the senior partner for the Referral Institute, a referral training company with trainers around the world.
Called the “Father of Modern Networking” by CNN and one of the “Top Networking Experts to Watch” by Forbes, Misner is considered one of the world’s leading experts on business networking. He has been featured in the L.A. Times, Wall Street Journal and New York Times, as well as numerous TV and radio shows including CNN, CNBC, the BBC and The Today Show on NBC.
The Circle of Success network started with a core group of Berry, James and Attorney Cathy Blackburn. From the humble beginnings, the network has grown to 31 members in less than a year.
Every Tuesday morning this faithful “Circle of Success” is in motion sharing a concept that it’s more profitable to focus on giving than receiving. It’s the BNI way. Givers indeed gain much more.
