No, I won’t link you

Edgar, I just saw your picture with the Vice President can u link me?

Edgar, I need a discount at the Marriot, is it possible you talk to the man for me?

Edgar, Chike Ogeah is your man and he is close to Ituah Ighodalo can you help me talk to him, I need something

Edgar Asue Ighodalo is your man and he is chairman of sterling Bank, I want to supply them Xmas hamper, help your sister.

Edgar, I have issues at Alausa and I know you have access with the last two Governors. Help.

NO, No, No, No.

What we must all realize is that networking is a deliberate and strategic thing. It’s not something you do on a whim and that the main stress there is maintaining it not getting it.

Edgar, with this level you have now, let’s approach the VP, money must come?

How I ask. Just take me there. Take you there?

Highly successful people relate to different rules. They are driven and project-specific. The only currency they understand is value. Value. Value.

If there is no intrinsic value both material and otherwise, u lose that access at that point.

You know you have lost that access when your calls don’t get picked or you get a flat ‘hello’ at functions.

I have the network. It’s nascent and it’s growing. I am 4 people away from anybody in this country from the President to the lowly pimp in Shomolu.

But I will never forget that there are boundaries u never cross. U never send the signal that you do not Value the access.

My brother, Gbenga Ismail needed access to Anchor Insurance and he calls he tells me what he wants and I see the value for Anchor.

The MD of Anchor is mad. He has driven that firm from almost nothing to about N10b in premiums this year alone and I know he is hungry.

So I call him, Austin I want to come to see you. He says come. I don’t tell him I am bringing Gbenga cos I don’t want him to push me.

But I am very sure of Gbenga’s depth. I know he can sell and that there is value for Anchor

We walk in, Austin hugs me and I say this is Gbenga and in 5 minutes Gbenga kills it. And they ignore me and start friend-zoning themselves.

Imagine if Gbenga went there and was asking for a contract to supply the hamper what will happen to my next call.

So when u say call Chike Ogeah for me or call Dr. Afolabi, ‘I am getting married and I need discounts at the Marriott, what do you think I will tell you.

So Herbert Wigwe I can say has some kind of relationship with me. He picks my calls once in 6 months and reads all my chats but never replies.

I know he is in my space. He is what I call a sleeper contact and they are plenty. Aig Imhokuede, Ebenezer MD Zenith, Femi Otedola, Tope Fasoranti ED Zenith, Akin Akinfeniwa of Geregu, Akintoye of Platform Capital to mention a few.

A sleeper contact is a high-profile, highly successful, and highly targeted contact so my rules with them are simple.

NEVER disturb them. Dimension approach and remove them from the general broadcast list. Never ask for favors, never call arbitrarily.

They are not your friends, they are just amused by you and will keep reading you and will throw up support in their time and on their terms.

So when they finally say, ‘Edgar come, like Herbert did some time ago and I go and snap picture and broadcast. Someone will now come and say- Edgar, I won’t meet Herbert my COT on my savings account is too much.

So my people building your own network is very simple. Be clear as to what you have come to this world to be, be very sure of your mission, situate value, and push strategically and methodologically.

Seek acceptance with value. Do not be philanthropic- by this I mean,’ Edgar my friend had a problem and he wants to meet Fowler and I told him you are my guy and u can do it.

No, I won’t. Why go and look for work for me. I don’t even know your friend and his background so why risk my access when I’m not sure he can deliver along the stated lines.

But say’ ‘ Edgar I have a friend with a strong product that will drop 500,000 more subscribers to Interswitch. I saw you with Femi Tejuoso and I know he is very close to them, can I come to you so we listen to my friend so you can see.

I won’t risk my access just cos you are my friend. Access, network is the new oil and nobody plays with their oil blocs.

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Duke of Shomolu