Beach Business Networking

The currency of real networking is not greed but generosity. - Keith Ferrazzi There is a new business networking group that meets every Tuesday morning at 8:15am at the Blue Water Bistro in Gorgona. The initiative is the work of Cynthia Lehman, a US expat now living in Panama and doing real estate tours here at the Beaches. Networking comes naturally to Cynthia, who is full of business ideas and loves meeting new people. She founded a chapter of Business Networking International in the United States and ran it for over two years before moving to Panama. In her 15 years of being a licensed realtor in the United States, Cynthia has been a member of many networking groups. “Networking works!” says Cynthia. "It is my favorite thing to do - connecting people, not only in business but life". Here at the Beaches, Cynthia’s networking group is called the Beach Business Network. “The group brings like-minded folks together for education opportunities, to collaborate and increase profits. Networking is about building relationships - people do business with those they like, know and trust.  Meeting each week gives us the opportunity to know each other better and feel comfortable referring business."

The Beach Business Network started this year and has been growing steadily. Right now the group is casual and free to attend, while Cynthia focuses on developing the group’s membership. Things may change down the road depending on member needs and future requirements.  “Everyone is welcome” says Cynthia. "Networking is global.  Your business does not have to be based at the beach area to attend".

The meetings have a casual structure and are run in English. “At the moment we don’t have any guidelines”, says Cynthia, “But we do have an agenda to keep meetings on track and give each person the opportunity to introduce themselves, their business requests and referrals to others.” The meetings generally have a speaker. Members from the community are invited to share information about their initiatives. 

As for the attendees, Cynthia asks that people who attend the meeting to come with the mindset of "what can I give - not what can I get. We want people to come to the meetings with a positive attitude, bring guests and leave energized”. 

If you attend, be prepared to speak about who you are and what your business does in a succinct one minute delivery. If you don’t get it right the first time, you will have plenty of time to work on your elevator pitch, as each meeting gives written instructions about how to make the best use of your one minute introduction.

If you are a new business in the community or an old one looking for new ideas, block off 8:15 am next Tuesday in your calendar and join the morning group in Gorgona.