“The Richest People in the World Build Networks…”
“The richest people in the world build networks. Everyone else is trained to look for work.” – Robert Kiyosaki
Have you ever met one of those business owners who just seems to “have a guy” for everything? Everybody knows them and they (somehow) know everyone.
This isn’t accidental. It’s a byproduct of something that they’ve done that many business owners (but especially introverted ones) neglect.
Building a network, not just a business.
If your goal is to scale your consulting firm into a high-revenue, low-friction empire, it won’t happen by shouting into the void of social media or relying on one-off sales tactics. The true accelerant to growth? A curated, intentional network built on investment, reciprocity, and delivering value (give before you take).
Zig Ziglar once quipped that you can “get pretty much anything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.” We’re paraphrasing, but the point is that if you don’t invest strategically in relationships, you are cutting off your ability to expand future revenue.
In business (and life), your network is your net worth. The people you surround yourself with determine the speed and scale at which you can grow.
Serve First -> Scale Later
Let’s talk about that Zig Ziglar quote again really quickly. It’s such a poignant reminder of the danger of “transaction-ality.”
There’s a temptation to make everything in your business about YOU. To approach every relationship from a standpoint of, “What am I getting out of this?” and not, “How can I create value for this person?”
Transactional thinking is the kryptonite of reciprocity.
Our CEO, Taylor Welch, shared in The Power of Networks podcast, that the best networkers in the world are almost never looking to extract value. They’re looking to create it.
Simply by having that approach, they indirectly end up creating mountains of opportunity to extract value. And it’s really no mystery as to how.
Good work produces good word-of-mouth, the strongest form of advertising on the planet. When you help other people achieve their goals, they naturally want to tell others how awesome you are.
It all comes down to investing FIRST, without the anticipated return in mind.
The author and business networker Ivan Misner had a good take on this: “Networking is more about farming than it is about hunting. It’s about cultivating relationships.”
Homework for this:
Grab a pen and paper, sit down alone, and set a timer for 10 minutes. No noise, no distractions. List at least 5 business relationships you have – could be clients, partners, contractors, employees, etc. Then ask yourself these two questions:
- Do I know this person’s goals? Short-term and long-term.
- What are a few practical things I can do in the next 60-90 days to help them move closer to achieving those goals?
The “Dream List” Strategy
If you’re an introvert (or just not a fan of small talk), the idea of building a network can feel overwhelming. But here’s the secret: you don’t need a massive network… you just need the right people in it.
Chet Holmes, author of the Ultimate Sales Machine, is credited with coming up with the idea of the “Dream 100.” Russell Brunson, the founder of ClickFunnels, later popularized the idea in his “Secrets” series of books. Essentially, it’s a countermeasure to broad, sweeping marketing strategies that instead focuses on locking into a smaller and much more select group of prospects that you’ve deemed would be IDEAL to work with. Then pouring all of your focus into building relationships with them instead.
This applies to business relationships and networking as well. The crazy part is, it doesn’t need to be 100 people. Even curating a list of just 15-20 people you admire and would love to work with is enough. Then, invest time in being intentional about communicating with them and looking for ways to create value.
This isn’t about spamming people with messages or forcing relationships. It’s about periodically checking in—sending a thoughtful note, making an introduction, or sharing something valuable. Over time, these small gestures compound into strong relationships.
It doesn’t have to be packed with A-list entrepreneurs… it should include people who align with your mission and values. The goal is quality, not quantity.
Pro Tip: If you want a step-by-step roadmap for structuring your consulting business to attract high-value clients (without endlessly chasing them), check out The Consulting Blueprint.
Magnetic Community Building
As an expert business owner who serves clients, you actually have access to one of the best network building tools in the world – your client community.
We often extol the value of group coaching programs (don’t believe us – check this out) as a way to build substantial wealth without demolishing your bandwidth. But one of the other massive bits of leverage that you gain from group coaching is access to something we call the “mindhive” – the collective genius of a room FULL of high-powered entrepreneurs who are equipped to tackle a way larger swathe of problems than you ever could on your own.
Which leads to the NATURAL expansion of your personal/business network… AND the expansion of the networks of each of your clients.
Getting in the right rooms is easily the most powerful way to grow your network at lightning speed. Brushing shoulders with people who are either working towards similar goals, or have already achieved those goals, will skyrocket you into another stratosphere.
As the owner, your goal isn’t just to land high-ticket clients—it’s to create an environment that naturally attracts and retains them. If you want to learn how to build a client ecosystem that does the networking for you, grab Automated Client Culture.
A well-built consulting business should be self-propelling. As you deliver value to your clients by helping them build achieve success, they (in turn) deliver value back into the community…
And everyone wins.
A Potent Asset
If you take one thing away from this, let it be this: Your connections will always be a better asset than your marketing.
The consultants who dominate in the modern era are the ones who understand that relationships scale faster than ads. They invest in people, over-deliver on value, and create communities that compound their reach. They get in the right rooms… or they CREATE them.
If you think our room is a room you might want to be in, and you want to access the collective genius of our community to grow your business faster, talk to our team.
Because at the end of the day? The richest people build networks. Everyone else is just looking for work.
