BNI Membership Extravaganza

In earlier posts I had written about my membership with Business Network International AKA BNI. Our Money Makers chapter which is very active in Los Angeles meets every Thursday morning at about 7:45 am in Rancho Park's Golf Restaurant. This is a referral organization and a new way of marketing. 

Last Thursday, we had a bigger event called BNI Membership Extravaganza. Many members had invited guests to see if they would like to join BNI.  Our chapter along with another chapter was the host so we had to be in the meeting by 6:10 am. Yes, 6:10 am to be ready for the guests who would show up at 7:00 am. Sys Bronner and Dave Rittenhouse did the rehearsal to make sure that all the committee members knew their roles. There was plenty of coffee to make sure that those who were not morning persons could stay awake. There was also plenty of food for every taste.

The meeting went very well and it was a good opportunity for all the members and guests to network and find new friends and prospects. We finished almost by 9:00 am. I like that our BNI meetings do not interfere with my working hours which is 10:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
www.RugIdea.com
Tel. 310-770-9085

BNI Money Makers Chapter in Los Angeles

I had a very busy day yesterday. It started at 7:30 am by our wonderful BNI Money Makers chapter meeting. The session officially started at 8:15 after we had the open networking part. As usual we had two 6-minute speeches delivered by two of our good members, both doctors. Each member had a 45-second introductory opportunity to introduce themselves. In the beginning I thought 45 seconds was too short. Now that I have practiced, I believe it is enough. I never go over my time and our time keeper which happens to be very strict, does not have to remind me that my time is up.

Each member also has 45 seconds of testimonial, shout out or report on her/his meetings with other members which takes place through out the week. It can be with other chapter members. If members get to know each other better, they can send more referrals and this means more business for all of us. That is why we try to have more one-to-one meetings every week.

This week, Dave Rittenhouse, our Assistant Director was our guest and presented our chapter with a BNI Founders Award 2010. This certificate is awarded to the chapters which have outstanding performances. Our Money Makers chapter is one of these chapters. We will continue to thrive. I just renewed my membership last week. It has been paying off for me. My older son Ashkan who has his own company which does Search Engine Optimization and web design is our chapter's vice president. I have not seen any other family members in the same chapter as BNI members. I guess Ashkan and I are very unique in this regard!

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.RugIdea.com
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
310-770-9085

BNI Money Makers Chapter in Los Angeles and the New Leadership Team

In another post, I mentioned that we would have a new leadership team in our BNI Money Makers chapter here in Los Angeles. The previous team did an outstanding job. The new team, began it's term last Monday, 10/04/2010.

The new president is Al Knobloch, vice president is Ashkan Sobhe, and Joan Merritt is the secretary and the treasurer. We meet every Thursday morning from 8:00 to 9:30. Our chapter has 35 professional members. We can only have one member from each profession to prevent conflict of interests. I am the only rug specialist in BNI.

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.RugIdea.com
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
310-770-9085

Last Dance! BNI Money Makers Chapter Los Angeles

Last Thursday, as usual we had our weekly BNI meeting. It was the last week of the leadership team. They managed the chapter for one year. They all did a great job in attracting new members and surpassing the monthly referral goals which was set for the chapter before each month began. Teresa Agnew, was the president, Dr. Pey Vuong was the vice president, and Jean Libonate was the secretary and the treasurer.

Here I am posting few pictures of the last meeting. Click on each picture to enlarge. Thank you Teresa, Dr. Pey, and Jean. Wonderful job.

Dr. Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.RugIdea.com
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com
310-770-9085

BNI Regional Meeting and Dr. Ivan Misner

On Thursday September 20, 2010, we had a BNI Regional meeting. Roughly 170 members were present. Dr. Ivan Misner the founder and managing director of BNI, the biggest networking organization delivered an excellent speech. Many of his books including Networking Like A Pro was also on display. At the end of the meeting, there were many members standing in the line to buy Dr. Misner's book, to get his autograph on the book and to take pictures with him. I had the pleasure of having my camera with me to take and capture of these pictures.

I am posting some pictures of the event.

Khosrow Sobhe (Dr. Kay)
Certified Rug Specialist (CRS)
www.RugIdea.com
www.LosAngelesRugCleaning.com

310-770-9085