The Henley group of The Athena Network celebrated 5 years of brilliant networking this month.

Members – some who have been with the group for 3, 4 or even 5 years, and some who joined more recently – and visitors gathered at Badgemore Park Golf Club to celebrate this special event.

Everyone wore a splash of pink, and there was pink fizz and cakes to help the celebrations.  Networking was still the focus of the meeting, and there were lots of connections being made.

The group meets on the 4th Wednesday of each month.  For further details please contact Penny Stephens, Regional Director penny.stephens@theathenanetwork.com.au

The Athena Network North Oxford group celebrated its 2^nd birthday in the pink!  Members dressed with a touch of pink, and toasted each others’ success with pink fizz and pink birthday cake.   There were some novel and memorable Monthly Minutes, which included a singalong and several poems.

Members took the opportunity to donate bras to the Bra Bank  for recycling in aid of Against Breast Cancer, an Oxford-based charity.

This group of keen networkers meets at The Oxford Centre in Summertown and attracts businesswomen from a wide range of professions from Accountant to Change Agent to Pilates Coach and just about everything in between.

For more information contact Penny Stephens, Regional Director, on 07729 555474 penny.stephens@theathenanetwork.com.au

So, you have joined your local business networking group – THE most powerful, most effective and fastest way to grow your business!

You attend the meeting every month and deliver your ‘monthly minute’.

You visit Cappuccino Connections.and various other business networking events You have met many women in business.

Do people really understand what you do and more specifically, what you can do for them and their contacts?

Is your business networking message clear? Does it grab the attention? Does it elicit the response – ‘tell me more’?

One of the best books I have read on the networking message is ‘The Jelly Effect’ by Andy Bounds.

Andy’s mother was blind so he spent his formative years explaining everything he saw in intricate detail to her. He also developed the almost total blindness his mother suffered from and has had to rely on others taking the time to describe everything they see to him.

He has therefore learnt to communicate with much greater clarity than sighted people and has some excellent tips to share.

It is so easy to assume that people understand what we do and to give just minimal information on our business offerings.

Because we ‘assume’ they understand, they can feel uneasy about asking us more questions and go away with only a vague idea of what we can do for them and their contacts.

It is important to give them just a little relevant information which will then entice them to say ‘tell me more’.

Look on your opening statement as an appetiser, something to tickle the taste buds and a precursor to the main message.

I am seeing more and more evidence of this from ‘serious’ business networkers. e.g. A PR Consultant will no longer just say ‘I am a PR Consultant’ – they will say something like – ‘I help people to raise their profile and get themselves and their business noticed’ -it immediately makes you ask – ‘how do you do that?’ ‘Tell me more.’

So think carefully about what you offer and how you can dangle the carrot that will elicit the golden question – ‘tell me more’.

There are some fabulous communication experts within the Athena Network, business women who can really help you to get your networking message clear. Look out for them on Athena Connect or ask your Athena Regional Director to introduce you to the best communicators in her region I would urge you to do this at the start of your business networking journey so that you are as effective as possible from day one.

Too many people waste their first months of networking by not thinking through their core message and therefore not attracting the connections that will secure their future success.

We all have only one chance to make that vital first impression so do make sure you are remembered for all the right reasons!

In the Athena Network, we are committed to helping business women to be as successful as they can possibly be. All our Regional Directors provide a half day FREE business networking training for every member.

One of the key elements of the training is your ‘monthly minute’ (your elevator pitch or 60 seconds) – whatever you choose to call it. We know how important it is to get your message right from the very start of your networking journey and you will leave the training with a carefully planned, prepared and practiced ‘monthly minute’ which will get you noticed and remembered.

This training has proved invaluable to the business women in our network, many of whom have experienced a considerable return on their investment within the first few months of joining Athena.

Testimonial from an Athena member–

‘My first ever networking meeting was with Athena and as a result of that meeting I gained enough business from one client to pay for the membership and monthly lunches for the whole year. One and a half years on and I am still working for that same client and have a contract with him for at least the next 3 years.’ – undisputed proof that networking works! S.H.

Athena is launching a new “Cappuccino Connections” for Henley-on-Thames.

This informal networking event will be taking place monthly from Tuesday 7th June, on the 1st Tuesday of each month, 10am to midday.

Our new venue is Le Parisien Restaurant, 50 Bell Street, Henley-on-Thames, RG9 2BG.

Cappuccino Connections is free for Athena members (just buy your coffee). Visitors warmly welcomed: £5 plus coffee.

For further details please contact Penny Stephens on 07729 555474 penny.stephens@theathenanetwork.com.au

Reading Athena has more than quadrupled its membership in the last six months and is consequently launching a new Reading Central group.

On 9^th June, leading Happiness Expert, Alexandra Watson will be the guest speaker at the launch of the new group.  Alexandra has coached celebrities including Leona Lewis of X Factor fame, is a best-selling author and is on BBC radio regularly.

Her presentation ‘Time to Shine! – How to unblock your business success and skyrocket your professional performance’ will focus on performance related issues (ie. why we sometimes don’t perform!) and stress busting with the minimal amount of fuss.

Whether you are thinking of joining are already a member elsewhere, you are welcome to come along as a visitor.  Contact Juliette.smith@theathenanetwork.com.au.

42 business women attended the Athena Network Christmas Visitors’ Lunch and 22 of them, new to Athena, discovered that building a business can be enjoyable.

“It was a great meeting and really reflected what Athena is all about. Everyone kept commenting on the positive atmosphere in the room.  I made loads of really good contacts for my business” said Jill McLachlan, a Virtual Assistant and member of the Reading Town Centre Athena Group.  “The ‘word on the street’ was all about the amazing ‘energy’ in the room, the calibre of the ladies there and the sheer professionalism of how the day was run” said Sylvia Baldock, National Sales Director for Athena.

The Athena Network aims to inspire and support women to connect and to grow their businesses with trust and integrity.  Membership includes training in business development skills.

We want to give women the best possible chance to make their businesses grow” explains Juliette Smith, Regional Director for the Athena Network in Reading.  “Part of that is finding new customers but a supportive network is one of the key ingredients for success in today’s business world”.

There is a warm welcome for business women who would like to visit the Reading groups.  Members are actively being sought in a few key business areas including IT support and physical well-being such as chiropractic and massage.

To find out more please telephone Juliette Smith on 01628 509571 to book your place