10/14/2026
Referrals For Breakfast - Meeting Recap
Prince George Chapter
Helping local businesses grow through trusted referrals.
We had a smaller group around the table today, with more than 80% of those attending representing various trades and the remainder working in home services. That made for some interesting conversations, particularly around the challenges and opportunities facing local contractors and service providers.
Being Present Makes a Difference
We started by revisiting some of the six reasons I brought forward in this morning's meeting reminder email for attending our weekly meetings. One point worth emphasizing is that showing up and being fully engaged aren't necessarily the same thing.
We all have our off days, but when we make an effort to listen, ask questions, and take an interest in what others are doing, we often walk away with something useful.
Sometimes it's not even something that comes up directly during the meeting. You might hear another business owner describe a challenge they're facing, and later that day find yourself thinking about how that same situation applies to your own business. Before you know it, you've come up with a solution that could benefit one of your customers.
That's part of the value of getting different business owners around the same table to share their experiences.
Integrity, Reputation and Knowing Your Limits
Our conversations also touched on the local real estate and rental markets, along with the importance of maintaining professional integrity, particularly among Red Seal tradespeople.
We discussed something that applies to just about every business: knowing what you do well, staying focused on it and recognizing when a job is better suited to someone else.
Sometimes the best decision is to pass on a project or introduce the customer to someone else who can handle it. We shouldn't view that as losing business. We should view it as looking out for the customers' needs, protecting our own reputation, and hopefully building relationships with other professionals.
Nine Plus Months of Connections
One of the more encouraging parts of this morning's conversation was hearing several examples of introductions made through Referrals For Breakfast that have become important to members' businesses this year.
Not every introduction turns into an immediate sale. Some develop into working relationships, ongoing business opportunities or connections that prove valuable months later.
The relationships we build today can become the opportunities we benefit from tomorrow. Networking ---> is a Team Effort
We also talked about something simple that everyone can do to help the group grow.
I handed out some rack cards that describe the focus of our group. These are handy to keep your vehicles. When you meet someone who might benefit from getting to know other local business owners, hand them one and invite them to breakfast.
Nobody is expected to bring a guest every week. But if each of us keeps an eye open for good people who would fit in with the group, we're all helping to create more opportunities for one another.
After all, the more good people we get to know, the more people we can confidently recommend to our customers and connections.
Networking works best when everyone contributes, everyone participates and everyone has an opportunity to benefit.
Thanks to everyone who joined us this morning and contributed to the conversations.
We'll see you next Tuesday, October 20, from 7:00 to 8:00 AM at White Spot, 820 Victoria Street, Prince George.
Guests are always welcome. Your first two visits are complimentary; you simply pay for your breakfast.
Who Do You Know?
Here's a few business categories to think of when inviting guests: Lawyer | Notary | Mortgage Broker | Financial Advisor | Commercial Cleaning Company | IT / Computer Services | Real Estate | Marketing | Social Media Professional | Sign Company | Print Shop | Auto Repair | Tire Change Service | Gutters Service and Installation | Garage Doors Installer | Automotive Services | Human Resources | Recruitment Professional | Sales Professionals... and did I mention Sales Professionals??
Interested in presenting? We would benefit from learning more from what our members are doing? Care to have a 10-minute focus session on what you do? Reach out by replying to this email. What do you have in mind?
See you next Tuesday morning.
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Referrals For Breakfast
Prince George Chapter
[email protected]
