18 hours ago
- copy link
N. Raghuraman, Management Guru
Can you get the attention of highly intelligent people in top positions with just one word? You would think that this usually happens in films, because their dialogues are written like this. But I had a similar experience with two gentlemen last week.
In a sense they were very powerful people. But after I spoke one word he started liking me and kept talking to me for more than an hour. In the end all three of us shared mobile numbers with each other, whereas they usually do not do this with a common man like me and I also do not like to share my number with anyone.
Earlier this month, I was traveling from Delhi to Bhopal. I was sitting in the window seat of the first row in the plane and was busy on my laptop. Five minutes later, a man wearing a three-piece suit came and left the middle seat and sat on the third seat.
When he was about to sit, he greeted me with a smile and I also responded with a smile. Two minutes later another gentleman came. He also wore very nice clothes. He came in and after greeting both of us, sat on the middle seat.
The man sitting in the middle started a conversation with the gentleman wearing a three-piece and they switched from English to Bengali. Both of them were from Eastern India and coincidentally were going to the same All India Conference held in Bhopal. While he was talking, about nine people greeted him as he entered the plane and he greeted them in return.
As soon as I finished my work, the person sitting in the middle said to the other person, “Let’s ask him, he seems to be a very educated person,” and he asked me, “Can you tell me what we should do?” A lot of knowledge can be found in the place?’ I said, “The cemetery.” Both were a little surprised and before they could ask me why I thought that, they decided to introduce themselves.
The person sitting in the middle said, “I am Justice Kaushik Chanda, from Kolkata High Court.” Then the person sitting next to him said, “I am Justice Biswajit Palike, Tripura High Court.” And then both of them said, “Why did you say that?”
I was slowly becoming defensive. I didn’t want to get into arguments with the judges. So I said “After the cemetery, this plane should be the place where we can get a lot of knowledge, because I think all nine people who shook hands with you will also be judges.’ He laughed out loud and appreciated my clever answer, which established a rapport with me.
Then I explained to him that most intelligent people never write books and that they take all their intelligence with them to the graveyard, which is why I said that. This started a conversation between us and Justice Chanda asked me which judge was I really impressed with?
It didn’t take me more than a second. I said Benjamin Nathan Cardozo—an American lawyer and jurist—who served on the New York Court of Appeals from 1914 to 1932 and as an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1932 until his death in 1938.
When he asked why Cardozo I said “Because he was the one who openly said “Bring me a good man, and I will make him a good judge.’ Eventually we parted ways, exchanging numbers and addresses.
The bottom line is that Don’t just sit in front of your screen, read good books, go out and show your best self – looks, behavior and intelligence – this will ultimately attract good people, including strangers, to you. This is the secret of networking. After all, your network is your net worth.