How to develop your business through referrals, Niki Cutts' take

Niki Cutts attends the “Negotium” business breakfast group in Prague, meeting at 7am every Tuesday. The aim is to mutually help each other to develop our businesses by sharing our business contacts.

It is surprising that I manage to drag myself out of my warm bed so early, particularly as Prague is starting to transform back into a dark ice box. However, in the night, our kids sleepwalk to our bed, and our dogs sneak on when we are asleep. Our bed becomes packed with bodies, waking me up prematurely.

Does the Negotium method work? Well it does, on both a professional and personal level. I have developed many business alliances and my network has rapidly diversified, from a lady boxing trainer, to a lawyer, to a Russian owning a telecoms company. Even if I can’t help someone looking for a specific business contact, someone else I know probably can. They also know people interested in my services, or need such services themselves.

And why not develop a new set of friends? When you are working and have kids, there is precious little time to socialise. Meeting a set of people once per week gives you the time to meet like-minded people whose company you can enjoy. And let’s face it, a new set of people in your life is like a breath of fresh air.

Niki Cutts is an entrepreneur based in the Czech capital Prague.