Episode Overview

Podcast: BNI & The Power of One
Episode: 872 - "Do Not Skip Your Networking Time!"
Host: Tim Roberts
Date: December 16, 2025

This episode is Tim Roberts’ annual encouragement to BNI members not to neglect their networking responsibilities—especially during the busy holiday season. Tim argues that the year-end period, with its unique gatherings and social events, provides some of the best opportunities for generating referrals. He urges listeners to avoid convenient excuses for skipping meetings and to recognize the collective power and accountability inherent in BNI’s structure.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Temptation to Skip Networking During the Holidays

• Many people consider skipping BNI meetings in December due to busy schedules, vacations, school breaks, and a general slowdown in business.
• Tim empathizes but challenges this instinct:

  “It’s a busy time. Maybe business slows down for some people so they tend to slow down their other activities. All completely understandable, I get it. But I always make the annual push to really do your best to try and meet.” [01:09]

2. Why Year-End is Unique for Referrals

• This time of the year provides a predictable environment—members know where their colleagues and contacts will be (family gatherings, company parties, etc.).
• This fuels very targeted training:

  “It is the most opportunistic time of the year for your fellow members to find you referrals and vice versa... We know what the environment's going to be where we can specifically train them on how to look, listen and see referral opportunities.” [02:12]

3. Team Accountability & Attendance Matters

• BNI’s structure means attendance isn’t just personal; your absence potentially lowers opportunities for others:

  “They're reliant on, hey, I need you in the room to hear my weekly presentation... If you're not in the room, you don't just hurt your own results, you hurt potentially everybody else's results.” [04:48]

• If a large portion of a chapter considers skipping, it penalizes those who are available:

  “I remember chapters coming: ‘Oh, 30% of our chapter aren’t even going to be there, so we're taking it off.’ Why? You're going to let the other 70% not get that opportunity? No—meet, meet.” [06:53]

4. Policies for Planned Absences

• If you know you’ll be gone, use a substitute or your allotted absences. The policy exists for these situations and should not be hoarded:

  “You don't need to bank them... You should have the room to do it.” [08:43]

5. Challenging Excuses

• Tim calls out common but weak excuses for skipping, even on Zoom:

  “…members who said they couldn’t make a Zoom meeting because their kids were home from school... leaving out the part their kids are sophomores and juniors in high school and the meeting’s at 8am.” [09:09]

• His challenge:

  “I challenge you to push through that this time of year because it’s not any other normal BNI meeting.” [10:07]

6. Adjust, Don’t Abandon, When Schedules Conflict

• Some meetings genuinely can’t happen on holidays (e.g., Christmas morning), but chapters should reschedule, and members can arrange one-to-ones instead.

  “If your chapter’s not [meeting], pick up a one-to-one this week, pick up another one. Do, to really be thinking about what opportunity sits in front of you that's unlike the rest of the year.” [11:15]

7. Seize the Momentum for the New Year

• Tim notes that this extra holiday investment can set the stage for an outstanding start to the new year:

  “Wouldn’t it be amazing to go in the first week of January with referrals from your efforts during this time, ready to go, ready to be ahead of your game on your New Year’s goals and everything else?” [12:19]

8. Why This Message Matters (and No, It’s Not Self-Serving)

• Tim addresses cynicism about his motives:

  “We don’t get paid or make money as a BNI organization per meeting... Financially, the incentive is I know the opportunity that’s in front of you and if you capture, you’re going to get more referrals, you’re going to make more money, you’re going to want to stay even longer, that’s the goal.” [13:00]

9. The Holiday Period is a MONTH of Opportunity

• It's not just about one meeting:

  “It’s not just a one week thing... it’s multiple holidays, it's multiple weeks of opportunities, right? It's almost the entire month of December…” [15:15]

10. Final Challenge: Be Different

• Tim’s motivational close urges listeners to stand out:

  “Be different. Don’t be like everybody else who’s going, ‘I’m not going to go to my network, I’m not going to do this.’ Be different. When you’re different in your efforts, you’ll get different results. And that’s the key.” [17:30]

• He ends with a guarantee:

  “I can’t guarantee that if you go to your BNI meeting next week, you’re gonna get a referral, but I can definitely guarantee if you don’t, you won’t.” [16:23]

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Excuses:

  “There's always a reason not to go to your BNI meeting.” [10:01]

• On Team Dependence:

  “This is what makes BNI unique compared to other networking organizations. People are reliant on you being in attendance to be able to help them.” [05:31]

• On Opportunity:

  “You can specifically train people more effectively this time of year than probably any other time during the year.” [14:32]

• On Setting the Tone for 2026:

  “Wouldn’t it be amazing to go in the first week of January with referrals from your efforts during this time, ready to go, ready to be ahead of your game on your New Year’s goals and everything else.” [12:19]

Segment Timestamps

• 00:00-01:25 – Annual “preaching” about holiday networking
• 01:26-04:15 – Why people skip and why this time is different
• 04:16-06:15 – Team reliance and BNI’s unique accountability
• 06:16-09:10 – Attendance policies and challenging common excuses
• 09:11-12:45 – Why every meeting counts, practical adjustments
• 12:46-13:59 – Motivation behind the message (not self-serving)
• 14:00-16:45 – December: multiple weeks of networking opportunities
• 16:46-17:50 – Final challenge: Be different and finish strong

Summary

Tim Roberts delivers a passionate annual reminder: Don’t let the holiday season become an excuse to skip out on your BNI commitment. The networking environments in December—with predictable gatherings and new connections—are among the richest sources of referral opportunities all year. He urges members to push through easy excuses, keep their team commitments, and make the little extra effort that could jumpstart their business for the new year. In BNI, your attendance and engagement benefit not just you, but your entire chapter. As Tim puts it: “When you’re different in your efforts, you’ll get different results.” [17:30]