What happens when you create a tweetup rally to create awareness of how medical marijuana caregivers and patients are being arrested for following the law? Join us and find out.

The Smoke-Free Weedup, Monday, Feb 27, 2012

Medical Marijuana is a $1.7BILLION Market

According to http://medicalmarijuanamarkets.com:

-24.8 Million People Are Eligible Patients
-About 730,000 People Are Current Patients
-7 States Have Markets: California, Colorado, Michigan, Montana, Oregon,
Washington, New Mexico

In 2008, the people of Michigan passed Medical Marijuana legislation. In fact, the people supported this measure so much that it passed in every county in the state.

Medical Marijuana is compassionate pain management. Those who suffer need the relief. And even though current marijuana markets will double in the next five years because of this need, there’s a problem….

Michigan police and the court system are mistreating caregivers. Police are posing as patients in an effort to exploit a weakness in how the law was written. Courts are using total weight of “medibles” (medical marijuana cooked into edible form) instead of the actual marijuana weight to assure caregivers can’t use “Caregiver” or “Medical Marijuana” as part of their defense.

Former Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox was in full support of Medical Marijuana. This is in stark contrast to current Attorney General Bill Schuette’s who recently suggested police officers would risk potential criminal and civil penalties under the (federal law) for the distribution of marijuana or for aiding or abetting the possession or distribution of marijuana if they return seized marijuana to patients or caregivers as the Michigan Law states. People in Michigan are questioning whether Bill works for the citizen’s of this state or US Attorney General Eric Holder.

Join us for The Smoke-Free Weedup

This will be the world’s first smoke-free weedup, a cause that demonstrates to Oakland County that it’s not right to arrest people who follow the law. We have Through our network and social media outlets we will reach over 100,000 people. Many of us will gather in a peaceful protest to support those who suffer and their caregivers

When: Monday, February 27, 2012
Where: Oakland County Courthouse 1200 North Telegraph Road Pontiac,
Time: 7:30 a.m.- 8:30am More than 50 people
Who: All those banding together in our tweetup to support medical marijuana and justice

Call Terry Bean, Founder of Motor City Connect at 248.224.1326, Facebook him at http://facebook.com/terrybean, tweet him at https://twitter.com/#!/terrybean or e-mail him at trybean@gmail.com for further information.

Seriously, it has gotten to the point where I have one bio that reads: “If you
found me here you have already read way too many of the bios I have written”.
For the record, I wrote that out of a bit of frustration and DO NOT recommend it
as a best practice

So how do we balance the amount of time this practice takes while showing some
ROI on the time involved? For starters, make sure your profile “attracts” the
type of viewers you want to it.

Talk about “who you are”.

Many of these sites have an area for a “summary”. Most folks summarize their
current work experience and consider this done. Sure that’s a great way to check
off the task, but does it really help? No. This is the area where you want to
engage the person by showing them who you are. What are your values? Share your
thoughts on networking. Tell us about your family. Make this interesting and
personal. It doesn’t have to be long, but it would be great if it made us feel
like we got to know you.

Tell us about “what you do”

This should be an easy one, right? Well, recognize that there are lots of people
who do what you do. How will you make your profile stand out? You need to make
sure you are using KEYWORDS. Keywords are the words that people use when
“searching” online. If you are in the Mortgage business, keywords may include:
real estate, REO, home purchase, buyer, seller, refinance, foreclosure,
property…you get the idea.

An important point to consider- we need to make sure that we are using the
keywords that our industry uses as well as the keywords our clients use. My
friend Charlie is in the advertising/marketing business and they do a lot of
“identity” design. He has yet to get a call for identity design, but he sure
gets a lot of people calling because they need a new logo

William Butler Yeats said it best- “think like a wise man, but communicate in
the language of the people”.

Its good to have “past life regressions”

Well, maybe they don’t have to be full on regressions, but it is good for people
to get to know about your past life. Why? Because they may have been a part of
it. You know I believe that “all business is relationship business”. We have
some really strong relationships with people we are no longer connected to.
Think about that. If you ran into your favorite “cube buddy” from your first
job, your favorite boss from 6 years ago, a college suite mate or whomever, you
would likely be able to pick right up on good conversation. And what’s really
interesting is that some of these folks may be in a position to now do business
with us or our business.

We have some amazingly strong ties in our past. It would be wise to make sure
those folks can find us and possibly help us in our future.

Hobbies and interests are interesting

If all business is relationship business and relationships are built fastest
around commonality, do I need to write more?

Seriously, take the time to share your passions. You would be amazed at what
comes from this simple act. It’s a great conversation starter, it can open doors
that weren’t previously opened and you may just land your next gig because of
it.

I highly endorse being endorsed

Having endorsements show up on your profile page is a great way to have others
feel good about you. If you have earned them, feel great about asking for them.
If there are people you would feel good about writing them for, do so. You never
know, they may write one for you.

Your online profiles are where people go to find out about you in the NOW world.
Whether you are meeting a new client, vendor or potential employer, they are
checking you out online. What impression will they get?

Q1. What the hell is a smoke-free #weedup?
A1. A smoke-free #weedup is what we’re calling the rally we’re holding to put an end to the abuse of registered caregivers and their patients by the law enforcement of Oakland County.

Q2. When and where is this smoke-free #weedup?
A2. 2/27/12 starting at 7:00 a.m. at the Oakland County Courthouse

Why am I hosting this??

A good friend of mine has been a state registered caregiver for less than 2 years and has already been arrested 3 times in Oakland county for having marijuana in his possession.

While being arrested for following the law my friend has had to surrender:

1st arrest: 1 vehicle, 1500 cash business deposit, phones, laptop, briefcase, medicine.
2nd arrest: 1 vehicle, 1200 cash business deposit, phones, ipad, briefcase, medicine.
3rd arrest: 5 vehicles, 1100 cash business deposit, phones, 3 laptops, files, medicine, He also had to relocate his office as a result of this arrest which caused a 60% drop in patients as they had to find other caregivers.

He has spent over $19,000 is lawyer fees and $10,000 in business recovery cost so far and still doesn’t have the majority of items back.

This is ridiculous treatment for a man who is simply following a law that EVERY single county in Michigan voted into legislation in 2008.

The Michigan law clearly states

Section: 333.26423

A primary caregiver can possess an amount of marihuana that does not exceed:

(1) 2.5 ounces of usable marihuana for each qualifying patient to whom he or she is connected through the department’s registration process;

(e) A registered primary caregiver may receive compensation for costs associated with assisting a registered qualifying patient in the medical use of marihuana. Any such compensation shall not constitute the sale of controlled substances.

The 1st and 2nd arrest were in disregard of the above law passed in 2008 by taking the Gross weight vs Net Weight of a dozen medical marijuana brownies to force you over your allowed limit of usable marijuana ofr 15 ounces to illegal marijuana of 63 ounces and create criminal out of a law abiding citizen.

The 3rd arrest was in disregard of the above law passed in 2008 by interpreting the sentence “a” meant “the”

Section: 333.26423
(e) A registered primary caregiver may receive compensation for costs associated with assisting a registered qualifying patient in the medical use of marihuana.

• This statement ALLOWS caregivers to assist other registered qualifying patients outside of their 5 qualifying patients whom they registered with through the state which allows each caregiver to possess 2.5 ounces and 12 plants for each qualifying patient he is connected with through the state

Attorney General Shuette is telling prosecutors to misinterpret this law to…….

A registered primary caregiver may receive compensation for costs associated with assisting “the” registered qualifying patient in the medical use of marihuana.

• This statement DISALLOWS caregivers to assist other registered qualifying patients outside of their 5 qualifying patients whom they registered with through the state which allows each caregiver to possess 2.5 ounces and 12 plants for each qualifying patient he is connected with through the state

HERE ARE THE FACTS ABOUT MARIJUANA

THE SAD TRUTH
Criminalization of marijuana was NOT on the basis of scientific, medical nor government hearings, that it was to protect the citizens from what was considered to be dangerous and/or harmful BUT rather on the basis of:
• Fear
• Racism
• Protection of Corporate Profits
• Ignorant, Corrupt and/or Incompetent Legislators
• Personal Career Advancement and Greed

My friend awaits his next trial on Monday, February 27th 8:30am at 1200 N. Telegraph Rd Pontiac 48328

Here is what you can do about it

Read “Why is Mairijuana Illegal Anyways” brochure.!
Join the Trial Rally!

My friend is not allowed to use Medical Marijuana as a defense or even mention the word to the jury because the prosecutors persuaded the judge to believe if mention the word medical marijuana the jury will think of cancer patients and feel sorry for the defendant!!!

So you can see how hard it will be for the Jury to understand the real issue is rather to consider the Gross weight: ( 1 gram Marijuana + Brownie Mix + 1 cup water + 2/3 cup veggie oil + 2 eggs ) = 3 pounds or Net weight: 1 Gram.

Here is a quick video (under 2 minutes) that gives you two BIG ideas on just how to do this. Please note that I’m not officially driving in this video LOL. Can’t listen where you are or don’t like videos in general? The two ways are written below.

As a bonus thought, be sure to use idea as a way to build your recommendations on LinkedIN (you can click that link and be magically whisked away to my profile. add me as a connection if you wish to be part of my almost 5,000 person network there).

Here are the two ways in a nutshell:

1. Leverage third party endorsements. Find someone who knows you both and can say good things about the offering you have. This is very powerful. It’s even better if the person is known, LIKED and TRUSTED by your intended audience.

2. Find common ground. The best way to do that is to ask questions. The video has close to a dozen questions you can ask about 70 seconds into it. Here’s the trick when you ask questions, you actually HAVE TO LISTEN to the answers

Thanks for checking out this video. There is plenty of other great information designed to help you on this site. Feel free to poke around!

Be connected-

Terry Bean

You’ve no doubt been taught and believe the idea that you never get a second chance to make a first impression. While that is technically true, I don’t believe it matters. How often have you met someone who you thought was great and were proved wrong? How often have you met someone you couldn’t stand at first and now like?

Here’s the lesson: Because of this first impression thing we are in such a hurry to “impress” the person we just met. Unfortunately the way most people attempt to do so is wrong. They do it by talking. They want to tell you all about them. Who they are. What they do. Maybe who they know. And so on. What they don’t realize, and this is true regardless of how interesting they are, the first impression is they seem self-centered.

Here’s the trick: Start all of your conversations by inviting them to go first. Maybe a quick sentence like “tell me about yourself”.

Since you know this is people’s natural inclination. Let them do it. Give them the go-ahead. BE interested in what they have to say. Enjoy learning about them. Take time to understand who they are and equally important how you can be of service to them.

Here are the benefits:

1. The biggest benefit is that you will be able to remember their name. People ask me all the time what the secret to doing so is. The secret is you can’t remember something you never knew. We are so busy trying to “impress” people when we first meet them that we rarely even hear their name when we are introduced. This approach allows you to hear it.

2. The next benefit is that you will actually learn about them and their needs. This will put you in a position to truly help them.

3. You will be perceived as an excellent communicator. Why? because you will be primarily engaged in a conversation that they really enjoy. You know, the one about them! What’s everyone’s favorite topic? That’s right

4. When it’s your turn to talk they will actually listen to you. It’s true. They can fully focus on you and your needs because they’re not worrying about what they want to say.

5. You can gauge what sort of person they are. If you listen to them and they don’t return the favor, you will know how much future time to invest in them.

Now go ahead and tell me about yourself. I promise to listen

In the 70s what you knew became less important. In fact the popular refrain of “its not what you know its who you know” still echoes today. The thought being that knowing the right people can help you get the job, deal or opportunity you seek.

Some people will tell you its not who you know, its who knows you. They’re right, but its actually deeper than that.

In today’s world its all about how you’re known. Does your network immediately think of you when they hear the perfect opportunity for you? What’s your reputation in the community? Is your particular area of expertise fully associated with you? Have you ever changed jobs in such a manner that you had to re-educate your network as to how you wish to be known?

Two years ago we would call this your personal brand. There’s a lot of backlash going on today that say people can’t be brands. I’m not sure if I agree. What I do know for sure is that understanding “How YOU’RE Known” to your network and confirming that it’s how you wish to be known is of vital importance.

How are you known?
How do you wish to be known?

Be connected-

The number one thing that happens at this time of year is people set new GOALS. Did you? Are they good ones? Are they worthy of your best you? I sure hope so.

One of my goals this year is to help others Go Out And Live Successfully.

How can we help you do just that?

I’ve coached a lot business professionals over the past four years and I’ve learned a few things:

1. Written down goals are great especially when you’re willing to take the action required to achieve them.

2. Knowing what needs to be done is a lot different than getting it done.

3. When your WHYs are strong enough, the how’s take care of themselves.

4. Its vital to have the right network of professionals who are all working to achieve more together.

5. You want to make as many deposits into “needs help” bank account as possible. Sooner or later EVERYONE makes withdraws from it.

6. If you can’t clearly explain how others can be of assistance to you its unlikely they ever will assist you.

7. Doing things because they’re the right thing to do is all the reason you’ll ever need to get them done.

8. Listening is the most powerful communications tool you have.

9. When combined with “asking the right questions” listening becomes infinitely more powerful.

10. 3M has a new definition when it comes to business growth. You need to have the right mindset, motivation and marketing. This is what MCC is all about.

11. All of the answers to every question you have can be found inside of you when you quiet enough to hear them.

Tell me what we can do to make 2012 your best year yet.

I’ve been saying for years that “all business is relationship business.” It’s no surprise that relationship marketing has become the most important form of marketing there is. Relationship marketing is ideal for customer retention, lead generation and brand awareness.

But this post isn’t simply about relationship marketing. It’s about a very important aspect inside of it. It’s about creating win-win relationships. Kirk King, President of Continuity Programs described it best when he recently stated, “Business relationships have to be win-win. When everybody involved thinks, ‘This is awesome!’ the relationship continues.”

And isn’t the continuity of business relationships what matters most?

We have all heard how much more difficult and more expensive it is to land a new customer than to continue working with an existing one. Think how much better off your business would be if you were able to cross-sell your additional products and services to your past and current clients. How would your business development efforts change? How would your business grow?

The key to win-win business relationships is to understand the expectations on both sides and treat them as the minimum barometer of success. If you are a service provider, do more than just provide the service for which you are being paid. If you are the customer, do more than simply paying the invoice on time.

Take the time to understand eachother’s needs and how you can be of assistance. The assistance provided could come in the form of professional introductions, knowledge sharing or simply being a sounding board for one another. At the very least, make sure you each understand what an ideal referral looks like for each other.

Moving beyond the traditional vendor-client relationship puts you in the category of Relatewinship. When you reach this level, everyone is happy. Everyone is winning. And as Kirk King so aptly pointed out, the relationships continue.

Click here to contact Terry Bean.

Kirk King may be reached at 800-521-0026, kking@continuityprograms.com, or by filling out the Request Information Form on this blog.

For starters networking is already a well known verb in the computer world. Its the act of connecting computers. Sure one can argue that the act of connecting people could use the same word but is it really the same? Imagine if to network people we had to have wires run between us…or worse we continually had to reset the wireless router that was supposed to be connecting us. Now that would be fun.

The other downside is that networking and networkers have earned a bit of a bad rap. Multi-level-marketing aka network marketing has had a negative impact on networking. Similarly some individuals who have misunderstood the core tenants of networking have made it uncomfortable to attend events. You know the ones who come at you, hand you their card, tell you all about them and then move onto the next unsuspecting victim. Its really not their fault, where does one learn how to network properly?

What if there was a new normal in networking? One where people understood the ground rules from the beginning and participated for mutual gain?

Two of my favorite things two speak on have been networking and leveraging the law of attraction.

In fact I named my business Networked Inc and my logo is an N shaped magnet.

This got me thinking that maybe networking should be combined with attracting. And what better way to represent that then combining the word magnet with word networking.

Please join me in welcoming magnetworking into our vernacular. Magnetworking is defined as attracting what one seeks by leveraging both the universe and their network.

The process of magnetworking will be explained further in future posts and will be fully explored at our 11/17 presentation.

I shall look forward to MagNetworking with you real soon.

• Do you understand who your IDEAL client is?
• Do you know how to reach more of them with greater frequency?
• Have you ever considered your online and offline business networking strategy?

If you said “NO” to any of these questions, we should talk NOW. I have put together a 130+ question “Relationship Marketing Readiness” assessment that will add tremendous insight to your business. This survey will help small business owners answer these important questions:

• Are you connecting with your ideal audience? Are you sure you even know who they are?
• Are you connected through digital marketing as effectively as you should be?
• Are you connecting to the knowledge you need and attending the events that would most benefit you?
• Are you connected to your past clients, current business partners, vendors and employees in a way that makes them want to refer business to you?

The results of this assessment will be used to assure you’ve identified your target client/business partners, are leveraging online and real world networking effectively and to craft your perfect ASK (if you’re wondering what the ASK is, check out the F/R/E/E download on the homepage of this site).

You will increase the number of QUALITY referrals you receive almost immediately and be able to receive more anytime you want. Even better is that when you execute this system properly you will achieve greater income, with fewer clients in less time.

If that interests you, now would be a great time for us to chat. Pick up the phone and give me a call or use the “contact Terry Bean” function on this site.

Thank you for your time and consideration.