BEEs are so important for our existence. They pollinate the plants that provide us with a major amount of the food we eat. 

I was pleasantly surprised to discover that in September Georgian Bay Township hosted a Honey Bee Festival. The even is to educate people about the importance of bees and why they need to be taken care of. It sounds like it was a fun event. 

Hive Rules

Our BEE Your Possibilities monthly meetings run on Hive Rules similar to the ones found on bee signs. I was surprised to receive a T-shirt displaying the Hive rules of

BEE Kind; BEE Honest; BEE Respectful; BEE Positive; BEE Grateful; and most importantly, BEElieve in Yourself.

Other accepted behaviours at our meetings include BEE:

Friendly and fun; Open and receptive to new ideas; Caring, sharing, supporting and encouraging; 

Holding Possibility conversations that focus on solutions more than on problems or challenges using Productive Possibility language. 

One of the best things about BEE Your Possibilities is the positivity, the kindness and the sharing of our members. I am grateful for each and everyone of our BEES. Together we create possibilities.

Consider visiting us the second Wednesday of the month and see what is possibile for you.

1. Collaboration and Cooperation: Just as bees work together to forage for food, defend the hive, and care for the brood, networkers can collaborate and cooperate with others to achieve common goals. By forming alliances, sharing resources, and supporting each other, networkers can amplify their impact and achieve greater success.

2. Communication and Information Sharing: Bees communicate vital information about food sources, nest sites, and threats through intricate dance language and pheromones. Similarly, effective networkers communicate openly and transparently with their connections, sharing insights, opportunities, and resources that can benefit others in their network.

3. Support and Mentorship: Worker bees care for the developing larvae and the queen bee, providing nourishment, protection, and guidance as needed. Likewise, networkers can offer support, mentorship, and guidance to their peers and colleagues, helping them navigate challenges, overcome obstacles, and achieve their goals.

4. Adaptability and Flexibility: Bees exhibit swarm behaviour, where they adapt and relocate to new nest sites when conditions become unfavorable. Similarly, networkers must be adaptable and flexible, willing to adjust their strategies, goals, and approaches in response to changing circumstances and opportunities in the networking landscape.

5. Resource Sharing and Reciprocity: Bees share resources within the colony, ensuring that all members have access to food, shelter, and support. Similarly, networkers can engage in reciprocity by sharing knowledge, contacts, and opportunities with their connections, fostering a culture of generosity and mutual benefit within their network.

6. Collective Decision-Making: Bees make collective decisions, such as when to swarm or where to forage, through consensus-building and information sharing. Similarly, networkers can engage in collaborative decision-making processes, seeking input from their peers and stakeholders to inform strategic decisions and actions that benefit the entire network.

By emulating the behaviours observed in bee colonies, networkers can cultivate stronger, more resilient, and more effective networks that facilitate collaboration, communication, and mutual support among members.While there may not be a specific quote about networkers emulating bee colony behaviours, we can craft one to capture the essence:

BEE Your Possibilities started out as BEE the Buzz Niagara, started by Carolyn Shannon of Empowerment Starts Here. It met the second Wednesday of the month at meeting room in St. Catharines in a restaurant or event space. That's where I started networking.  The people were wonderful. The information shared was valuable.

I looked forward to the monthly meetings.  When COVID hit, Carolyn took BEE Niagara on line. It was still a great meeting online.  Thank you Carolyn.

And then, Carolyn decided to retirre BEE the Buzz Niagara. When she announced it, at the end of 2020, I found myself asking if she would mind if I took over the time and date slot that she had been using. Her response shocked me. She said something like, "That would be great! And I know what you can call it. Call it, "BEE Your Possibilities." And that was how BEE Your Possibilities was founded. Our January meeting is the 12th meeting of our 3rd year. Again, thank you Carolyn.

What is different about the two groups is not a lot. Carolyn met live 10 months of the year with 2 special meetings. This BEE meets monthly, online. Our meetings are formatted on what I call, mastermind light. It is structured like a mastermind without the indepth accountability and commitments of a speific mastermind. 

We start with introductions - relationship building - about who you are, what your business does and how members can help you. 

The Education segment has a business related lesson that includes interactive discussion. Then, our

Business Building session has a member discuss their business more in-depth, again to let others know what the business does, how it serves its clients and how our membership can help each other. 

To Empower each other, each meeting has a Business Challenge session, were a member can register to go into discussion about solving a business challenge and brainstorming solutions for the member to select from, take away and try, and report back to the next meeting with results or feedback.

Why are we based on Bees? Bees work as a group, a team. That's what our group is about. Helping each other step into their possibilities as they

Build their business; Educate each other; and Empower each other. 

We meet monthly, the second Wednesday of the month, for two hours. The meetings are interactive, positive, and focused on solutions and possibility. Surprisingly, even meetings that we thought would be shorter, fill the complete 2 hours.

Want to buzz about your business? Register for our next meeting.