Do you want to make more friends, build your network, and throw parties that make people say “I can’t WAIT for the next one!”? 

My guest Nick Gray is here to show you how to throw a party that people will LOVE! 

He’s sharing secrets straight from his book The 2-Hour Cocktail Party. In this episode, you’ll learn:

• How throwing a cocktail party will expand your network.
• How to get 90% attendance at your party.
• When/how to send out reminders.
• Why guest name tags are crucial.
• What days of the week to throw a party. (It's not what you think)
• Why you don’t need chairs at your party.
• How to gracefully end a party.

About Nick:
Nick Gray is an investor, entrepreneur, and author. He’s also a 40-year old American man living in Austin, Texas.

​Nick started and sold two successful companies: Flight Display Systemsand Museum Hack. Over 75,000 people have watched his TEDx talk about why he hates most museums.

He’s the author of The 2-Hour Cocktail Party, a step-by-step handbook that teaches you how to build big relationships by hosting small gatherings.

Nick’s links:

• Book: The 2-Hour Cocktail Party.
• Nick's "Friends Newsletter". (Highly recommended!)
  
• Article: How to Host a Happy Hour.
• Article: How to Plan a Networking Event.​​

How can we craft a powerful message?

A message that says everything we need to say in a neat package?

A message that can inspire everyone from your small team at work, to tens of thousands when you're behind the camera or mic?

On this episode of Become More Compelling Radio, my friend Nicole Schwegman (@bffwiththechef on IG) is going to walk us through crafting a powerful, clear message.

Think of this episode as media training 101.

"But Jeff, I'm not media facing in my company, should I listen to this episode?"

YES!

Many of Nicole's tips will absolutely help if you're sitting down with media. (TV, Radio, Podcasts, etc.) But the lessons here are 100% applicable to you if you've ever:

• Sat down for a job interview.
• Had to answer tough questions asked by a boss.
• Lead a team of any size.

More about Nicole:

Nicole Schwegman is a public affairs officer in the U.S. military. She’s served in the Navy for nearly 16 years where she’s had the opportunity to help media train some of American’s most senior military leaders.

She is also a home chef, food enthusiast and the host of BFF with the Chef, the podcast that aims to make home cooks better in the kitchen by sharing cheffy insights from each week's culinary guest.

Disclaimer for this show: Nicole's opinions expressed in this episode are her own, they do NOT reflect the views or opinions of the U.S. military.

Listen to Nicole's podcast BFF with the Chef here

• 15:10 - Why having talking points is crucial.
• ​43:11 - Nicole teaches Fact, Bridge, Message (FBM). Your secret weapon for staying on message every time.
  
• 1:00:51 - How one of Nicole's students used FBM to handle a VERY tough question while on stage.

On this episode of BMC Radio, the podcast where I help you supercharge your charisma and people skills I have my friend Paul Sanders (@PaulSandersSCP) from Get The Friends You Want.

Paul Sanders is a friendship & social skills coach, and author of the "Get The Friends You Want" book. He helps people overcome social hesitation, master conversation and social skills, make friends and build a social circle. 

In an age where human connection seems to be tipping more screen than face, I think honing your friendship skills is only getting more important, especially if you're working remote, or starting a business and don't have the traditional 9-5 office culture to fall back on.

In this conversation, we talk about how to build a friendship circle, how to easily connect and build rapport with many different types of people, books on social dynamics, and much more.

7 Most Common Mistakes Peoples People Make When They Try To Improve Their Social Life (And How To Avoid Them)

• 11:45 - Paul’s advice on how to make friends and build a friendship circle.
• 25:00 - The compound effect of stacking different people skills.
• 28:09 - Acquire new knowledge and culture so that you’ll be able to connect with many different types of people.

On this episode of Become More Compelling Radio, I'd like to introduce you to my friend Rob Riker (@robertgriker) from The Social Winner. 

Over the last few months, I've seen a lot of questions about making friends...  
  

• "How do I make friends?"
• "How can I build my friendship circle?"
• "What's the best way to make plans with a new friend?"

​
This podcast will answer all these questions and more. If you've ever wanted a solid strategy around making new friends and connections, this podcast episode is for you. After listening, you'll be able to make new friends on command.

Rob has been featured in Business Insider, Lifehack, The Friend Formula, and Tiny Buddha.

I like Rob's insights on friendship and creating a fulfilling, lasting social circle:

Get Rob's free 8 lesson course on how to make new friends this month here.

19:56 - How to bridge the gap between acquaintances and meeting up a second time
26:15 - The crucial time to swap contact info
34:29 - Should you initiate plans with friends or wait for them to initiate plans?​​

​On this episode of Become More Compelling Radio, I'd like to introduce you to my friend Kyle Ingham (@DistilledMan), founder of The Distilled Man.

Kyle is awesome, he has the poise and style Don Draper and the wit and charm of Ryan Reynolds. (A winning combo for sure.)

In this wide ranging conversation we tackle how to make great first impressions, how to be likable, how to build rapport, negative self talk, giving effective feedback at work, cocktails, and much more.

Kyle has been featured in the San Francisco Examiner, Forbes, The Good Men Project, among others.

Kyle has an excellent free resource for BMC Radio listeners:

The 48 Hour Gentleman: Your One Weekend Plan For More Confidence, Poise, and Manly Know-How.

This excellent guide covers how to cook a steak, get a shirt tailored, male a Manhattan, and much more.

• 15:29 - How to make a great first impression. Kyle's video on first impressions:

• 20:31 - How to get out of your head and be more present in social situations.
• 38:01 - How to give feedback at work that makes both people feel good. (No sh*t sandwiches here)

Myke is a really interesting guy, he was born in Asia, move to the Middle East, then landed in Canada at age 16 while not being able to speak English.

Myke had to start from scratch with people skills. The customs of places he'd lived his entire life were suddenly reversed in a western country.

If you've wanted to level up your social confidence, make better first impressions, or network authentically at a conference this episode will be exactly what you need.

​More about Myke:

Myke Macapinlac was a shy immigrant who used to work a boring engineering job and became a talk show host, a social dynamics specialist, and a lifestyle entrepreneur.

He now teaches shy guys to develop social confidence so they can succeed in their personal, romantic, and professional lives.

His work has been featured in the Calgary Herald, on Breakfast Television, on Shaw TV, and in the Huffington Post.

Shy to Social: How To Approach And Talk To Anybody No Matter How Shy You Are

• 13:30 - How to overcome and reprogram negative self talk.
• 21:00 - How to overcome the “I don’t want to be fake” self improvement objection.
• 34:30 - How to leverage social media for conferences and events so that you can warm up the room before flying to the event.

In this (solo) episode of Become More Compelling Radio I'll give you frameworks for...

• How do you get just ENOUGH information to act without hoarding information and overthinking?
• How can you quickly act on the information you consume?
• How does Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos view the push/pull of information vs. action?
• And more...

(Or maybe just by consistently pushing past your comfort zone.)

This episode is geared towards the fellas. (Although I believe there are valuable insights for everyone) Dave has spent the last decade improving himself in the areas of people skills, fitness, and style.

He's gone from shy and reserved to authentically confident and now he helps men in their 20s and 30s do the same.

Highlights:

• ​04:00 - One quick tactic Dave used to stop overthinking and win over a new friend at a dinner party.
• 12:40 - How to avoid information overload and take action on improving your people skills
• 37:00 - The mindset Dave uses to overcome the hesitation of starting conversations.
• 47:45 - How to think about your style and avoiding the imposter syndrome that can come from changing what you wear.

Dave is the Amazon #1 best-selling author of Ready to Roar: How Shy, Quiet, Self-Doubting Guys Become Strong, Charming, Self-Confident Men and the founder of IrreverentGent.com, a blog dedicated to helping guys build confidence.

His work has been featured in The Good Men Project, Well Built Style and Active Man magazine, among others.

Listening Options:

• The #1 thing to focus on while telling stories. Hint: Tom Cruise (11:20)

• How to edit your stories down, but still keep the essence alive (17:30)

• How to deal with the “spotlight" of storytelling (42:15)

Be sure to check out the secret page Marsha created for BMC readers. (With a secret weapon to help you remember ANYONE'S name) 

It's basically a tactical guide to thrive at your next dinner party, conference, or networking event.

Shawn has been featured in Mind, Body, Green, LifeHack, and Dumb Little Man. He has over 10 years experience teaching personal and career development.

In this conversation we talk about the power of revealing your authentic self, how superhero costumes at Comic Con can improve your confidence, and we play a really awesome improv game that you can start using today to have better conversations.

Shawn also has a free gift for Become More Compelling readers: An Introvert’s Guide to Engaging Conversation.

Enjoy!

She's currently writing a book on introvert charisma that's due out on bookshelves next year. She's published over 200 articles on her blog, and she's been featured in Dr. Arnie Kozak's book The Everything Guide to the Introvert Edge and Patricia Weber's Introvert Communication Toolkit.

Meaning and purpose? Check.

She also has an awesome free gift for Become More Compelling readers: Alone But Not Lonely: 7 Steps To True Connection For Introverts.

In this conversation, we talk about why the word "should" can be toxic, and what to replace "should" with. We also talk about everything from meditation practices to zombie outbreaks.

Without further ado, enjoy episode number one of Become More Compelling Radio: