What a shock! I joined BNI ( Business Network International) business referral network in March 2019 and last night my colleagues in the Turn The Music Up chapter , who meet at 6.30 am every Thursday morning in Grangemouth, voted for me as the member of the year at the regional annual awards dinner in Edinburgh.

We had a red-carpet welcome, great food, live music and dancing. What an inspiring group of people. It blows my mind that the whole ethos is to look for work for other group members rather than look for business for myself. Instead my fellow members have become my unofficial sales team and they look for business for me within their extended networks. It really does work ... GIVERS GAIN.

I am reminded each week of the type of referrals that would be good for their business growth and have my internal BNI radar constantly listening out for opportunities to make a connection for them. They do the same for me. This has resulted in commissions, pet portraits, sales of prints, cards and coasters and, most importantly, introductions to multiple new outlets in galleries, shops, cafes and even the hospice to sell my art.

Thanks, BNI for the support, friendship, training, business growth and weekly fun.

On another note I am pleased to let you know I have now added coasters to my collection of artistic products that you can purchase.

The coasters come in two different creatives ceramic (a lot heavier) and thin, of course prices differ for all the obvious reasons but I am sure you will agree that the prices are very fair for the time and resources taken to create them into the coaster format.

I hope that you will be keen to purchase the coasters as they make great affordable gifts for many different types of occasions.

Rhona x