I like to think of myself as an accomplished networker. As a journalist, this talent is invaluable and I feel highly privileged to be mixing with entrepreneurs whose enthusiasm is both palpable and infectious.

Networking used to be seen as something of a business enabler. People would meet up and exchange ideas and contact details with the hope of adding value to their business proposition. Yet increasingly, it seems that networking isn’t the enabler or the business catalyst but the business itself.

For a case in point, just look at Oli Barrett. Barrett has forged a career for himself as the ‘daily networker’, harnessing his skills as a people person to bring people together and “make shit happen”. Oli is now on a 24 day ‘speednetworking’ jaunt in which he will visit 12 countries in order to promote Global Entrepreneurship Week.

Kudos must also go to Robert Loch, the man behind Internet People – events which bring together the most brilliant London-based internet entrepreneurs. One of the founders of one of the world’s largest social networking sites told me he credits Loch entirely for the success of his business – it was at one of the Internet People events that this entrepreneur was introduced by Loch to VCs which went on to invest in his company.

Therefore, it came as something of a surprise recently to meet a handful of entrepreneurs who admitted to very rarely spending time with their peers. Entrepreneurs are busy people, I understand that, and there is little to show shareholders at the end of a four hour networking event other than a fistful of bar receipts and a wad of business cards.

You may be able to count on one hand the number of people you will stay in contact with. But all it takes is one to help take your business to that next level whether it is in the form of an introduction or the bestowing of invaluable business acumen.

Getting connected is easier than ever with the help of social networking sites such as Facebook and more business oriented ones such as LinkedIn and the surprisingly addictive mini-blog site Twitter popular with internet entrepreneurs the world over. Musician Ben Walker captured this sentiment perfectly in instant YouTube hit You’re no one if you’re not on Twitter.

“If you haven’t been bookmarked, retweeted and blogged
You might as well not have existed” he purrs. My sentiments exactly.