(Editor's Note) Since 1993, business people in Queensland, Australia's Gold Coast and surrounding communities have participated in the late John Hurd's Business Excellence Breakfasts.

John's son Stan has carried on the tradition which he says serves as a great bootstrapping opportunity by creating networking among local entrepreneurs many with limited resources and seeking to expand and find new opportunities.

Here are Stan's recommendations for starting a similar breakfast in your community:

5 Steps to running your own bootstrap breakfast!

1. Sniff out the best connections to save big.
Hitting up a local restaurant to act as your host may feel awkward,
but it's a lot easier to do on a shoestring budget than you think. A
lot of smaller restaurants are run by bootstrappers also hoping to
make the right connections?so it's a win-win for everyone if you pick
the right sponsor.

2. Wednesdays are your best date for success.
Nabbing a mid-week spot, in our years of experience, is the sure-fire
way to get the biggest crowd to your networking breakfasts. Scheduling
too close to the weekends can kill your attendance, since many people
tend to forget about networking when there's a three-day weekend to be
had.

3. Understand why everyone is invited.
Creating a large event may seem to the smartest plan, but sometimes,
having too many attendees from different backgrounds can prevent vital
connections from being made in the first place. Knit the right
connections by inviting like-minded bootstrappers to start that are
more likely to mesh well, then branch out as the breakfasts take off.

4. Set a stage that helps your guests grow.
Divide the room in a way that forces your attendees to coordinate and
network with each other the most freedom. Instead of forcing guests to
sit at the same table throughout the meal, pick one person per table
and have them move every 15 minutes to keep connections and
conversations flowing,

5. Check in with past attendees to learn and network!
Knowing if past guests are making the kind of business connections
they were hoping to helps you tailor each breakfast afterwards to reap
the biggest results for your guests. Striking up a friendly check-up
call also allows you to network with each and every guest one-on-one
in a way that seems more modest, since you're actually calling to
attend their needs, even if may be answering your own.

[This post dedicated to my late father, John Hurd, a long-time reader
of Bootstrapme.com and fellow bootstrapper since 1993.]
www.businessexcellence.net.au