I’m in the process of having lunch with 500 strangers for fun. But Peter Hocking, the 40th person I’ve met, does something similar for a living.

The reason Peter is a prolific networker is because he owns the Australasian franchise for EGN (Executives’​ Global Network), an international organisation that holds tailored peer groups (similar to mastermind groups) for business leaders.

Peter chairs 11 different peer groups in EGN Australia and EGN New Zealand. Each group meets six times annually. So that’s 66 meetings per year with several hundred CEO, CFOs and other executives.

Peter is also a partner in the John Hewson Group and serves as a non-executive director on several different boards. Oh, and he co-founded Belle Property. So he’s a man with tremendous business experience.

I find business fascinating, so I peppered Peter with a million questions during our lunch. He was kind enough to answer them all.

We also found time to talk politics, economics and genealogy.

I really enjoyed my lunch with Peter, and was delighted when he suggested we catch up again next year. It looks like more networking is on the cards for both of us.