How not to get tired of networking
78% of startuppers agree that their business cannot do without networking. Such a study was recently conducted by The Economist*. Yet, networking can be quite tiresome, especially for introverts. If you don’t do anything about it, you take a risk of burning out, missing big events and “forgetting” to follow up with important people.
Many entrepreneurs, even extroverts, admitted to me that networking takes up too much of their energy and time. But if you are serious about your personal and business growth, you can’t ignore networking. So, try to use these techniques instead, which will help you enjoy every event that you go to.
1. Choose quality instead of quantity
A high-quality event is the one that meets your current goals and allows you to get acquainted with specific people, rather than simply “with someone interesting”. If you were invited to a multi-thousand conference that does not meet these criteria, it’s better to skip it and save energy for a smaller but more valuable event.
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2. Set networking goals and decide what you want from the event
Setting goals is an important part of networking. Before the event, think about how many people you want to meet and for what purpose. Talking to everyone will quickly take away your strength. The other extreme is communicating only with old friends. Of course, it is more comfortable, but this will not help you achieve your goals either. Therefore, develop a competent networking strategy and follow it.
3. Bring along a friend or a colleague
Just make sure you don’t hang out together all the time. Keep each other in sight, but meet different people. Thus, you will get 2 times more contacts, which then you can exchange or introduce new acquaintances to each other.
Another advantage of going to events together is the opportunity to “save” each other from long or tedious discussions. To do this, apologize for breaking into the conversation and steal your friend under a plausible excuse.
4. Choose a comfortable time when picking an event
Perhaps you are a “night owl”, which means that a business breakfast is not your format. Do not force yourself to go there, because, apart from stress, this will lead to nothing. Better choose an evening event. And vice versa, a morning or an afternoon event is a good choice for those who can’t lead an active social life after 6 PM.
5. Unsubscribe from useless groups and communities
I bet you are a member of at least a few Telegram or WhatsApp chats and a dozen public groups on social networks. Don’t get me wrong, online networking is great. Still, analyze the value that these communities bring to you. Perhaps they are just wasting your time. In this case, leave them without regret.
6. Remember that the price can be misleading
Human psychology works in such a way that we think if we a pay higher price we get a better quality product. Accordingly, the more expensive the event is, the more useful it seems. But the high cost does not always mean high quality.
So think about value, not price. What exactly will you get for this money? What kind of people can you meet and talk with? Often, inexpensive and even free events will bring you much more value. So do not always try to get on an expensive advertised event. First, find out if it is really a not-to-be-missed thing.
7. Learn to end the conversation
If you are a great listener, it is a major advantage. However, it happens sometimes that the other person takes up too much of your time and attention and doesn’t want to let you go. Here are some tips that will help you say a polite goodbye.
- Say that you have noticed an old friend in the crowd: “It was a pleasure talking to Sorry but I’ve noticed an old friend of mine, need to say hi to him.”
- Ask for a business card, letting the other person know that your conversation has come to an end: “Pity I can’t stay longer and talk to It was a pleasure meeting you. May I have your business card?”
- Introduce him or her to another person: “I would like to introduce you to…
- I think you will find common things to discuss”. You can leave right after you have made the introduction.
- Work as a waiter: “I’m going to grab some coffee. Can I get you something too?” In such a situation people usually decline your offer and give you a chance to leave them. But if the other person agrees, bring the coffee and say: “Here is your coffee. Well, it was nice meeting you”.
- Use non-verbal communication. For example, change your posture: stand up if you were sitting. Or take out your phone. You may follow it with: “Excuse me, I need to make an important call” or “I need to call home to check on the kids.”
In any case, you don’t have to follow someone else’s conversation rules. On the contrary, be in control of the conversation and channel it the way you like.
8. Above all, have fun
It’s true, to a large extent networking is work. But first of all, it’s fun. It is a pleasure to communicate with people. If it does not bring you joy, figure out the reasons. If you can’t do it on your own, it’s a good idea to talk to a life coach, who will help you review your networking tactics, the events that you are attending, and the choice of the people who you network with. Apart from that, consider these techniques that will help you enjoy networking and keep it from draining you:
- When choosing an event, give priority to quality, not quantity.
- Set networking goals and decide what you want from the event.
- Bring along a friend or a colleague.
- Choose a comfortable time when picking an event.
- Unsubscribe from useless groups and communities.
- Remember that the price can be misleading.
- Learn to end the
- Above all, have fun networking. If it’s not fun at all, deal with the underlying causes and eliminate them.
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*More on the study:
http://informalinnovation.economist.com