Woo Hoo! School is back in session in most of the U.S. which means, if you’re a working parent, chances are good you’ve got a bit more free time on your hands again. (Whew!)
Regardless of whether or not you have kids at home, if you’re a business owner or professional, you know that networking is a key ingredient to your success. But it tends to be the one thing that gets dropped when you have an overly busy schedule.
Sound familiar?
No worries! Ebbs and flows in business are to be expected. But now that school is back in session and your family is on a more “normal” routine, you can recommit your efforts to build and maintain a healthy, vibrant network of colleagues and professionals.
Here are three easy P-easy (Get it?! ) ways to revitalize your networking strategy:
1. Be Picky. You do not have to go to every networking event that you are invited to! While it’s great to have options, be sure to choose the groups and organizations where you will find the people that you are most interested in meeting. If your ideal client is working moms with small children, you’re more likely to find them at luncheon networking events than at evening ones. If your target market is young professionals, you’re more likely to find them at a happy hour mixer and not at a $200 per plate fundraising event. See if you can research events 2-3 months ahead of time and space them out in your calendar in a way that makes sense for you.
2. Be Prepared. It’s the Boy Scout motto but it’s a good one for all of us. If you are going to spend time networking with others, learn a bit about them before you go. If you are having a coffee or lunch with someone you recently met, be sure to visit their website or their LinkedIn profile to get a sense of what their work in the world is. Visiting a networking meeting for the first time? Be sure to read about the mission and vision of the group on their website and look at the member list and see if you recognize anyone that you already know. Make a list of questions before you go and take time to practice your 30 second introduction. This way, you’ll have some experience in letting a few quick introductory sentences roll off your tongue so that you won’t be tongue tied when asked “So what do you do?”
3. Be Present. While it’s great to prepare, it’s even more important to be fully present when networking. Just like any relationship, if you are always worrying about what you want to say next or worry about what you just said that didn’t sound quite right, you miss out on the opportunity to really be present with the person or people you are meeting with. Focus on being a good listener. Maintain good eye contact, nod your head and let people know you genuinely care by asking interesting questions.
And a bonus easy P-easy tip…Be Persistent. And by this, I don’t mean pesky. But be sure to do diligent follow up. If you met some people at a networking event that you’d like to stay connected to, write a note and tell them so. Also, make the time to search them out on social media. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest, etc. are all great ways to build a relationship and find out what you share in common. Also don’t be afraid to circle back to them a few weeks or months after initially meeting them. Maybe the time wasn’t right to connect when you initially met them, but a few weeks later their schedule is more open!
On a personal note, please remember that networking doesn’t have to be business related! You can volunteer for a favorite charity, serve on a board at your church, coach your kid’s soccer team or have a picnic at the park. Case in point:
- I’ve met clients at night clubs, in the grocery store, on airplanes and on Facebook.
- I’ve met colleagues, collaborators and life-long friends at conferences and birthday parties.
- And I met my husband while volunteering at a music & arts festival in Asheville, North Carolina fourteen years ago this month!!!
You never know when you’ll meet someone that could be a meaningful connection… one that could last for a lifetime!
Here’s to being picky, prepared and present when networking!
Elizabeth
P.S. I’m preparing a speech about networking for a group of women professionals next month. If you have a great networking story to share with me about how you met someone really meaningful, please send me a note – I’d love to hear it!