Around January this year I put my hand up and said I would start some networking activities. Gulp – not something I’ve ever done before and I think like most of us, was feeling a sense of trepidation. Surely when you walk into that room full of people, I am the only one who doesn’t know everyone, or who is new to the whole caper. Well of course not, some people already know each other but you can bet that the majority feel like I did.
Now I’m a few months in and have tried a couple of different approaches – the room of strangers versus the more formal membership lunch and there is something to be said for both types. You do meet more people in the room of strangers approach, but it can be a fairly cold approach and is more of a numbers game. At the more formal lunch everyone gets a chance to introduce themselves to the group, talk about what they are looking for or promote offers for example, perhaps a more straightforward approach. There is less of a “hunting” feel but the groups do tend to be smaller.
I’ve chosen these simple yet useful reminder check lists for networking on the Entrepreneur blog and The Daily Muse.
Hope they help.
