Professional Networking with Attitude (The Right One)

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I recently led my very first coaching field trip!

One of my NYC Audacity Coaching clients, Avia, shared with me in her coaching session that she HATED professional networking. She attended different networking events and Meetups in the hopes of meeting the right people – people who could help her with the launch of her first startup – but she didn’t feel like  she was making any meaningful connections. She was leaving these events defeated and deflated. She shared, “I’ve decided that I’m just no good at networking.” And, being the Audacity Coach and all, I responded with, “That’s a load of crap! You just need a different attitude and some practice!”

So, on the very next Wednesday evening, Avia and I set out on a networking field trip!

We attended two vastly different networking events. The first was the Bizcocoon Strategy Session in a posh co-working space down on Wall Street. This event had a formal agenda: round-the-room introductions, short address by the event organizers, facilitated discussion and then informal networking. There we met lots of startup entrepreneurs, like Avia, who were there to discuss common goals, success stories, shared needs and frustrations. We mingled, collected business cards, practiced our elevator pitches, and set up and handful of follow-up coffees and phone calls with key individuals.

After a couple hours of hobnobbing, we hopped in a cab to head over to our next venue.

The second event was the monthly GenJuice Jam Session at a bar in the Lower East Side – a completely different vibe. Here we were surrounded by GenY innovators who are looking to connect with likeminded peeps, including a few people we both already knew. This was much less formal: less suits, more jeans, smaller group and no agenda. The GenJuice event allowed for longer one-on-one conversations in the moment.

As we walked out together, Avia recapped her experiences. Listening to her new-found perspective on networking, I identified several tips on professional networking to share with you:

• Know your scene – Are you better at facilitated events in office spaces, like Bizcocoon, or do you thrive in the unstructured setting of the bar, like GenJuice? Go to the venues that are more you as you are more likely to be yourself.
• Be intentional - Don’t just go to go – go with a purpose. Identify a clear objective going into a networking event (e.g. practice my elevator pitch with potential investors) so that you ensure the event is a good use of your time.
• Work the room – Have meaningful conversations with the right people and politely move on from the wrong ones. Don’t get cornered by someone who is pitching a service to you that you have no interest in and miss out on talking to someone you are looking to connect with.
• Set clear follow-up plans – Explicitly tell the people that you want to establish relationships with that you will call or email them tomorrow or invite them to coffee next Wednesday. Then follow through!!!

Networking is a vital skill for all professionals, especially entrepreneurs. You have to be able to make connections in order to find the right resources and support for your business dreams. And networking is rarely a skill that people just have – it’s something you have to learn through trial and error. Hear me again: The only way to improve your professional networking skills is to get out there and do it.

So get out there! Hop on Meetup.com and find your peeps.

P.S. And if you are in the NYC area, I’m always out and about at these kinds of events. Let me know if you’d like to meet up at one.