Last week I was preparing for an upcoming presentation on networking blunders and how to avoid them. As I outlined many of the common places that networkers stub their toes, I thought about when and why these blunders occur. Many of the blunders (trying to meet everyone at the event, aimlessly passing out cards, holding up the wall, etc.) are nothing more than nervous networkers who have forgotten, or neglected to define, their personal reasons for being at the event. Too often, I see professionals showing up at events and staying in constant motion but never making progress. Like most things in life and all things in your business, if you want to see results from your activities you must get intentional with your behavior- networking is no different.
When it comes to networking, you are going to get more out of your activities if you have a clear agenda or goal. When you go to an event whether it is a cocktail party, a kid’s soccer game, or a monthly networking event, think about your reason for attending before you go. Decide ahead of time, what you want to get out of the event. Have an explicit objective and a way to measure whether or not you have met your objective. Having an objective and a metric for the event will allow you to measure your progress, help you enjoy networking, and save you time.
In my early days of sales, I had a fantastic mentor who taught me to have a clear agenda and goal for every meeting. She taught me that it didn’t matter if the meeting was a casual coffee, a well-planned sales demo, or a cocktail reception with the new associates, to have a successful meeting you had to know up front why you were attending the meeting. I know, I know, it sounds simple but most of us neglect to explicitly define our objectives unless it is the big daddy meeting that we have spent hours preparing for. Even fewer of us take the time to determine our purpose for networking events. Yet, without a clear purpose for the meeting or event, there is no way to have a metric and thus no way to know if your activities were a success or a bust. Many of us gauge the results of our meetings on gut-feelings rather than off of measurable data. I know I certainly did. There was a time when I thought a good networking event was anytime that I walked out of the event feeling great regardless of whether I truly advanced the ball. By having a pre-set goal and a pre-determined measure for success, you can actually measure your productivity rather than your mood.
Having an objective and a metric for networking events will take the pressure off of you and allow you to enjoy the event. If you are someone who dislikes traditional networking, I am going to guess the displeasure is probably because you feel like it is waste of your time. You spend all night chatting with people and passing out cards with no idea whether your efforts put any money in your pocket. My clients often tell me that networking takes too much time sifting and sorting to find the “right” people and not enough time chatting with the “right” people. This always makes me chuckle as savvy networkers know that the value of networking is not necessarily in who you meet at the event but in who those people know. But, I digress, if you dislike networking you can transform the experience by deciding up front that the event is a good use of your time IF you gain an introduction to a specific person, learn a certain piece of knowledge, or perhaps meet 5 new people. You get to decide for yourself what makes the event a success. Determining an objective and a metric in advance will keep you personally motivated, keep your actions in line with your objectives, and pull you out of the murky waters of trying to meet every fish that enters the networking pond.
Finally having a pre-determined objective and metric for the networking event will save you time. Some networking events are high-energy and a fabulous way to spend an evening. Others seem to drag by in painful agony. If you know in advance exactly why you are attending an event you will know when an event doesn’t meet your criteria and you can abort the mission. The only thing worse than simply being in motion is being in motion at the wrong event. Save yourself your most precious commodity-YOUR TIME, and avoid activity for the sake of activity. Take control of your business development and get intentional about where and how you spend your time. If an event is worthy of your time, it is worthy of your thought before you attend.
About Jonelle- Jonelle Vold is a business coach that is passionate about your success. A mother of twins, former Assistant Dean at a tier-one law school, attorney, and seasoned sales professional, Jonelle understands the challenges of high-level professionals. Her coaching philosophy is every person has the ability to be a rainmaker by cracking their own personal code and doing business with intention. You can reach Jonelle at jonelle@jonellevold.com, 520-225-9053, or www.jonellevold.com. Short-Term-Massive-Action Group Coaching Classes starting on June 1, 2011, jonelle@jonellevold.com for details.
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