Nine Tips to be Brilliant at Networking

Most people’s worst nightmare is walking into a room full of strangers and having to “network”. But it needn’t be an ordeal – you can be brilliant at it if you have the right mindset and are prepared. Here are some tips.

Manage your mindset

Mind and body are linked, and if you go in with negative thoughts in your head, this will affect your body language, facial expression and tone of voice and you will not have the positive impact that you intend. So banish any negative thoughts (“I’m no good at this….. no-one will want to talk to me….I won’t know anyone…”) and replace them with positive thoughts (“I’m excited to meet new people….I’m curious about who will be there….it will be interesting to find out what they do…”).

Be prepared

Find out who is likely to be there and what they are interested in. If you have already met some of them, remind yourself of who they are and what you talked about last time. Before the event, set yourself an achievable target (eg to make three new connections) and don’t feel you have to work the whole room, as this can put you under unnecessary pressure.

Practise your introduction

We don’t often say our own names out loud, so practise saying your own name (“Hello, I’m Catherine Stothart…..”). Add a short simple sentence that describes what you do or who you work for (“I recruit analysts for software companies”). If you pause, they will follow this by introducing themselves, and you can take the conversation on from there (“that’s interesting, can you tell me more about that……”).

Build rapport

When you meet people, you only have a few seconds to get their attention and they are already making up their minds about you. Behave as if you are confident (even if you don’t feel it) – make eye contact, smile, shake hands (if appropriate, depending on social and cultural norms), speak clearly. Match the physical energy of the other person – speed up if they are speaking quickly, slow down if they are speaking in a more measured way.

When you meet someone for the first time, repeat their name (so you remember it) and use their name when you speak to them, as this shows they are important to you. Later, make a note of the names of their partner and children and any topics you discuss, so you can refer to them next time you meet.

Ask questions and listen

Most people like talking about themselves, so ask open questions beginning with what and how, to develop the conversation. Show you are listening to the answers by maintaining eye contact, nodding, and by asking follow-up questions or building on what they have said. Make affirming statements and build connections (“I’ve heard good things about…..I know someone who works there….”). Make links with what you do.

Avoid surreptitiously looking around the room to see who might be more interesting to talk to – they will notice!

Offer help to them

We sometimes think that the purpose of networking is to get something for ourselves, but a more helpful approach is to think of it as an opportunity to do something for someone else. Offer ideas and suggestions, introduce them to other people you know, give them connections – they will remember you for helping them and might reciprocate in future.

Move on

Remember that networking events are for networking. This means that you don’t want to spend the whole time with one person, and they don’t want to spend all their time with you either. So find an appropriate point in the conversation to move on and practise what you might say (eg “it’s been interesting talking to you…..I’ll let you move on……I’ll drop you an email….I’ll look you up on Linkedin….”).

After the event

Make notes of who you met and their main interests. Think how you might develop the contact further – do you have some information they might be interested in, can you pass on an article or a link to them, how can you connect with them again? As a minimum, invite them to join your Linkedin network, and personalise the connection request (“it was good meeting you at….”).

Networking with social media

The most used networking channel for people in HR is LinkedIn. Whichever one you use, here’s how to be brilliant:

Do:

• Make sure your profile is up to date and your headline has the best information about you
• Like and comment on other people’s posts
• Post links to articles that you have found useful or helpful
• Get people’s attention by engaging with their posts.
• Remember your digital footprint lasts forever.
• Post regularly at consistent times.
• Create habits for when to check your social media.

Avoid:

• Wasting time “doom-scrolling” and feeling FOMO.
• Reacting or fighting back when people disagree or criticise you – although you may want to clarify your point if it has been misinterpreted.
• Becoming obsessive about checking your social media.
• Posting items that could damage your brand and reputation.

Find more helpful tips for being a brilliant communicator in my latest book: How to Get On with Anyone: Even the Difficult Ones

The post Nine Tips to be Brilliant at Networking appeared first on Catherine Stothart – Essenwood.