Networking Tips For Introverts

Have you ever stood awkwardly in the corner of a networking event, not wanting to interrupt other people’s conversations and wondering about the earliest acceptable time to leave?  

Not that I speak from experience or anything… ☺ 

Here are some tips to help:

• Be Targeted: Don’t waste your time and energy going to every single event just because you think you “should”. Remember, the point is to build professional relationships that benefit your career. It’s all very well being open to every potential random opportunity etc. etc., but us introverts need to conserve energy or other areas will suffer. 
• Create a Plan: Standing in the corner with a couple of people you already know, achieves nothing. Again, don’t waste your time or energy. Decide in advance who you want to speak to. Arrive, talk to those people, then leave. 
• Set Goals: Decide in advance what you want to achieve in each conversation. Remember, this is about building relationships not closing deals in the room. Feel free to keep it simple. Perhaps the goal is just to introduce yourself, tell them what you do and find out one thing about their work. That information then becomes the foundation for future conversations.
• Keep It Simple:  Don’t worry, you don’t need to dazzle everyone with your in-depth knowledge of the “market”. You’re just as capable as anyone else of having a normal human conversation about regular things. Start there. 
• Follow Up: Remember, the point of this is not just to have random conversations with people that you’ll never meet again. Keep in touch. If you see them at a future event, talk to them. If appropriate, drop them an email or message on LinkedIn to say that you enjoyed meeting them. 

Good luck – and if you’d like some more help feeling confident with networking or business development, CLICK HERE to book a free consult. We’ll chat through your situation in confidence and come-up with one or two concrete steps that you can implement right away.