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Networking Information |
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Five Stumbling Blocks To Successful Networking And How To Overcome Them
The ability to connect with people is essential to success in any business. Professional networking events present opportunities to interact with others on a personal level and to develop profitable relationships. These occasions are critical for anyone who wants to grow a business or promote a career. Many people are simply not comfortable walking into a room full of strangers and striking up conversations. Here are five common stumbling blocks that you may face and tips to help you overcome them. A RELUCTANCE TO TALK TO STRANGERS. You were taught at an early age not to speak to people you don't know. It's not safe. In certain situations today this is still good advice. In business, however, talking to strangers is a way to generate interest and support for your products and services. If you only talk to the people you already know, you will miss out on opportunities to make new connections and establish valuable contacts. To get past your discomfort in talking to strangers, set a goal for yourself before you attend any networking event. Decide how many new contacts you want to make or how many strangers you want to meet. In some cases, you may specifically target individuals whom you'd like to know. Next come up with some icebreakers or conversation starters. Have questions prepared that you can ask anyone you meet at the event. You may want to inquire about other people's business, their connection to the sponsoring organization or their opinion of the venue. LACK OF A FORMAL INTRODUCTION. It's much easier to make a new contact when there is someone else to handle the introduction and pave the way. If you wait for another person to make the move you may not meet anyone. At networking events, the goal is to meet as many people as possible. This is the time to take the bull by the horns, walk up to people you don't know, introduce yourself and start a conversation. You can do this if you have prepared your self-introduction in advance. You will not introduce yourself the same way on every occasion. Perhaps it is your first time to attend an association meeting. In that case, you might want to say that as part of your introduction. Let people know who you are, why you are there and give them a reason to ask more abut you. FEAR OF BEING SEEN AS PUSHY. You may think that you will turn people off if you are assertive and that if they want to talk to you, they will make the first move. If this is your line of thinking you will find yourself spending your time alone at the reception or meeting function and leaving without a single new connection. Being open, friendly and interested does not turn people off. You will not come across as overly aggressive if you seek out the "approachable" people. These are the ones who are standing alone or who are speaking in groups of three or more. Two people talking to each other are not approachable because they may be having a private conversation and you would be interrupting. THINKING THAT OTHER PEOPLE MAY NOT LIKE YOU. There is always the risk that the other person is not interested in you and doesn't want to meet or talk to you. It happens. If that is the case, don't take it personally. Nothing ventured is nothing gained. When you get a cold shoulder, smile, move on and say to yourself, "Next?" HAVING YOUR INTENTIONS MISUNDERSTOOD. Approaching someone of the opposite sex to begin a conversation may seem more like flirting than networking. This is more of an issue for women than men. Women have an equal place in the work arena and need to make professional connections the same as men do. Women in business can no longer afford to hold back when there is opportunity at hand. Neither men nor women will have their motives misinterpreted if they present themselves professionally in their attire and if they keep the conversation focused on business issues or topics that are not personal or private. Whatever your stumbling blocks, face them before the next networking event and devise a personal plan for getting past them. Once you do, you will find yourself connecting with confidence and courtesy on every occasion and the results will be reflected in your bottom line. (c) 2005, Lydia Ramsey. All rights in all media reserved. Lydia Ramsey is a business etiquette expert, professional speaker, corporate trainer and author of MANNERS THAT SELL - ADDING THE POLISH THAT BUILDS PROFITS. She has been quoted or featured in The New York Times, Investors' Business Daily, Entrepreneur, Inc., Real Simple and Woman's Day. For more information about her programs, products and services, e-mail her at lydia@mannersthatsell.com or visit her web site http://www.mannersthatsell.com.
MORE RESOURCES: Get the most out of networking during BREW this week Greater Baton Rouge Business Report Networking group builds businesses | Local News Brunswick News Motivated and inspired: Two local women create networking-based company to empower women Press of Atlantic City Global $50+ Billion Industrial Networking Solutions Market Trajectory & Analytics to 2027 - ResearchAndMarkets.com Business Wire Businesses grow in-house networking expertise to meet new challenges Channel Asia Singapore Data Center Networking Market Competitive Landscape and In depth Analysis by Recent News 2021 to 2027 KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Interface Shares its top Networking Predictions for 2021 GlobeNewswire What Is Your Social Networking Style? Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley Smart Grid Networking Market Analysis, Insights, Trends, Key Players, Drivers and Forecast KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Home Networking Device Market Is Expected To Grow At A CAGR Of 5.55% In The Forecast Period Of 2020 To 2027 KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper State of the Cities Post-Event Virtual Networking - Denver Business Journal New York Business Journal F.C. Chamber Hosts Virtual Networking “Luncheon” Falls Church News Press challenges opportunities of integrated networks Medical Economics What’s the secret to successful networking? - Lawyers Weekly Lawyers Weekly Is Palo Alto Networks Stock a Buy? The Motley Fool N.J. cannabis business community packs online networking session in preparation for legal marijuana NJ.com Wireless Mesh Networking (Wmn) Market Future Demands, Companies, Trends, Share and Size Forecast 2021-2027 NeighborWebSJ SSi Canada Partners with SES Networks to Deliver New Satellite Capacity into Northern Canada Business Wire Why Ceragon Networks Stock Rocketed 54% Friday Motley Fool Networking giant Ubiquiti alerts customers of potential data breach BleepingComputer AirHop Communications Joins the Open Networking Foundation to Collaborate on 5G Near-Real-Time RAN Intelligent Controller Business Wire F5 Networks will buy Volterra cloud computing startup for $500M in latest major acquisition GeekWire DMS Announces #1 Rank On Best CPA Networks For Advertisers List Valdosta Daily Times Trump admin halts shipments of supplies to Chinese tech giant Huawei - Business Insider Business Insider 5G networks and the public cloud Light Reading Massive Growth of Edge Computing Market by Top Key Players – Nokia Networks (Finland), Huawei (China), Juniper Networks (US), Dell (US), Cisco Systems (US) KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Software-Defined Perimeter (SDP) Market 2021 Demand, Trends and Forecast | Intel Corporation, Juniper Networks Inc., Palo Alto Networks Inc., CERTES NETWORKS INC., RSA Security LLC KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Global Data Center Fabric Market 2021 | By Top Leading Vendors like Juniper, Extreme Networks, Cisco, Huawei, Arista Networks, Ibm, Avaya, Hp, Brocade, Dell, and More… KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Juniper Networks and Türk Telekom Create Joint Innovation Path for Accelerated Open RAN Development and Deployment Business Wire Application Delivery Networks Adn Market Features of Investment Opportunities 2021-2026 , Top Keyplayers – , Array Networks, Hewlett-Packard (HP), Dell, Inc., Citrix Systems, Inc., etc. KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Optical Transport Network Market has Huge Growth in Industry | Tejas Networks, Juniper Networks, Ciena, Fastech Telecommunications, etc KSU | The Sentinel Newspaper Juniper Networks and Türk Telekom establish Open RAN 5G partnership DataCentreNews Europe Promos start to reveal networks' 2021 inauguration branding NewscastStudio Maine's medical networks plan large-scale vaccination clinics Kennebec Journal & Morning Sentinel Brazil to allow Huawei into 5G networks Developing Telecoms A New Holographic Photostimulation Solution Technology Networks How to prioritize networks on Android TechRepublic The new social networks - Meltwater Bizcommunity.com 'Pivotal role' Open Networks Project plays in energy transition to continue through fifth year Current News Scripps Moving Multicast Networks onto Ion TV Stations TV Technology We Think Aviat Networks's (NASDAQ:AVNW) Statutory Profit Might Understate Its Earnings Potential Simply Wall St The World Social Forum and the advances of global citizens networks PRESSENZA – International News Agency Stakeholders Are Competing for Control of Radio Networks Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence LatticeX Summarises Guidance On Stablecoin & Cypto-Payment Networks The Taiwan Times 'An absolutely disgraceful moment': News anchors express shock at revolting turn at U.S. Capitol USA TODAY Expression Networks Enjoy Open: Gaultier Takes Crown - Professional Squash Association PSA World Tour Stocks To Watch: Bajaj Finance, Den Networks, HCL Tech, L&T Finance Holdings, PVR, SAIL BloombergQuint How to Network When There Are No Networking Events Harvard Business Review Hulu Live Is Adding These 14 Networks to Its Channel Lineup Clark.com - Clark Howard Remote Networking as a Person of Color Harvard Business Review China's Secret War for US Data Blew American Spies' Cover Foreign Policy As Understanding of Russian Hacking Grows, So Does Alarm The New York Times Five steps for networking during a pandemic Nature.com How to Host a Virtual Networking Event Harvard Business Review The New Rules for Networking in the Pandemic The Wall Street Journal |
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