To be frank, the thought of networking makes me want to throw up. The introverted side of me comes out and all I want to do is retreat into my shell. Questions start whirling around in my head: what if they don’t like me? What if I don’t know what to say? What if there is an awkward silence?
While I was on this trip last year, I would rationalize not introducing myself or starting a conversation, and from time to time I still catch myself doing it today. I would tell myself, “Oh, you can just email them, there is a really long line of people wanting to talk to them, I will do it next time.” Looking back now, by not having those one-on-one conversations, I was missing out on important connections, insights, and knowledge.
While my legs still turn to jello at the thought of networking events, I have come up with a few tricks and tips that helped me this year in New York to overcome that anxiousness. For all those fellow identifying introverts I hope this can help and give a little guidance as you continue networking …
- Come with a list of questions beforehand
- When in doubt, ask about their journey or themselves
- Go up right after the presentation is done, so that you do not have time to change your mind
- At the very least, just introduce yourself and say thank you
- They want to talk to you just as much as you want to talk to them
- Katey