58UnNetworkingWhy Networking Events Are Evil
Last month, Scott attended a local networking event that made him realize the difference between old- and new-school networking. It happened all within five minutes, all at the same table he was standing beside.
Old School: A real estate agent, with card already in hand, walked up to Scott and introduced himself, shoving his card at him. Scott replied with his name and asked why he was giving him the card. His reply was, “That's what we're here for, to exchange information, to network!” Scott told him he didn't have any cards and proceeded to listen to him talk about his website and how if we gave him our cards that he had a section where he would post a link to us and in return we could post one for him on ours! Ta-da! Sigh.
New School: Three minutes later, Scott recognized Danny. Since he'd been talking to him on Twitter for months, they're like old college buddies and he gave him a huge hug. No awkward, “So what do you do?” questions with elevator-speech answers. No card exchange. Just a genuine great feeling of meeting somebody in person who you feel you already know—because you already do.
Going in cold to a networking event is like showing up for a dance at a high school you just transferred to, except at this dance, you have a stack of business cards in your hand and pass them out to everyone. It's awkward, intimidating, and a huge reason that many people who are even the slightest bit introverted don't go to them.1 And if ...
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