Sharing is Caring - Networking

The next article in this series deals with a major fear for many small business owners: networking. You may be wondering how can you meet new people and not be that cheesy salesperson? How do you overcome the fear of going to an event and talking to strangers?

I like this article because it's not the standard approach. It provides six tips on how to prepare, what to do there, and how to build relationships. For example, tip three discusses how to choose who to approach based upon body language. Tip four helps you start meaningful conversations, like asking what someone is working on instead of what they do. If you are shy (like me) then keep in mind that people love to talk about their businesses. All you need to do is show interest and listen. Before you know it, you'll catch yourself having fun and talking about your business!

This article helped me become comfortable with networking. To me networking is about making adult friendships and helping others. The more you help others, the more they want to help you. I apply many of these techniques at every event I go to. I hope these six tips help you feel more comfortable at networking as they did for me. 

You can read the full article here.