Business
Management
VERY GUARDED SECRETS TO STRATEGIC
NETWORKING
NOTES FROM A FRIEND WHO IS WATCHING YOU!
by Louis Feuer, MA, MSW
H
ere I am, sitting alone
counting—card 112,
card 113, card 114. I’m
getting a bit tired of filing all these business
cards and trying to
determine where they came from. I need
to follow some of my own advice. When
these cards on my desk start piling up, I
know it’s time to do something with
them and be more careful as I collect
them. I have always treated these cards
as business leads, but what is scary is
they seem to multiply right before my
eyes. I keep thinking that, if anyone
could see me now, they might suggest I
just toss them.
Why am I sorting these? Well, it’s all about
networking. It’s an art form we all need to
learn, and I thought it was time to talk
about the issue from a more strategic perspective. You may never hear strategies
like this discussed anywhere else!
Get ready! I’ve been watching you! I
wanted to share with you my experiences as a conference voyeur. For many
years, I’ve watched case managers at
meetings and conferences. Some do the
networking scene well; others just aren’t
sure how to play the room. As we find
ourselves in one of the busiest seasons
for meetings, I thought I would give you
some pointers on how to make the most
from every business interaction. Attending a meeting takes time and money, and
getting the best return on your invest-
When you find
yourself doing all
the talking, you
are in my business,
not networking!
TCM 22
November/December 2001
ment is important. And if enough faceto-face meetings are not on your agenda,
you may need help in planning some!
Let’s talk first about the meetings already
on the calendar.
Business Card Central
Let me go back to where I was when I
first stopped to take some time to write
you. Let me tell you how two of those 10
nearly tossed business cards can work for
you. I’ll just put them in a pile as we talk
but ask you to keep in mind they are not
just pieces of paper to be thrown out!
At every meeting you attend, you will
find yourself collecting lots of those colorful business cards. (Please do not give
me the ones with coated pictures on
both sides—I cannot write on them, and
the pictures are so distracting.) I am talking about cards received from people
you want to share information with.
Cards from people who can help you
with your clients. Cards from people you
may want to speak with regarding a new
position. Cards from people you have
not seen in years!
When you first receive the card, make a
note on it about who this person is,
something that will help you remember
her and why you wanted the card.
Sometimes I write what the person was
wearing and the issues I wanted to talk
to him about. These cards often become
the lifeblood of one’s business and the
most valuable result of your attendance
at any meeting.
OK, you now have the card situation
handled, but there is so much more
about networking to discuss. Many of
the pointers I am going to share with
you include tricks for meeting new case
managers and making the most of the
meetings you attend. You spend lots of
money and energy to arrange your
schedule just to get there, so you want to
make the most of your experience.
Top 10 Networking Strategies
1. Don’t hesitate to go to a meeting by
yourself. Often, when you attend a
meeting with a colleague, you find yourself attached at the hip. You don’t spend
time looking for others to talk or go out
with. Your whole time at the meeting is
spent looking for your travel partner and
making sure neither one of you is eating
alone. Take some risks; do not hesitate to
attend the meeting or conference alone.
Many people are in the very same situation. They left work to drive by themselves to the meeting, not sure if they
will know anyone there. Professionals
usually are friendly, willing to make new
friends, and understand what it is like to
be alone at a meeting. They also know
the value of their professional contacts.
2. Look for dinner partners you may not
know. Many people are looking for others to join them for dinner. Unfortunately, some people are shy about asking you
to join them, so you may have to take
the first step. Ask others what plans they
have for dinner. Do they have room for
one more, or is this a business meeting?
Most of the time they will be delighted
to have you join them. The more people
in the group, the more the interaction,
the greater the opportunities to learn
from each other—and a better time to be
had by all.
3. Sit at a table where you do not know
anyone at lunch. Often I see people pick
up their food from a buffet table and
then search the dining area for someone
they know and an empty seat beside her.
They are looking for a buddy to sit with
so they will not have to introduce themselves and feel uncomfortable with the
surroundings. Ever caught yourself
doing that? Now is the time for a new
approach. Take your seat at a table full of
people you do not know. Make sure your
badge is in place and your glasses are on
so you can see the nametags of those sitting around you. Ask if anyone is sitting
in that seat (you never know if it may be
saved), but if it is empty, take it! Introduce yourself to those on both sides of
you. Start a conversation with someone
next to you. Do not just sit there and eat.
You need to make the most of this
unique networking opportunity, and eating should not be your only mission.
4. Avoid sitting by yourself in the educational sessions. I see it all the time
during my own programs. People come
in carrying their coffee, looking for an
aisle seat (guess they want to get out
faster in case of fire), and of course want
to be as far back in the room as possible
so they do not have to get too close to
the speaker (some can be scary at times).
That’s what I thought when I first started
lecturing. Now I realize many people follow this pattern just to be alone. They
sometimes save the seat next to them,
making it appear as if someone else is
coming. What they actually are doing is
trying to avoid having someone sit next
to them. Come on! Look to sit with the
group. Get to the room a few minutes
early so you can take some time to visit
with some of the people sitting around
you, move up to the front, and go to the
center of the row.
you may want to wait until their program
is over. Leave them your card; you can
write a special note about what you are
interested in and whether you would like
them to call you. Get a business card from
them so you can follow up on any information that concerns you.
taking time to just walk around by yourself. Sometimes walking around the
room alone lets you notice someone you
didn’t know was there, possibly someone you wanted to contact. Politicians
probably could teach us all something
about this networking thing.
6. Invite people standing by themselves
to join you in conversation. Standing
alone in a room is uncomfortable. I know
all of you have watched others stand
right next to you, also by themselves.
Take some risks and start a conversation.
Put your hand out and introduce yourself. It may not be the easiest thing to do,
but it will be a move that can lead to a
new friendship. Everyone wants to feel
comfortable at a meeting, make new
friends, and avoid standing out.
9. Show interest in what other people
are doing. You cannot network successfully if you do all the talking. I know you
have the most interesting job in the
whole world (or you are experiencing
the worst case of stress from your job),
but take time to listen to others who may
have some interesting stories to share as
well. When you find yourself doing all
the talking, you are in my business, not
networking! Showing interest in the
work of others is surely one of the best
ways to develop relationships and learn
from others’ experiences. You shouldn’t
make the same mistakes others have
when you can learn from them and
avoid the problems they encountered.
You are more apt to build your network
of colleagues through not only what you
say but also from what you learn from
listening.
7. Make every meal count by scheduling
breakfast and lunch meetings. The best
time for networking is during meals. In a
more relaxed atmosphere, people are
usually not as busy trying to sell themselves. Plan an early morning breakfast,
lunch, or even a short coffee break with
a new friend or colleague. Plan the time
and a convenient location. Many of these
meetings could be scheduled even before
you arrive at the conference.
I keep watching you trying to sit by
yourself. Why? Have a problem talking
to strangers? Are you afraid of rejection?
Something about you turns people off?
Hey, if you are at the meeting, get into
the meeting! If you really want to be
alone, stay home! You can buy the tapes
and avoid all of us.
At a full-day meeting in your community, you may want to call a colleague you
rarely see to find out if she is attending
and make definite plans for lunch. Plan a
lunch meeting just before the afternoon
session. Just as you make the most of the
educational sessions, understand the
value of meal times and social events.
5. Introduce yourself to the speaker.
Many speakers can become wonderful
contacts for future information and idea
sharing. Go up and meet the speakers you
want to know after the program. Often
before the session they are setting up and
may not be paying much attention to anything but their presentation materials, so
8. Work the room at the conference
social event. This strategy takes some
special concentration. Too often I see you
standing in one place for the entire hour
or more during the event. I see you talking to the same people the entire time,
often following them around (especially
if you came with your boss) and never
Stop complaining
about those early
hour sessions.
You are not on a
vacation but a
multifaceted
mission—to grow
personally and
professionally.
November/December 2001
TCM 23
continued
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
10. Do some premeeting planning next
time. Networking can be done most successfully if you plan. Look at the program schedule and see when the social
events take place. Determine whether a
networking breakfast is planned, the
hours the exhibit hall is open, and when
and where people will gather. Mark
these events on your meeting calendar
and consider them as important as any
educational session. Call ahead to friends
or business associates you want to see at
the meeting. Make sure you get up early
and arrive at those roundtable discussion
sessions. Stop complaining about those
early hour sessions. You are not on a
vacation but a multifaceted mission—to
grow personally and professionally. Plan
to stay until the end of the meeting. If
TCM 24
November/December 2001
you have gone through all the effort to
go, take it all in!
Card 114…interesting; card 115…yes,
here’s one I was looking for. Here’s the
card from the case manager who told me
to mind my own business. She told me
she came to the meeting with a close
friend and had no intention of talking to
anyone else and that was her prerogative. OK, to her I must say that, although
this article was not written for you, I
hope you couldn’t resist reading it and
following some of these pointers, and I
promise I won’t tell anyone I saw you
reading these secret strategies!
I certainly would like to hear about any
other strategies you have used to meet
people. Take a moment and contact me
so I can share these secrets with others. I
won’t let them know you told me. And
remember, we all are watching you!
❑
Louis Feuer, MA, MSW, president of Dynamic Seminars & Consulting, Inc., is a nationally recognized lecturer and consultant specializing in the health care industry. He can be
reached at (954) 435-8182 or at www.
Dynamicseminars.com.
Reprint orders: Mosby, Inc., 11830 Westline
Industrial Dr., St. Louis, MO 63146-3318;
phone (314) 453-4350; reprint no. 68/1/120186
doi:10.1067/mcm.2001.120186