Although I love meeting new people and making new friends the idea of walking into a room full of strangers and making polite conversation fills me with dread.  

So if you're like me and networking is something that you do for business rather than pleasure here are eight ideas to help make your networking less stressful and more productive.  

1. Select the right group 

All networking events are not the same.  They vary from cocktail style functions where you are expected to be able to mingle and work the room to speed networking where you have to be ready to talk to ten to twenty people in rapid succession. 

Select a facilitated networking group where everyone gets a chance to meet other attendees in a structured format, or a round table format where it's easy to talk to the people sitting next to you. 

2. Find out what to expect in advance

Its a lot less stressful if you know what to expect. you can prepare yourself mentally and there are less likely to be any uncomfortable surprises.

• What is the format?
• Who will be there?
• What is the dress code?
• What do you need to take?

3. Don't go alone

Take a friend or business associate for moral support. Plan a mutual support strategy so that you rescue each other when it all gets too hard.

4. Be prepared 

• Know what you want to achieve
• Have business cards
• Have questions ready to ask
• Know what you want to say about your business
• Dress so you feel comfortable

5. Remember it's more important to be interested than interesting

Encourage other people to talk about themselves by asking questions. Be genuinely interested in their responses. They will love you for it. Most people love to talk about themselves and it takes the pressure off you to feel as though you have to be interesting.

6. Arrive early and offer to help the organiser 

Your best connection at a networking event is the organiser - they are a good networker and they know everyone  at the event. They will appreciate your help and will probably be more than willing to introduce you to some great connections. 

The organiser will also be able to tell you who is new and may not know anyone.. an opportunity for you to talk to someone who is probably even more uncomfortable than you.

One of the best places to be is on the registration table. You have a job so you don't feel uncomfortable and it's a great way to connect with everyone so you don't feel so uncomfortable starting conversations later. 

7. Set realistic goals depending on the format of the event

Some events make it easy to connect with 10 or more new people while at others you may be struggling to meet more than two. Focus on quality not quantity and find out as much as you can about the people you meet. The value of networking comes from the quality of the relationships you build after the event - not the number of people you exchange cards with at the event.

If you have set clear objectives for the event then you can keep focussed on meeting the objective rather than letting your mind settle on how uncomfortable you feel. 

 

8. Look for allies not clients

Many small business owners are uncomfortable in a sales role. Treat networking as a means of developing strategic alliances and referral networks not a means of finding leads. You and the people you meet will be more comfortable and the potential of the long term relationships you will develop will far outweigh the short term benefits of a once off sale.  

Those are just a few ideas to help you survive your next networking event. These are just a few of the things that have helped me. I hope they help you.  If you have other strategies to help make networking less stressful please share them in the comments box below.