BBQ’s and networking – food for thought?!
Founder & CEO at The Muse; Contributor to HBR, WSJ & Bloomberg
I often tell people to “network your face off,” especially when it comes to making those crucial connections inside and outside your existing company & role. To me, networking is more than dry conversations at business events — it’s the personal relationships between you and others in your field that drive access and opportunity. This summer, my best career tip is to leverage the fun and social nature of summer to build your network in an authentic, meaningful way
Full article here
Some of the comments the article elicited
Whether the event is social or business if people are there because they’ve been invited or have gone for a particular reason – as you have done then there is the opportunity for conversation. From conversation, asking questions, listening then there is always the potential find connections – common between you in terms of people, likes, dislikes, business challenges, life challenges, children, politics, education – you get the picture. When that common ground has been established we are all good at offering answers – either someone we know, something we’ve read, a website we’ve visited – helping someone else – that’s the basis of networking!
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Stacy J.Educator in San Diego, CANetworking doesn’t have to mean passing out your business card to everyone at an event (which someone did at one of my parent’s Christmas parties once!)…that’s tacky. But just having a conversation about who you are…who they are… typically involves what you do for a living. And you can always ask “Are you on Linkedin?”, and then do more networking there.
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Eric H.Executive Director at Organization Management GroupNetworking is not a science, it is an art. You can network anywhere with anyone, as this article states it is simply about making relationships. For those of you saying you cannot network at a BBQ then what do you consider yourself doing when talking with someone new? You are networking, you are getting to know that person, surely they will say something that sticks with you – that is networking.
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Lesley J. D.University of Florida Executive MBA 2013 Graduate!I believe many posters here are taking the negative view of networking. Networking is basically building relationships. Your network or relationship is a two way street. It is not merely “what can you do for me,” but “how can I help you!” Building relationships without the underlying pressure of ‘networking’ is perfectly acceptable at a Bar-B-Que. For my summer Bar-B-Que, the more the merrier. PLEASE bring a guest!
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Sandra A.* Social Media for Business *I only have to mention that I work in Social Media, and people want to know more, I have networked on a New Year Cruise and with my bathroom fitter who wanted to know how to implement Social Media for his business. I say take every available opportunity.
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Glenn O.SQF Registered Consultant | *BRC Registered Consultant | IFS | FSSC | HACCP Consultant — Glenn Oster Consulting, LLCWe are having a big BBQ on the 4th of July. Anyone found to be networking will be ejected. 🙂
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Bristol Business Network 