How do YOU feel about networking?
Do you love it? Hate it?
Did you know that roughly 25% of business professionals don’t network at all? Considering that 85% of jobs are filled through networking, that statistic should sound surprising! If networking is so critical to finding new leads, why do so many people avoid this important business strategy?
It’s likely that people are going into networking with the wrong mindset; namely, that they are there to find clients. No wonder then, when they push themselves to get out into these spaces, they feel overwhelmed, intimidated, self-conscious, and uncomfortable. The lack of positive results further reinforces their belief that networking doesn’t work for them and they eventually wind up not doing it at all.
When this vicious cycle happens to my clients, my advice to them is to do a “NETWORKING MINDSET RESET:”
- Stop thinking about obtaining new clients, and instead shift your focus to finding resources for your current clients and
- When you do find a receptive ear, talk about your clients and their business successes
This changes the tone of your interactions from talking about yourself and your business to applauding the success of others you’ve worked with and encouraging people you’ve just met to talk about themselves and their business. Let’s explore the value of this mindset reset further.
Mindset Reset #1: Find resources for your current clients
You’ve encouraged the person you’ve just met at a networking event to talk about their business, and as you’re listening you’re thinking through your client list in search of a potential match. If you identify one, you’ve helped both a new business contact and your client. Even if you don’t, the conversation is already off on the right foot as far as the other person is concerned. The truth is that everyone likes to talk about themselves and your approach shows your genuine interest in being a resource instead of just trying to “sell your business.” This “opens them up” and when it comes time to talk about who you are and what value your business brings to others, they are more likely to listen to find similar opportunities.
Even with this mindset, however, there will be new contacts you engage in conversation who won’t be interested in listening to what you have to say, and this is perfectly fine. Remember that, ultimately, you are looking for the right connections and resources who are also interested in your business and helping it to advance, whether it’s by becoming a client, referring someone else as a potential client, or helping your existing list of clients. If you find yourself in this situation, remember that you can easily move on to chat with someone else, confident there are a number of meaningful business connections you can make.
Mindset Reset #2: Talk about your clients and their successes
When you do find an interested party, you further reduce the pressure you feel to “self-promote” when you focus instead on your clients and their success in the growth of their business. Using a few short examples, describe what your clients needed before they met you and how you helped to solve some of their problems. Stories are great because they emotionally engage people, and the person you’re talking to is able to develop a clear idea of the type of clients you serve, your effectiveness, and the kind of results you can produce.
Networking becomes a chore when you view it as just a way to advance your own interests. The reality is that it’s extremely rare for a person you’ve just met to hire you on the spot and you would do well to evolve your thinking and mindset on this critical business strategy.
Still feeling intimidated? Need help practicing how these conversations might go? I’d love to help. Let’s touch base and schedule a time to reset your networking mindset!
