When you stop “networking” and start talking to people like an actual human being, you’ll make great connections
How often have you attended a networking event or conference, and heard people ask “How do I meet the right people?”
Or maybe you’ve heard someone say something like “I want to make the right connections.”
When people ask, “How do I find the people who are relevant.” I get really annoyed.
It’s a pretty common type of question. A lot of it caused by networking “experts” teaching people to treat networking like some kind of battle plan.
It’s time to get out of that obnoxious mindset.
You’re in a situation with a high capacity for serendipity.
Open yourself up to meeting somebody who might not be obviously “relevant” but could turn out to be the most fascinating person you’ve ever met – or could be connected to people who ARE relevant to you! You just don’t know until you take time to get to know people.
All it takes is one personal connection. One great meeting.
It’s not about the influence someone has; it’s about who they are and what they bring to the table. It doesn’t matter what the first chess move is, because that person could facilitate a second, even more powerful move down the line. You could meet your next business partner, an amazing designer, someone with knowledge in a field you need help in. All it takes is one interaction, one meeting, one time when you didn’t start by trying to guess how useful someone would be before you talked to them.
The bottom line is this: when you stop networking to get business and start acting like an actual human being, you will win in more ways than you thought possible.