No more elevator speeches…. PLEASE

Here is what comes to mind when I think of elevator speeches… It’s artificial and it’s contrived.  Worse, it’s painful, making most of us, whether we are giving or receiving them quite simply…. uncomfortable. There is such a thing, even in networking situations, as a normal conversation.  It is what normal people do.  You make small talk and something in …

Business etiquette - no spamming

Business etiquette tip – Don’t spam your networking contacts!

It seems ridiculous that such an obvious statement needs to be made, but I’ve written about this before – that it’s poor business etiquette to spam someone you’ve met networking. No matter how you sugar-coat it, adding someone to your list without their permission is spamming (see definition on the right). Handing over my business card when I first meet a …

Networking for introverts

Introverts are people who draw energy from the inner world, a world of ideas, pictures and memories.  If you are an introvert, you would probably relate to most of the statements below: Being an introvert does not in any way mean that you are shy, socially inept and any other negative stereotypes that are commonly used.  There are many myths …

Use my name, please!

Consider what happens when you hear someone use your name.  If you are within earshot, your ears prick up.  Whether you intend to or not, you start to pay attention. So when you send emails to your customers or prospects, use their name if you want them to pause before hitting “spam” or “delete”.  Using a person’s name implies that …

Networking with authenticity

I had a very enjoyable catch up with a friend a few days ago which started me thinking about the topic of networking.  We had caught up to exchange updates about our respective lives and to debrief about a recent connection that I had facilitated for her.  The lunch was lovely, conversation interesting and potential contacts discussed.  Did this make …