A few months ago, I published a Substack about my struggle with networking called “The Pain of Networking as an Introvert.” Many of the people who read it reached out and shared their own struggle around being introverted and still getting out there and using this essential business skill. They also all said we should do a presentation on the topic. The wonderful people at Venture Cafe Phoenix agreed and let me jump on stage to share my thoughts on the topic and have some fun.
The end result was a presentation followed by some practice on a Thursday night in downtown Phoenix. The audience was packed full of people who were both introverted and extroverted. And we all had a great time. But what made it magical was watching people during the practice session getting over their fears and building connections. It was great and made every minute of time spent creating the presentation worth it.
Unfortunately, it was a busy night in our growing tech ecosystem, so many people who wanted to attend couldn’t. Also, being right before Thanksgiving, there were a lot of “Friendsgivings” that were taking priority over my talk. To help those who wanted to be there, and many who didn’t even know the event existed, we present this blog post with a summary of our 10 suggestions, a link to a PDF of the presentation, and a video of me going through it at my desk a week later.
10 Suggestions for Improved Networking for Introverted Innovators
- Accept your Introversion – It is not going away, so accept it and push through.
- Pick an Opener and Use It – Have a question you ask to get a conversation going.
- Be Concise – Keep your answers to questions and comments to two or three sentences.
- Ask a Question, Then Listen – People like to talk about themselves. Getting the conversation started that way.
- Follow an Extrovert – Let someone who likes networking do the heavy lifting.
- Don’t Take, Give – Be ready to help and build trust by giving.
- Ask for Contact Information – Finish up by asking for contact information, then follow up.
- Don’t Sell, Connect – Don’t sell when you network, create a relationship, then sell.
- Show Up, Keep Showing Up – Be consistent and be seen in a positive light.
- Learn to Breakoff – Sometimes you just need to move on. Get good at it.
This is just a quick summary. Download and read the presentation or watch the video to dig into each of these topics.
Download the Presentation
Here is a PDF of the presentation if you want to download it or read it:
A Deskbound Version of the Talk on Networking for Introverted Extroverts
If that is not good enough, we recorded a desktop version of the presentation. It’s not nearly as good as the live event. Talking to a camera is just not the same as getting feedback from the room. But it is better than just reading the slides. Give it a watch:
Go Forth and Network
I hope you have found these tips and the presentation helpful and that they will make your networking not just less difficult, but more productive. The best advice we can give you is to simply get out there and practice. It gets easier with time, or at least you get more used to the anxiety.
If you found this useful, please consider PADT as your partner for any mechanical engineering needs you have. We work with startups and large OEMs to help them with simulation, design, and additive manufacturing. We would enjoy “networking” with you to see how we might help. Reach out to info@padtinc.com and let’s talk.
To finish up, here are some images from the live presentation:
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