You know those times when you do NOT want to go to that networking event? (Or make that sales call.)
It’s cold. You don’t want to squeeze into your Spanx. Or make small talk with strangers.
I get it.
It’s the same feeling I get when I don’t want to go out for my morning run.
Today, I delayed for hours. It’s in the low 20s and icy from all of the snow and sleet that New York City got this week. The last thing I wanted to do was go outside into what was surely to be a dreadful experience.
So after blowing almost three hours doing nothing productive… I finally pushed myself out of the nest.
And here’s what happened:
- I noticed that the scaffolding at 81st & Columbus is gone after four years. Finally!
- I passed the movie trailer for Lucy & Desi outside of Shake Shack
- I helped a pregnant woman who had fallen on a patch of ice
- I joked around with these characters with balloons outside of Lincoln Center (see pic) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
- I learned that the best part of a Butternut Squash is in the neck
- I spotted someone who looked like Alec Baldwin (but probably wasn’t)
- I made a game of dodging piles and miles of snow banks
- I saw intrepid New Yorkers going about their business
- And I reveled in the fact that it’s super sunny and nice outside and laughed at myself for making a bigger deal of the weather conditions than it merited
What does this have to do with networking?
It’s usually not nearly as awful as you imagine it to be.
Get yourself out there and be open to the adventure of what you’ll discover along the way. Make a game of it. And who knows…
- Maybe you’ll bump into someone or something that’s really cool
- Maybe you’ll learn something new
- Maybe you’ll have the opportunity to help someone
- Maybe you’ll meet someone who can help you
- Maybe you’ll laugh
- Maybe it’ll totally suck and you’ll need to make a game of it
- Maybe you’ll learn something by observing master networkers
- Maybe it’ll be super fun and you’ll want to go to more events
Every event won’t be like a jaunt through New York (yes, I Heart NYC). But with experience, you’ll get better at choosing the ones that are and make the best of those that aren’t!
