For many entrepreneurs, the prospect of a conference is filled with joyous anticipation. The meeting and greeting and discussing speaker events and laughing and talking and dressing up and going to parties.
I’m in not in that demographic. I recognize how valuable the conference is but I feel overwhelmed. Large, chatty groups make me nervous. I don’t know if I can connect with anyone and during the most recent conference I attended the prospective client connections I made were because of sheer luck. One I met by chance at the hotel where we were the only diners in the deserted restaurant. I didn’t know she was a prospective client until she started talking about her company and how they were looking for people like me.
Yes, I realize that my networking chops aren’t exactly stellar. I prefer social interactions in groups of 3 or less. However, I'm not in the "Other people are quite dreadful. The only possible society is oneself" league (Oscar Wilde). I like people very much otherwise I wouldn't be a life coach, but many people at once can induce a rapid sensory overload.
I lead workshops and programs, and I give talks. But once I’m “off-line” or away from the meeting room, I collapse like over-cooked (fill-in-the-vegetable). And I’d rather spend an evening reading or writing or Netflix bingeing than go to a party.
However, the bottom line is I have to get out and meet prospects because that’s a major life-line for my business. And attending conferences is one of most efficient ways to grow my network.
So, what’s an introvert to do? The following is what I discovered and I should mention that some of these ideas are from Entrepreneur and Cell Mentor.
Before you go:
Make a list of the people you want to connect with. This means carefully going through the conference materials, looking up people who seem interesting. Look at their profiles and scan their social media. It may seem like a lot of work, but it’s better than freezing with a plastered grin – as I did.
ALSO: Don’t overload your list. If you have a 2-day event, it may be enough to connect with 5 people. Trying to connect with twice as many will exhaust your resources.
Make a brief vid introducing you to your person and send it via social media. Make it personal. Talk about what that person does and why you connect with that. Don’t pitch. Just form the connection, especially if they have a booth where you should buy an item or sign up for a webinar offering.
Use social media to connect with your person/s before the event. This will break the ice and you can look forward to seeing a familiar face.
Draft a list of questions you want to talk about. This will give you something to talk about instead of saying “I really liked your talk/booth/cowboy boots.”
Find someone you can buddy up with for the conference. This may be hard for introverts, but you’ll know who this is because they’re easy to talk to and are more outgoing than you. Otherwise, you may end up retreating to your room.
Take breaks. You don’t have to go to every single talk. Give yourself some space to evaluate, review notes, sit on a comfy hotel sofa and zone out.
This one really appeals:
Go to smaller conferences where the pool is likely to include people you may already know.
So I learned something. And now I’m prepared for the next conference. Hope to see you there -- and let's connect before we go!
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