I'm sure you've heard the saying, "Don't judge a book by it's cover." And, yet, I know that when I am in the bookstore ... I often do just that. If the cover looks amateurish or if it doesn't grab my attention, I pass it by.
When you are out networking, you are constantly being "judged" by the people you are spending time with. Folks who are networking and seem desperate in theirr approach or needy - well, people can sense that and I promise you that these folks' networking results will not be what they had hoped they would be. And that is because people will avoid them or figure out ways to limit their exposure to them.
This is true no matter how polished a person may be in appearance or in presentation. The bottom line is that a person's intent will always be apparent to those around them.
Don't let this be you. Just about every networking guru out there will tell you that networking should be about building relationships and about seeing how you can help others - FIRST. The getting comes later.
So, if you are networking to "GET" something, please know that you probably won't be as successful in your networking endeavors as you would be if you were more focused on how you can be of service to others.
Spend some time before your next networking event thinking about the ways that you can be of service to the people that you are hoping to meet. Put those ideas into practice. You'll find that more people are willing to spend time with you when you focus on them rather than on yourself.
I know it takes a leap of faith and courage to do this. But I do hope that you will try it!
Happy Connecting!
