4 Strategies to Make Business Networking Events More Enjoyable

I used to hate business networking events.

But now, I actually enjoy them.

I used to hate business networking events partly because they actually required me to talk about this business baby that I’d worked so hard to conceive and give birth too, but that now cried all the time and wouldn’t sleep. I felt totally stressed out just trying to get my business to become a responsible and growing infant, let alone a giant.

And now people wanted me to swan into a crowded room and talk about how wonderful my business was with a confident and beaming smile on my face. To be honest, I didn’t even want to talk about my baby at all, not even briefly.

But even if you have a baby that sleeps and is growing well, the initial awkwardness we all experience when talking about our businesses is understandable. Because no one ever sits down with any of us when we start a business to tell us how to speak about it. We have to figure out how to do this along the way.

Luckily, I eventually worked out a way to introduce my business briefly in a way that I was comfortable with, though this took me much longer than it should have done. At the same time, I also discovered a number of ways to enjoy networking events which has completely transformed them for me.

Business networking events are of course just a collection of human beings in a space, the same as a party, wedding or any other event.

And such events are always too fleeting not to be enjoyed. One minute you’re just arriving and trying to work out why the hell there doesn’t seem to be anywhere to get a drink, and the next minute everyone is leaving and the wait staff have already departed.

While yes, a networking event can lead to meeting new clients both directly or through others, I don’t attend them with the expectation that I’m going to work the room and finish the evening with a number of lucrative new contracts. This sounds exhausting (and unachievable) to me.

In my opinion business networking events, as their name suggests, are simply about maintaining and expanding our networks. They’re great for creating connections with new people. And yes, if there’s someone at the event that you really want to meet because you feel that they’d be a great potential client, you can introduce yourself and enjoy a conversation.

Networks of any kind are a beautiful thing in my view, so even if a networking event gives you one person that you’d like to make contact with again, the event has been worth it.

Regardless of whether I want to make contact with anyone I meet or not, I actually now enjoy all business networking events. If you don’t enjoy them much, hopefully at least one of the four approaches below will make them a more positive experience for you:

1. Be Playful When Talking to People

I’ve found that approaching business networking events in a spirit of playfulness makes them a good experience rather than a draining one.

Essentially, this just means that I attend the event to have a good time and that I allow my natural playfulness to be present when I’m talking to anyone whatsoever.

This takes the pressure off me and allows me to take life lightly by sharing the playful side of life. This includes sharing my sense of humour with the person I’m conversing with.

Being playful works well because it establishes a human connection between me and the person I happen to be talking to at the time. It breaks the ice and it helps both of us relax and enjoy the evening.

But even if the person you’re speaking to doesn’t get your joke and remains a piece of lifeless dry cardboard, you’ve still won. You now know that you’re not going to establish a strong connection with this person, and you can diplomatically head back to the bar at an opportune time to have an enjoyable chat with someone else.

I actually learnt about the playful approach to social situations through the awesome business, Master Offline Dating. And yes, I was looking at the website of this particular business because I might have been single and wondering why I’d made such a mess of my previous relationship. But that is a story for another day.

Obviously, I don’t attend business networking events to look for a date. But hear me out, because Camille of Master Offline Dating recommends using playfulness in talking to anyone at all in any context, not just in dating.

I tried this out for myself, and I found that whenever I approached a social situation with playfulness I enjoyed myself so much more. And the person I was talking to even seemed to enjoy our conversation more too. It was absolutely win-win on every level.

2. Share Experiences

Attending a business networking event will always allow you to talk to other people in business, and to share experiences.

We always end up sharing experiences with someone or other at such events. And even if you and the person you’re speaking with approach business completely differently, the conversation can still spark new thoughts or result in you looking at a problem that you’re dealing with differently.

I absolutely love listening to people talk about their businesses and their experiences, because there’s gold in this.

And let’s face it, talking to people who have gone through similar experiences also shores you up and rejuvenates you, because business can be lonely for all of us.

3. Approach Networking Events with the Purpose of Giving

I’m the sort of person who seems to need a goal or a purpose for all social situations.

And I’ve found that I get the most enjoyment out of networking events by approaching them with the purpose of giving, broadly.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m as self-interested as the next person. Probably more, in fact.

But quite simply, approaching a business networking event with the goal of giving provides me with a purpose and guarantees that I can call it a successful evening, no matter what happens.

It also prevents me focusing on what I didn’t get out of it, or worse, wallowing in comparison-itis after the event.

Because there’s always something you can give, whether it’s just a simple compliment, some information you can share, or a connection you can make that may benefit someone.

The broad goal of simply giving whatever you can takes the pressure right out of the situation and makes the event more positive and successful for everyone.

4. Use Networking Events as Grist for the Mill

I don’t know about you, but I grew up a bit of a shy fairy.

As a result, I need to continually find opportunities to talk to people and to expand my life and my horizons to keep my shyness in the past.

So for me, a business networking event is always fabulous, because it’s an opportunity to talk to different people.

They’re just grist for the mill for me.

But even if you’re not shy at all, a business networking event will always give you an opportunity to converse and connect with people in your own industry or other industries, and you’ll hear useful insights and impressions from people that can benefit you or your business, sometimes in ways you’d never anticipated.