Live Interaction

This week I want to talk a little bit about putting yourself out there and making yourself available.

I know that in this post-Covid world we’ve all gotten very comfortable with staying home, online meetings and limited social interaction, but that’s a habit that would be beneficial to dispense with.

Getting in front of a person with your body in real life is extremely valuable in networking. Talking through a computer screen just isn’t the same, especially in a group setting. Anyone who has ever lived far away from family members can tell you this. You get more reality on someone you’re sitting with than someone on a screen, it’s just a fact. The reverse is also true, you are more real to the person you are sitting with than someone on a screen.

The moral of this story is that whenever possible, you should always try to attend networking meetings in person. Of course, for non-local members this can’t be helped. But if you’re local and able to attend meetings in person, I strongly urge you to do so.

Don’t get me wrong, attending online is definitely preferable to missing the meeting, but live interaction is so much more valuable and so much more effective.

So, definitely try to attend live as often as possible.

And a note to those of us that need to Zoom in, PLEASE turn on your cameras, make sure you have a stable internet connection and really be there in the meeting for the duration of the meeting. If you’re only giving the group your attention when it’s your turn to speak, it’s not really realistic that you’re learning enough about other group members to be able to refer them.

In addition to making yourself real to the group, it’s important to take care to gain reality on the rest of the group to ensure the two-way flow of referrals.