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- I paid $355 to attend a conference
I paid $355 to attend a conference
INSIDE: Networking, Sunrise Conference, Talking to People
In my entire 5 years of software engineering experience, I have NEVER been to a conference before. It wasn't really 'cause it was expensive. It just wasn't my thing. Such a typical reason for an introvert.
But now, things have changed. I still cringe thinking about it, but I HAVE to go to conferences. You see, bootstrapping without a network is doing business in the hardest difficulty possible.
And yep, this was why I forced myself to pay $355 to attend one of the biggest startup conferences in Australia. Yes, not a tech conference! It's a conference for founders!
Never Eat Alone
Since I was way too spontaneous about this, I had to prepare. I'm socially awkward, so I don't really know how to network properly. Well, good thing I found this hidden gem of a book called "Never Eat Alone" by Keith Ferrazzi.
I speedran through this book, skipping multiple sections, and focused on the main takeaways which I listed below:
The Networking Mindset: You have to understand that networking is about building relationships, not collecting contacts.
The Reality of Success: The success of people greatly depends on how much help they had from their network.
The Networking Jerk: Avoid being transactional in your networking efforts. Focus on giving rather than taking.
The Networking Disconnect: Recognize the importance of authenticity and genuine connections in networking. Shallow relationships almost always never work in the long run.
Seek Connections: Adopt a proactive approach to networking. Find people you want to actually meet, and then make it a goal to meet them!
The Networking Strategy: Develop a clear networking strategy. Don't just blindly meet people. Set some goals and action items!
Build It before You Need It: Cultivate relationships before you need them.
Nurture, Nurture, Nurture: Nurture your relationships over time. You gotta keep your connections warm!
The Genius of Audacity: Be bold and fearless in your networking efforts. Reach out to influential individuals above you. Worst case, they don't reply. Best case, you win.
Find Your Superconnector: Identify and leverage superconnectors. They are individuals who excel at connecting people.
Be a Superconnector: Better yet, be one yourself! That's one of the best ways you can contribute to other people's success. Remember: give rather than take.
The Networking Dinner Party: Host gatherings to bring people together and strengthen relationships. Thursday night dinners are perfect for these!
I'm pretty sure I missed some other points from the book, so will definitely have to revisit it for my next networking event.
Networking Strategy
Next thing I did was list down my action items. What other things should I prepare based on the book? Here's the list I came up with:
Research attendees and then list who I want to connect with. However, this might be too difficult for a beginner like me. Better to stick with certain profiles of individuals instead of specific individuals themselves. Profiles such as:
Profile #1: Meet at least 1 founder
Profile #2: Meet at least 1 marketer
Profile #3: Meet at least 1 sales professional
Profile #4: Meet at least 1 technical leader
Set clear goals for what I want to achieve at the event. Again, because of my founder aspirations, I'd love to learn about the following:
Goal #1: Learn about the best approach for validating an idea
Goal #2: Learn about the most beginner-friendly way to start marketing
Goal #3: Learn about the most beginner-friendly way to engage leads
Goal #4: Learn about how to balance code quality with speed
Prepare a concise and engaging introduction that highlights my skills, interests, and what I can offer. I haven't done my short pitch yet, and no, I'm not going to reuse my "tell me about yourself" answer.
Practice active listening and conversation starters to engage others effectively. If there's one thing I've learned from the book: "How to Win Friends & Influence People" by Dale Carnegie: it's not about yapping about yourself, but empathizing with who you are talking to.
Follow up promptly with individuals I met to reinforce connections. This one is easy. I'll aim to send everyone I met a LinkedIn DM to thank them for their time. Of course, depending on if I want to learn, I will schedule a quick coffee chat with them.
Cool, so done listing the action items. But there's one more thing I have to prepare.
Conversation Starters
You see, I'm a pretty awkward person. If I'm meeting someone for the first time, I sometimes freeze mid-conversation. I actually run out of things to say.
To fix this, I figured I'll just list down some generic questions and memorize them, just in case I do run out of things to say. I also made sure the list could be good conversation starters. Here's the list of questions I came up with:
Event-related
What brought you to this event?
What sessions or talks are you most looking forward to?
Have you been to this conference before? Any standout moments or speakers from previous years?
Work-related
What do you enjoy most about your work?
How did you get started in your industry?
What projects or initiatives are you currently working on?
What are your professional goals for the future?
Are there any challenges you're facing in your work that I might be able to help with?
Personal interests
Outside of work, what are your favorite hobbies or activities?
Any interesting things you have learned recently?
Interestingly, the 5th work-related question focuses on what I can contribute rather than what I can gain. Typically, asking what you can offer isn't recommended! You're asking them to do the homework of figuring out what you can do for them. It's them doing the work, not you!
However, admitting my social awkwardness, I believe posing this question could be a good first step. An even more effective strategy that I aim to master involves identifying their pain points and proactively offering solutions without waiting for them to request assistance.
And so, there we have it. I paid an insane amount of money to meet non-engineers, forcing myself to step outside my comfort zone. I even did some amount of preparation for it!
But hey, let's be real, I'm bound to stumble in some of these conversations. But you know what? That's okay! It's all about learning and growing anyway.
So, here goes nothing! Wish me luck, readers! 🤞