Each fall and spring, your calendar starts to fill up with lots of events to attend. Some will be dinners to raise money for charity, some will be networking events hosted by your business community, and others will be conferences both near and far from home.
Whatever events are on your horizon you’re going to have a lot of opportunities to practice schmoozing. Maybe small talk isn’t your thing so you are dreading the idea and wondering how you’ll ever survive mundane topics like the weather and traffic.
Start the conversation off on the right foot:
1) Always greet people by saying your name. Don’t assume they remember.
2) Ask an open-ended question that gets them talking about themselves. Ideas for this time of year:
– What are your family’s favorite holiday traditions?
– What are your favorite holiday memories from childhood?
Any time of year you could ask:
– Have you traveled anywhere recently?
– If you had free time, how would you fill it?
My standard opening question is, “How did you hear about this event?”
Listen intently and ask thoughtful follow-up questions to engage them further. Don’t have any knowledge about the topic they brought up? Not sure how to respond? Keep the conversation going by saying, “Really. That’s so interesting. Tell me more.” This roughly translates to, “I have no idea what to say right now”, but won’t stop the conversation dead in its tracks.
Still waiting for the conversation to come around to something you’re really interested in? Wrap up the conversation a few minutes later. Don’t drag it out. The person you were just talking to will walk away thinking you’re fascinating. Seriously.
Yes. All you said was your name. You didn’t tell your whole life story or a long and involved sales pitch. You asked thoughtful questions that helped them show up more in the room. They were able to share a bit more about themselves and something they are passionate about.
Later, when they see you approach their circle of friends, they’ll create space for you to join their group. They don’t know a lot about you, but they do know that you made them feel welcomed and interesting, so they will be open to reconnecting.
ABOUT ROBBIE: www.robbiesamuels.com/about
Business Growth Strategy Coach
Robbie coaches inspiring entrepreneurial women in their 50s and beyond (and a few awesome men) to grow their impact and income by building an audience before launching new revenue streams.
WHO YOU ARE:
You want to have a greater impact and increased income. The problem is that there are so many options for how to build your business that you can feel stuck, overwhelmed, and like you’re running out of time.
The reason options are overwhelming is that you’re looking at them as a series of disconnected steps when to make the most of your time, you need a strategy that connects only the most important and highest impact ones.
You know that if you try to do everything, you’ll accomplish nothing. This means, to achieve your goal, you have to invest in a strategy to put time on your side.
WAYS ROBBIE OFFERS SUPPORT:
As a relationship-based business growth strategist, Robbie will work with you one-on-one to design a year-long plan that consists of three 12-week sprints, each followed by 4 weeks of reflection/assessment, rejuvenation, learning, and strategic planning. This will allow you to sequence your goals, create momentum, and leverage your limited time.
Have a project that you want feedback on or need assistance with a specific strategy? He offers half-day strategy sessions.
Already selling but feeling stuck around how to increase your revenue? Sign up for a one-day mastermind with fellow entrepreneurs to break through to the next level.
Ready to dig into your network to validate a solution you’ve been working on to see if you can build an audience for it before launching? Sign up for 12 Weeks to Create Your Irresistible Offer program.
Want accountability, support, and guidance as you implement your strategic plan? Learn more about his year-long Wake Up Your Network mastermind program.
These are not right for everyone; they're personalized offerings and are priced accordingly.
WHAT MIGHT YOU WORK ON?
In his coaching work with entrepreneurs, his clients focus on the areas where they'd like to grow, which may include:
- Creating a strong sales conversation framework
- Building your referral network
- Lead generation through a relationships
- Growing your visibility in your industry
- Increasing your ability to attract the right kind of clients
- Identifying and launching a minimally viable offer
- Breaking through whatever bottleneck is holding you back from getting the results you want and deserve
- Becoming a published author and marketing your book successfully
- Improving your virtual presentation skills
LEARN MORE AND SCHEDULE A CHAT: www.robbiesamuels.com/coaching
Robbie is excited to support you in reaching or exceeding your goals.
Keynote Speaker
Interested in booking Robbie to speak? At www.robbiesamuels.com/speaking you’ll find video clips and a description of his talks.
Watch his TEDx talk “Hate networking? Stop bageling and be the croissant!” at www.robbiesamuels.com/TEDx.
Stay Connected
- Connect with Robbie on LinkedIn
- @RobbieSamuels on Twitter and Instagram
- New to his website? Start here
- On the Schmooze podcast archive – weekly since July 2016!
SIGN UP for his free weekly #NoMoreBadZoom Virtual Happy Hours – www.NoMoreBadZoom.com
Affiliate Links: Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links above are “affiliate links”. This means that if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products and services I use personally and believe will add value to my listeners. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
This post was exported in one click from Google Docs into WordPress with Wordable.
