November 2009 Program: Networking with a Purpose

Engaging. Knowledgeable. Confident. CWIP's November event attendees hoped to embody these adjectives as they networked, and during the course of the evening, Stacey Hanke of Chicago-based 1st Impression Consulting, Inc., showed the group how to network with a purpose by teaching through example. She engaged the group with humorous stories, demonstrated her knowledge through her own demeanor, and inspired confidence with well-researched and smoothly delivered facts.

Hanke engaged her audience of over fifty attendees from the start, sharing a story about an impatient child sitting through a long sermon who asks his mother how old he would be when it was over. She likened this to an executive (or any one of us) trying to communicate ineffectively to others. She emphasized that we need to get to the point quickly, and communicate efficiently.

Hanke noted that in face-to-face contact, only 7 percent of what you say accounts for your believability; how you say it is 38 percent and the rest - 55 percent - is visual. "Body language speaks the truth," Hanke said.

Impressions are made in just seconds, and a quick way to improve the one you make is changing your posture. Stand up straight, keeping your hands loosely at your sides (allowing for natural movement over the course of your conversation). Hanke called this your "home base" position. While sitting, don't slouch into the chair, and keep your hands on the table. Whether sitting or standing, fight the urge to fidget or use a pen or other object to gesture.

Turning her focus to the verbal, Hanke stressed avoiding filler words such as "uh," "um," "so," "like," "OK," "you know" and "well." Pause instead, Hanke said. Give yourself and your listener time to think; also, use the pause to make a point and get a reaction.

With these basic visual and verbal cues in hand, Hanke discussed how to network with a purpose. When attending a networking event:

be prepared. Decide before you go what your objective is for attending and how many people and who exactly you want to meet.

get to events early. Hang out by the registration table or the door to strike up conversation with other early arrivals. Hanke's own strategy is to walk the perimeter of the room twice to get a better idea of who is there and whom she would like to speak to.

ask open-ended questions, once you have started a conversation. Start on a more personal level and then segue into the professional. Avoid asking "What do you do for a living?"and instead tap into someone's emotions to further the conversation and the potential connection.

bring business cards, but don't give them out unless asked.

move on, if there is no connection with the person you are speaking with. Use whatever exit strategy works for you; Hanke revealed hers to be this phrase: "It has really been a pleasure meeting you. I want to respect your time by giving you the opportunity to meet others."

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Handouts from the evening's event are available here.

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Hanke is the co-author of the book Yes You Can! Everything You Need From A To Z to Influence Others To Take Action. For more information, visit her website at http://1stimpressionconsulting.com. She can be found on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Jennifer Hull is a freelance copy editor and designer. She can be reached at jhull.edit.design@gmail.com.

Thank you to our evening's sponsors, Amy Keller, financial advisor, Argo GroupUS, and Kendall College.

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