Yes, it’s true! I am writing a book. The response to CoffeeLunchCoffee has been so positive that I am organizing the concepts that I talk about in my blog into a book. My goal is to have something available for publication later this year. But, I NEED YOUR HELP!
- What do you find most challenging about networking?
- What is most fun?
- Has the CoffeeLunchCoffee approach worked for you? If so, in what context? If not, why not?
- What changes have you made to the approach to better accommodate your own needs?
- With whom do you network?
- How do you meet new people?
- What is your best networking story?
- What is your worst networking story?
Please, let me hear from you – on these or any other topic related to networking, entrepreneurship and/or leadership that you care to share. You never know… your ideas and input may just show up in the pages of CoffeeLunchCoffee the Book!
And, as ever, please encourage others who may benefit from the CoffeeLunchCoffee concept to join our community. You and others can read my blog at www.coffeelunchcoffee.com. There, you can follow me and/or have my posts sent directly to you via email.
Thank you for your support and encouragement!
Alana,
Kudos to you for taking this blog to the next level with respect to creating a book! Very exciting news, indeed.
As far as your questions go, a couple struck me in particular that I thought I’d reply to…
•What do you find most challenging about networking?
In general terms, I think that the power of a network is critically important for those who are seeking to gain something (be it a job opportunity, to learn something new, to build knowledge, etc) but my biggest challenge is to remind myself to GIVE something back to the person that I’m connected with. It comes down to having a clear understanding of what role you intend to have as part of the connection. At times, I think that many people that are attempting to “network” make a point to interact with someone with an inherent personal goal in mind of accumulating / collecting something for their own gain without the notion that it’s important to GIVE. I have personally had to step back at times in the midst of discussions and qualify my role in the dialog. Am I serving as a mentor? A Mentee? A listener? A confidant? etc. I’ve found that the most meaningful connections that I’ve made are the instances where there is bi-directional benefit versus something one-sided. This is something I tend to think about before, during and after a networking interaction that I take part in.
• What is most fun?
I have found that the most “fun” element of networking are the instances when I’m able to EXPERIENCE something UNIQUE with someone. Whether experiential learning event, a project that I’ve collaborated on with a co-worker / colleague, a common goal or interest realized or something similar, I have found that making a connection in the context of something entertaining usually makes the network relationship that much more powerful and long-lasting. I was able to meet an eventual mentor of mine when I randomly was paired up with her doing a challenge course 5 years ago. We experienced it together, and leverage the fun experience we shared as a common baseline as a means to launch our networking relationship that we have shared on an ongoing basis since that day…
Thanks for your insight, Alana. Keep up the meaningful and interesting work.
Neal
Hi Alana,
For me, the most dificult thing about networking is finding the time to meet with people. As a student my days are very busy and it really affects the amount of time I have to meet with people only for networking and making connections. However, that also relates to the what I think is the most fun. I love meeting new people and creating new relationships. I like to live by the motto that a stranger is a friend you just haven’t met yet so when I connect with new people it is always exciting to create a new relationship, whether it is just a professional one or a friendship.
Hope that helps!
Leah