Synopsis

The easiest way to be seen as a bore is to talk about yourself. Your goal at a networking event is to make yourself memorable by not talking about yourself. In honor of International Networking Week, Dr. Misner shares 5 good questions to ask at a networking event.

* What do you like best about what you do?

* What got you started in this profession?

* Where else do you usually network?

* What are some of your biggest challenges?

* How can I help you? (Don’t ask this unless you mean it and plan to follow through.)

Everyone has a story. It’s your job to find out what that story is. Listen to Episode 83 and Episode 183 for more great networking questions.

Do you have favorite questions to ask at networking events? Share them in the comments.

Brought to you by the Networking for Success Channel on YouTube.

Complete Transcript of Episode 544 –

Priscilla:

Hello everybody and welcome back to the Official BNI Podcast, brought to you by the Networking for Success Channel on YouTube, which features Dr. Ivan Miser and many other networking experts. I am Priscilla Rice, and I am coming to you from Live Oak Recording Studio in Berkeley, California. I am joined on the phone today by the Founder and the Chief Visionary Officer of BNI, Dr. Ivan Misner. Hello, Ivan, how are you today?

Ivan:

I am doing fantastic and I would like to wish you and everyone listening a Happy International Networking Week. It is the first week of February every year, International Networking Week. So this is International Networking Week. If you get a chance, go to internationalnetworkingweek.com or to my blog IvanMisner.com and just check out a very short video. It’s only about four minutes long about International Networking Week. I talk about diversity. I have been doing this now for 10 years, I think 11 years, International Networking Week.

I have a lot of content to do today so let me jump into that. It’s an interesting topic, as you told me offline, five great questions to ask at a networking event. So here we go. What is the easiest way to be seen as a bore? Talk about yourself. That is probably the easiest way. So why would anyone thing that successful networking means cornering as many people as possible and telling them all about your business? That is a bad idea.

The best way to entertain a new contact and potential future referral partner is to get them to talk about themselves. So your goal at a networking event is to make yourself memorable without talking about yourself. Now, that sounds paradoxical, but it really works. If you know how to do it, you will stand out in people’s minds when they look back on the event.

The secret really is to ask people about themselves and their business. A lot of people you run into at networking event are so busy talking about themselves, their products and all the great things that they can do for you that they never take a breath and ask about you. Instead of competing with these folks, imagine the result of asking questions that encourage them to freely share that information. You can really create a networking environment in which they are talking and you are listening. A good networker has two ears and one mouth and uses them both proportionately. People are feeling heard.

This all begins with your opening conversation, so if you lead off by asking the right questions, and you demonstrate a genuine interest, cultivate an attitude of trust and rapport from the start. So here are five good questions to ask at a networking event.