Eight Strategies to Working Any Room ®

Eight Great Strategies for Working Any Room

By Susan RoAnenn Walking into a room full of people, especially strangers, is daunting for 93% of American adults. Yet, our careers, businesses and social lives are enhanced by our ability to meet, mingle, interact and make connections. For over 18 years, How To Work A Room® has been a resource for professionals across the country. If we adjust our mindset to that of making others comfortable with us, our interacting, socializing and conversing is easier.

Read Name Tags. As you extend your hand and introduce yourself, use the person's name. Name tags provide material for conversation about that person. Wear yours on the right hand side. It's the line of sight with an extended handshake. Ask a question about the company, location, her position, etc. (This can be difficult for those of us who don't wear our glasses and end up with our faces on the person's name tag. Should that happen, a conversation will definitely follow!

Reintroduce Yourself to People. They will generally respond in kind. Then no one has to struggle with forgotten names.

Look for the White-Knuckled Drinker. Whether it's club soda or wine, the shy, uncomfortable person has the glass gripped so tightly for support that the knuckles turn white. That person, who is speaking to noone, would welcome your conversations.

Attend Events with a "Buddy." Choose someone in a non-competitive field and cross-promote each other.

Warning: Be sure to choose a companion who will introduce you with the same level of enthusiasm that you have demonstrated.

Extricate and Circulate. According to Miss Manners, one must learn to end conversations. Extricating oneself from a conversation is a must. "Well it was great to talk to you about…." Summarize the main thrust of your chat . . . and move about one quarter of the room away. No sense in standing in the same area near the person you just left. Find another solo or. . . join a group. Stand on the periphery of the group and when acknowledged, step in.

Allow for Serendipity. It is the unexpected bonus that happens to you because of good timing. Because . . . "Ya Never Know!" which is my theory of marketing, meeting and mingling.

Have Fun! People are attracted to others who are enjoying themselves. A sense of humor will help you manage and survive myriad situations because laughter is a great medicine.

BONUS Tip: Leave your tools and toys of technology out of sight or in the off or vibrate position. The message you give when you "work" a room with your Bluetooth attached to your ear is that no one you are talking to is as important as whoever may be calling you. That leaves an impression but not the one you may want to make.

Be a Savvy Networker.

Acknowledge people who have given you time, leads, advice. Keep them "in the loop."

Matchmake people you know with job leads, contacts, prospects and referrals. It comes back.

Stay in touch with your network when you need nothing from it. That makes it easier to get in touch when we need help/advice/leads.

Follow Up with the people whose cards you collected. Devise a system to organize the follow-up process. Or all is lost. Use the RoAne "TAP" method. Be Timely, Appropriate, Persistent. If we "work" rooms and don't follow up, we will not have netted a network to work!nnn From the newly revised bestseller, How To Work A Room® by author and keynote speaker, Susan RoAne now available in local and online bookstores. Susan also consults with individuals who want to improve their socializing and mingling skills. For more information, free articles and The Schmooze Quotient Quiz, visit www.susanroane.com