New Ways to Network

I'm a member of LinkingRaleigh.com (great group, thanks to Greg Hyer, by the way) and I recently went to a networking event organized through this group. A "Speed-Networking" event to be exact. It was set up like speed-dating, but we were handing out business cards to gain business contacts instead of dates. It was somewhat hectic, but still very effective. There were business professionals from all walks of life jammed into one room. It's different from traditional networking events in that it forces you to meet the maximum number of people during your time there. Instead of chatting with one group for several hours, you meet people for just a few minutes. A few minutes is more than enough to decide whether or not you want to add that person to the list of your contacts. Then you can always follow-up after the event to create life-long contacts.

I really enjoyed my time and met some very influential people. I recommend LinkingRaleigh.com and I recommend networking of any kind, but "Speed-Networking" is a blast!