Networking can be worse than a trip to the dentist. It can be awkward, uncomfortable, and not worth the time it took to get there, if you’re not sure about the what’s, why’s, and how’s.

Can you guess what a couple of the key ingredients are to successful networking?  You got it! Courage and confidence.

One of my very first networking experience was being held at a funeral home and there must have been 150 people in attendance. Okay, so I walk in and instantly overwhelmed at all the people and thinking, I’m suppose to do what exactly?  Yep, that was the tape playing over and over in my head. What am I doing here!

Wait…it gets worse. The emcee calls the attention of the room through a microphone and asks us to find a seat. I find a seat and so thankful that I don’t have to wander about anymore pretending like I know what I was doing.  But, being the quick study that I am, I quickly realized to my horror, that that microphone was going to each member of the crowd to do an introduction.   Can you imagine?  My heart was beating so fast.  How fitting to drop dead of humiliation, at a networking event, in a funeral home.  I felt paralyzed and was truly shocked as I heard words form from my mouth into the microphone.

I survived.  It didn’t have to be like that and lucky for you, you can learn from my years of painful and awkward, trial and error, networking adventures.

I recently wrote an article 5 Simple Ways to Build a Powerful Network and it has been selected to be circulated inside the main Biznik articles section!   Biznik, an online social network for entrepreneurs and a great resource for connections, collaborations, and business development information.  I highly recommend reading for newbie and veteran networkers who want to build a strong and powerful network.

It all comes back to developing courage and confidence to be and do YOU!

It takes some time to get there, but it’s in you!

– Teresa Rodden, Certified Life Coach