Networking: Beyond the Conference & Opportunities Found in Everyday Interactions | Ep 182

“Networking that matters is helping people achieve their goals.” - Seth Godin

Get ready to uncover the power of unexpected networking opportunities and how they can transform your professional life in unimaginable ways.

Are you open to seizing the most unexpected moments for connecting with others? 

In this episode I’ll share a personal story that will inspire you to embrace the potential of chance encounters. Discover the captivating tale of how a simple walk to Starbucks led to a conversation and an opportunity to add value to a global company's conference. 

Networking never stops, and you never know who you might meet in the most unforeseen circumstances.

Here’s what you’ll learn:

• The importance of being open and receptive to unexpected networking opportunities.

• How a casual conversation can lead to future collaborations and professional growth.

• The value of being polite, considerate, and curious when engaging with others.

• Practical tips for being approachable and making meaningful connections at in-person events.

• The power of giving and connecting people, and how it can come back to benefit you in unimaginable ways.

"Never underestimate the power of a single connection, for it could be the key that unlocks your professional destiny."

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Learn more about IN Demand Signature Speech TODAY!

• Grab the FREE resource Go from Unknown to Visible.

• Grab the FREE resource Take the Stage

• Follow me on Instagram: @laurieann.murabito

• For more about me and what I do, check out my website.

• If you’re looking for support to grow your business faster, be positioned as an authority in your industry, and impact the masses, schedule a call to explore if you’d be a good fit for one of my coaching programs.

Transcript:

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:00:02]:

Welcome back to another episode of be in demand. Today, we're talking about unexpected networking opportunities, because you never know who you're gonna meet and what they do. So let's get on to the show. So it is another story time episode where something this is just something very interesting that happened to me, and I wanted to share this with you because I always want you to be open to these interesting opportunities. So been attending a lot of live in person events. Again, the fall is filled with a lot of conferences. It will slow down, like, after Thanksgiving until New Year's. But please keep in mind, that does not mean that meeting planners our taking that month, month and a half off.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:00:54]:

Meeting planners are still working, and they're planning the spring conference season. So keep that in mind. Don't slow down. Keep your keep reaching out. But I wanna talk to you about because I was at this event. And in the mornings, I like to get up. I like to go for a walk. I like to go to the gym, go exercise because I know that I'm gonna sitting, especially if I'm an attendee.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:01:18]:

Even if I am the speaker, I'm still gonna do my workouts or my walk and just kinda, like, go over my presentation because I'm still, again, I know I'm going to be at this event all day. I'll either be talking to attendees. I'll be sitting down. I'll be meeting lots of people. But either way, this particular morning, got up and I walked to Starbucks, like I had done, the other days beforehand. And there were kind of some homeless people that were sleeping on the streets, so it was a little sketchy, but this particular morning, I would say there were some extra characters out out there. I I think, because of the time change, maybe, they were, you know, a little off with you know, they're waking up a little bit earlier, so to speak. And it was a little, a little nervous for me to, like, walk the 2 blocks to Starbucks, but got my coffee and was on my way back.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:02:17]:

And I met a woman who approached me, and she said to me, is it safe to be walking out here? And I said, well, I'm not sure. I'm not sure today. Where are you going? She said, Starbucks. Let me walk with you. So we end up walking to Starbucks. I'm walking back to Starbucks, and we have this conversation, what brings you here? Where are you from? And she's attending a conference, you know, that's what's being hosted by her company. And we just have this great conversation about what she does, about employee retention, about what their company is doing. And then she turns to me and says, well, what do you do? And I share with her, what I do, but also, you know, like, hey.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:03:06]:

I bought recently, I spoke for a large insurance company to their women employees because you know, because this woman was in HR. You know that it is so much easier to promote from within than to try to find somebody on the outside to fill a position when you don't have that relationship with this person. And we just had a great conversation, and I learned some interesting things about the people from her part of the country. Well, she wished that I was going to be around a little bit longer. And I just wanna say, again, you never know who you're going to meet. But when she had said, like, oh, I wish that you were gonna be here for a few more days because I'd love for you to meet my boss. We're gonna have head of this per this department, head of that department. It's like and I know as a speaker, they've already got their speakers lined up.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:03:59]:

They've already got the agenda for their event. Even if something if a paw happened and a speaker is not able to get there, you know, you've filled it back in. You've readjusted your agenda. And so I just said, oh, well, how often do you have this conference? That's another question that you might wanna ask. And she said, we do this every year. Fantastic. I said, let's talk when you get home. We can talk about, like, how I might be able to add value next year.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:04:29]:

And so that meeting is in the works, but she works for a small company. And I'm I'm kidding. I'm a little sarcastic. It is actually a large company, a global company. And you, again, you just never know who you're going to meet. And I did end up running back into her later that morning, and she was with her with her superior and had a great conversation. So you, again, you never know who you're going to meet, but the key thing that I want you to walk away, and this was something that somebody had reminded me of. Like, one of the best networking tactics is being nice to people, and that's all I was doing.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:05:14]:

I was I mean, I literally looked like I had just rolled out of bed because I had I had leggings on, a sweatshirt. I mean, I wasn't dressed to impress. I was just dressed to walk to Starbucks, and she was in the same boat. She just kinda, like, got dressed and wanted to go get some coffee. And you just never know who you're going to meet. You just never know who you're being polite to, who you're helping out because you you never know who you might meet and who they might be able to connect you with. So that's an important thing that I just wanted to remind everybody of is, like, who can we reach out to? You know, like, who can you connect together? Who in your network needs to meet each other. I like, you know, from previous podcast, that connection is one of my highest values.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:06:07]:

And I love when somebody says, hey. I'm looking for podcast guests. I instantly will start thinking of all the guests that I've had on my show, but also, like, clients and friends. Who do I know that this person could benefit from knowing? Who can I just connect these 2 people together? And when that happens, I mean, like, that that just makes my heart so happy that I've been able to do that. So I like to connect people together. I like to help people out. You know? I love doing email swaps because I wanna put other people, like, hey. Let me share your freebie in front of my audience.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:06:46]:

That just brings me so much joy. And so, you know, I think that there's a lot to that phrase, you know, like, that Zig Ziglar says. You know, when you help enough people get what they want, you will get everything that you want. It comes down to, like, that that story, you know, and what's taught in the bible. Like, you know, like, when you give, it comes back 10 times. You know? But that giving is not always the exact same thing. Meaning, you donate $10 to some organization, and a $100 is gonna come back to you. It could be in very different forms, very different ideas.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:07:26]:

Like, I introduce somebody. But who knows? Like, they they might end up sending a client my way, or it won't always be like a speaking event. You know, like, you just never know. It could be a connection to somebody else who actually is gonna be like, hey. I know the perfect person that you need to meet, and I might be speaking for them. Again, you just never know. So there's something about being really polite with people, really considerate and respectful, and just being really curious. Really getting to know them.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:08:04]:

And maybe, like, well, what brought you here to this event? Or where are you traveling from because, again, you just there are so many places that you can be meeting people. You mean meeting people, like, in the grocery store line. You know, at the airport, you know, the person who's sitting next to you on the airplane, at conferences, at events. Just always be approachable. So that just kinda means, like, not folding your arms across your body, you know, like having them down by your side, you know, smiling and just looking approachable. Shoulders back, stand up nice and tall, and just look like you're happy to be there. Being approachable will actually help other people approach you. Like this woman approaching me, asking me, is it safe to be walking out here? You know? And, again, like, what nice thing can you do for somebody else who might be in need, or maybe just who's somebody that you've been thinking of lately.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:09:05]:

Like and just hey. Maybe I should reach out to them. Or who can I connect that person with? How can I help them today? And trust me, it all comes out. It will all come back to you in the end. So I hope this has given you something, interesting to think about again. Maybe reactivate within your own life. You know? Start doing again, but get yourself out to in person events. You've heard me say this before.

Laurie-Ann Murabito [00:09:34]:

Yes. There were some great online events, but nothing beats sitting next to somebody, extending your hand, saying, hi. How are you? It's nice Tamitoo, because you can again, you never know where a hello iwill take you.