THE WHYS AND THE HOWS OF NETWORKING

Barbara Blumhof, an independent meeting planner in New York City, and a former planner with Citibank, certainly knows how to network. She knows how important it can be. And she also knows that plenty of people hate doing it. In reality, many people don't do well with networking. Sometimes even the extroverted Blumhof hates doing it. Most people are uncomfortable talking about themselves. They don't want to come off as boring or self-centered, and often they aren't sure how best to approach a stranger, Blumhof says. Thom Singer spends much of his business life teaching people networking skills, and as he puts it, giving people permission to network in a manner that works for both introverts and extroverts. When he presents his "The Conference Catalyst" program to groups, he cuts right to the chase, talking about the power of business relationships.