TECC 226: Networking Tips for Introverted Engineers

In this episode, I talk to Devora Zack, MBA a bestselling author, global keynote speaker, and leadership consultant. Her internationally released books, “Networking for People Who Hate Networking, 2nd Edition” “Singletasking”, and “Managing for People Who Hate Managing” are translated into 45 languages. Devora talks to us about networking and provides some great tips on how you can improve your networking skills as an engineer, including networking actions that can be performed in times like these, where there will be limited face-to-face interaction. Engineering Quotes: Here Are Some of the Key Points Discussed About Networking Tips for Introverts: Steps to Build Your Confidence to Be Able to Network Are: Learn about your personality style and where you are on the introvert / extrovert spectrum. Understand what the real differences are between introverts and extroverts because there are a lot of misconceptions. Accept who you are. Work with, instead of fighting against, your natural temperament. You need to understand, accept, and work with yourself. You don’t need to be like someone else. The Traits That Distinguish Between Introversion and Extroversion Are: Introverts prefer one-on-one interactions and extroverts prefer group interactions. Introverts energize alone and extroverts energize from others. They think to talk, and extroverts talk to think. Introverts go deep and extroverts go wide. Networking has to do with how meaningful, mutually beneficial, and lasting relationships are built with one person at a time. There is no benefit in going out and dazzling people for one night and then never hearing from them again. Introverts need to look for opportunities that will put them in their best light. If you don’t like networking, arrive a few minutes early, before most of the people are there. This will ensure that it is less noisy and less crowded and will enable you to have a deeper conversation, one-on-one, with someone. Think of interesting questions and things you can say about yourself that you are comfortable talking about in advance. When a student is looking for a mentor and needs to make a good impression, you need to research a little bit about that person, show that you know about them, let them know why you contacted them, and make it as easy as possible for them to say yes. The Steps You Need to Take to Make a Deeper Relationship With the People You Are Networking Are: Make the initial contact with that person, and then the most important thing you can do is follow up. If you are not following up, you are not networking. When you are done talking to two or three people, take a few minutes to write down some points about the conversations on the cards you got from them. This way, you will know exactly who you spoke to and what you spoke about when it is time to do the follow-up. Always think of what you can do for the person you are following up with. There is always something that you can do for them. Instead of asking for something right away, offer something first. Position yourself as someone helpful, not someone demanding. Some Good Practices That You Can Use When Following up With People Are: Follow up within two days while you still remember each other. An email is a great way to follow up, but you need to make it short, concise, and to the point. If the person has done something of significance for you, then a handwritten note makes a great impression. When keeping a long-term relationship with your network, you do want to stay in touch,