Meetup.com - An evolution in community

Successful networking from the Country Club to Meetup.com is about community. Get the most out of yours today…

There is no doubt that despite the luxury branding of country clubs, the real value of membership lies in the networks you build there. Such networking has been going on since the dawn of time. Technology today has produced a great platform for networking called meetup.com which brings such formality to cyberspace with the ability to join like minded people in your area, which can be just about anything you can think of.

Like all groups, meetup.com groups are about the alignment of like minded people interested in a singular pursuit in a formal setting that society recognises and credits as such. The status associated with such groups is considerable IF that group gains credit and respect for masterful accomplishments. With formal networking effectively democratised via meetup.com, the skills of networking at the “County Club” once again come into focus.

Before starting out to network on meetup.com, be sure of what you want from it as much as what you are prepared to give to it. The benefits are different based on what brings people to the group. If you have not thought out what the appeal and return is for you, then you will not gain value from it. Some core motives for networking I’ve seen thus far are as follows:

Sharing - Passion for a topic is a huge driver in successful networks and indeed in successful groups. The will to share expertise, knowledge and understanding is a core virtue of the successful networker who is there to share.

Personal Brand - Those who are building their personal brand for job seeking purposes or business development purposes will do well also with a well prepared skill set they are willing to share on the networking circuit. The return comes in the form of gaining access to relevant like minded professionals, credibility for their skills and awareness of their offering. In essence, those who have the intention to share their personal brand in their hunt for a new job or new business will do well ONCE they share their business brand and establish a reputation as a credible professional first.

Professional Development - Those who look to stay current do well from networking, getting to know professional peers along with understanding the movers and shakers. Getting known per the above point is a definite benefit to anybody’s career. Get known, get accepted and get respected for your contributions.

When networking, it’s always good to be:

• Yourself, don’t pretend to be someone you are not. Those you seek to impress will see through any charade and penalise you for such an effort.
• Knowledgeable, if you have expertise and knowledge in an area, share it, give people useful takeaways from your understanding of a topic
• A good listener, those who listen more then they talk will come across as more credible, likeable and interesting.
• A concise yet honest speaker, if possible share your understanding in a concise manner
• Confident, don’t be afraid to introduce yourself around and work the room. Business cards are a good aid for this and if you don’t know something, don’t be afraid to admit it confidently. People like honest professionals, not pretend “experts.”
• Follow up, if you make a good connection at an event, connect via LinkedIn and Twitter (& maybe Google+). Don’t wait for them to reach out if you have something to share with and/or to say to them. Also, if you don’t engage them in follow up conversation, just making the social media connections is enough for now but be sure to chat with them for a few minutes at the next face to face event. Great professional relationships are built iteratively.

On attending meetups, presenter and group reputations are built mainly on the content of presentations so be sure you are getting some good “take away” understandings that you didn’t have before it. Chat with other members on what they thought of the meetup and what take aways they got from it? If folks are laden with happiness and insights then that meetup is a good one. If not, then the inverse applies.

The modernisation of an age old group skill called networking is viable today because networking still underpins real group relationships and is still the way to go for sharing of knowledge, expertise and developing your own career through learning/networking with like minded peers. If you are at a professional or intellectual crossroads, be sure to use networking as part of your action plan to get the out of your resulting direction. With it, your chances of success are good indeed!

Sources/Credits:

Pics;

https://images.unsplash.com/39/lIZrwvbeRuuzqOoWJUEn_Photoaday_CSD%20(1%20of%201)-5.jpg?ixlib=rb-0.3.5&q=80&fm=jpg&crop=entropy&s=decf952dc9ba21c5f5523b15a943e4f5

www.en.wikipedia.org

www.shopify.com

Credits;

Charles Forerunner for feature pic on www.unsplash.com

http://www.meetup.com/