Monday, August 14, 2006
Networking When You're New
Believe it or not, I have never seen an article or book on this topic. When you have your own business, moving can be challenging. I wrote the book on moving (literally -- click here) but I never thought about subtle differences in networking opportunities and geography. When you move, you're a newcomer and you're regarded with suspicion. If you don't have an established business, you're in a one-down position and your first impression will forever be, "Oh yes, I remember when she was new..." Where does "everyone" take classes? In some cities, it's Learning Annex. Here, we have DiscoverU. And in some cities, nobody. In your previous city, you may have been the only game in town. Now you may face all sorts of competition. Or maybe your previous city had few networking opportunities and all of a sudden you're surrounded. Fashions differ too. "Business casual" varies by region and by area. And then there's location. Seattle may be big, but at least half the networking meetings take place in Bellevue, a growing upscale city that lies across a crowded bridge. You have to allow for traffic, weather and fender-benders. I sold my car when I moved here so I take the express buses, which actually are faster and allow me to get work done while I commute. The downside: Despite Seattle's superb bus system, I draw raised eyebrows when I proudly announce my mode of transportation. We won't even get into issues like, "While you're trying to find a hairdresser, you may need to walk around with a paper bag over your head as you recover from the latest disaster ("she was so highly recommended...") Me? I'm heading back to the relative obscurity of the Internet. |
# posted by Cathy Goodwin @ 7:50 AM 
