Speaker 1: Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.
Speaker 1: Good Morning, This is Laura. Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.
Speaker 1: Today's tip is to follow up right away when you
Speaker 1: meet somebody. In a few days, the moment may have passed.
Speaker 1: Nobody likes cold calling, so strike while the iron is hot.
Speaker 1: While many things are still in flux with the pandemic,
Speaker 1: it does seem like this fall. There may finally be
Speaker 1: in person conferences, seminars, and networking events. Even if these
Speaker 1: are small or have various restrictions, you will have opportunities
Speaker 1: to reconnect with people in your field whom you haven't
Speaker 1: seen in a while. You'll have opportunities to grow your
Speaker 1: network as well. I don't don't have to tell you
Speaker 1: that building an active professional network is important, But if
Speaker 1: you are building new networking habits after some time away
Speaker 1: from in person events, here's a good one. Make sure
Speaker 1: to follow up right away. If you run into your
Speaker 1: old boss and he suggests getting together for lunch, don't
Speaker 1: say sure, that sounds great, Let's do it sometime. Get
Speaker 1: a date on the calendar. Maybe you attend to talk
Speaker 1: by a leader in your field whom you've followed for
Speaker 1: a while. Introduce yourself after the talk, if that's doable,
Speaker 1: and then follow up that afternoon with a thank you
Speaker 1: email identifying the points in her talk that you found
Speaker 1: most helpful. That will lay the groundwork for reaching out
Speaker 1: in the future if you see an opportunity, and in
Speaker 1: the meantime she'll appreciate your immediate feedback. Or perhaps you
Speaker 1: talk to a potential client who says he would welcome
Speaker 1: a proposal from your company, follow up as soon as
Speaker 1: you can. He may have had a similar conversation with
Speaker 1: your competitors too, so you don't want to doddle. And
Speaker 1: if you meet someone that you just genuinely enjoy talking to,
Speaker 1: email her an announcement about another event in your field.
Speaker 1: She might be interested in suggest you to go to
Speaker 1: gather to continue the learning and fun. This is all
Speaker 1: common sense, but what often happens is that we go
Speaker 1: to events and then the travel home takes time and effort,
Speaker 1: and we immediately find ourselves immersed in whatever crises we
Speaker 1: were going through before we left. Next thing, we know,
Speaker 1: a few days have passed before we pull our heads up,
Speaker 1: and then things can start to feel a little weird.
Speaker 1: The email that comes a month after, for instance, always
Speaker 1: less productive than the one that comes soon after, So
Speaker 1: don't let time get away from you. When you plan
Speaker 1: to go to a conference or other professional event. Also
Speaker 1: block off an hour in the day or two after
Speaker 1: your return for your follow ups. By setting aside the time,
Speaker 1: you will prompt yourself to go through your connections, or
Speaker 1: at least think about what you've learned and how you
Speaker 1: might implement it, rather than just shoving those notes in
Speaker 1: the drawer along with everything else. This rule to strike
Speaker 1: while the iron is hot goes for anything. Really. If
Speaker 1: you have an informational interview with someone, follow up right
Speaker 1: away to thank the person, and then take any next
Speaker 1: steps the person has suggested you take. For instance, if
Speaker 1: he offered to provide feedback on your resume, send it
Speaker 1: to him right away and express your appreciation for offered
Speaker 1: to review it. Or maybe he says he will introduce
Speaker 1: you to a member of his team who has a
Speaker 1: job like the one you hope to land someday. Thank
Speaker 1: him for offering to introduce you to this person, to
Speaker 1: confirm that you do indeed want to be introduced sooner
Speaker 1: rather than later. In any case, all sorts of opportunities
Speaker 1: don't happen when we don't follow up. The best time
Speaker 1: to follow up is when people are still thinking about
Speaker 1: what we are following up about. We are all busy
Speaker 1: these days. Actually making time to follow up puts you
Speaker 1: ahead of the game in the meantime. This is Laura.
Speaker 1: Thanks for listening, and here's to making the most of
Speaker 1: our time. Hey everybody, I'd love to hear from you.
Speaker 1: You can send me tips, your questions, or anything else.
Speaker 1: Just connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram at
Speaker 1: Before Breakfast pod that's b E the number four, then
Speaker 1: Breakfast p o D. You can also shoot me an
Speaker 1: email at Before Breakfast podcast at i heeart media dot
Speaker 1: com that Before Breakfast is spelled out with all the letters.
Speaker 1: Thanks so much, I look forward to staying in touch.
Speaker 1: Before Breakfast is a production of I Heart Radio. For
Speaker 1: more podcasts from my heart Radio, visit the i heart
Speaker 1: Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your
Speaker 1: favorite shows.