Coffee shop owner in Portland told me I was networking all wrong

She said stop handing out business cards and just ask people what they're working on. Tried it at a meetup last night and had 3 real conversations instead of the usual awkward card swaps. Anyone else ditch the pitch and get better results?

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joseph5292mo ago

Three real conversations is actually a pretty good haul for one meetup. But here's the thing I'm wondering - did any of those conversations actually lead anywhere afterward? Like did you exchange contact info naturally or just have a nice chat and never see them again. Because I've tried the "just ask what they're working on" approach and it works great in the moment, but then I leave with zero way to follow up. How do you handle that part without it turning back into the awkward business card dance?

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victorbutler2mo ago

Man, I feel this so hard. Joseph529 brings up exactly the thing I've been struggling with too, cause like, the whole point is to not force the awkward exchange but then you're left wondering if you even made a connection. I've started just saying something like "hey I'd love to keep chatting about this, what's the best way to find you online?" after a good conversation and it works way smoother than shoving a card at someone. Feels more natural and usually they'll give me their number or LinkedIn without the whole "here's my pitch" song and dance.

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