Networking Tips for Shy People at in person Networking events.

So what's a good strategy to network even if you're an introvert or a shy person? I was at a networking event yesterday and somebody came over to me and he said, Joe, listen, you look like you're a total rock star. You look like you're extroverted and it's easy for you to walk over to anybody and have a conversation. It's like me, I'm like sticker shocked. I'm like looking around and I'm not even sure what to do. I don't even know who to speak to. I'm totally shy. I'm like shocked and I don't know what to do. What are some tips that you could give me? And I said, I read a lot of books on networking because I used to be really afraid. I used to walk into a room and totally freeze, kind of like sticker shock, like, whoa, I can't even do anything. And what I realized is there are specific strategies that you can take in order for you to overcome that initial shock and then get comfortable enough to be able to look into the room and find the right opportunities to engage. First of all, you have to read body language. So if you walk into a room and you look at people talking, if they're facing each other and their feet are facing each other, Then chances are it's gonna be really hard to break into that conversation without being super awkward. But if they're facing the crowd, if there's 2 people side by side talking to each other but facing the crowd, that means they're open to a 3rd person to walk in front of them, stand there, and have a conversation. That's body language. If you see 3 people facing each other in a closed circle, then you don't want to break into that circle because there's no room. But if the 3 people have like an open, like a C, and there's a room for a 4th person, Or if one person's kind of like on their way out, you see their foot is pointed out away from the, from those 3 people and they kind of look bored, kind of looking around. You can stand next to that person and pull them out of the conversation and start talking to them. And then there are the people that are on the sidelines on their phones, kind of like looking around and hoping that somebody would come and save them and you can do them a favor. Now, if you're afraid to go in and have the conversation, I always tell people is become the host. Now the host only cares about the people, not worried about themselves. If you're worried about yourself, you're going to be shy, you're going to be scared, you're going to be, You're not going to take action. That's the bottom line. You're not going to take action and you're not going to get in there. But if you're the host, you have to take action. You can't be worried about yourself. You can't be worried about being shy and you feel like you have to walk around and ask people, hey, is this your first time here? How'd you find out about the event? Who can I introduce you to here? Who can I connect you with? Who are you looking for? What is your objective here? And so on and so forth. And all of a sudden people start saying, wow, this person's so nice. They're helping me out. And that's your job there. Your job is to support other people, to help them, to invite them, and to have conversations and not worry so much about yourself, but concern yourself with helping other people. And if you just have that simple attitude and you look for the right body language, you're going to have a much easier time at in-person networking events. Let me know what your tips are in the comments below and like this video if you enjoyed it, maybe even share it with a friend. And if you want more tips, go to joeapplebaum.com. And sign up to my weekly newsletter. I send out a newsletter every single Sunday for the past 5 years, and I have so much fun doing it, and so many people appreciate that newsletter. Thank you very much for being in my life, and thank you for watching this incredible video. Boom! Boom!