‘Twas the night before networking
And all through the town,
The networkers were stirring
All moving around

They set out their toolkits
Preparing for lunch
When connections they’d make
Gath’ring cards by the bunch

Business cards and holder
A notebook and pen
And especially their schedule
For you never knew when

That person you met
While waiting in line
Might be that connection
To business, so fine.

They lay out their clothing
With clean shirt and shoes
They made sure nothing was missing
Lest opportunities they lose.

“Now, how do I get there?
Which turns do I make?”
Check the address once more
“How long will it take?”

“Connectors” show up
Before other folks do
They scope the location
And offer help, too.

One last thing to prepare
‘Fore they call it a night
They plan out their goals
Their target in sight.

When tomorrow arrives
And they head out the door
They’ll know what they’re doing
And they’ll know something more:

They’ll spend their time wisely
And when the people they’ve met
Reach the numbers they wanted
And the goals that they set,

That’s when they’ll sit back,
Chat with old friends, and eat —
Still allowing the chance
a new contact they’ll meet.

And before they walk out
From a successful event
They’ll schedule more meetings,
Glad that they went.

As they walk to their car
Their joy at a peak
They’ll wave and call out,
“See you for coffee, next week!”

So take a brief lesson
From this networking rhyme
And find your success
While networking next time.

Photo credit: Julia Freeman-Woolpert