Not everyone likes the idea of networking. It gives some people that dry mouth, shaky hands, clammy palm feeling that induces dread and panic, rather than excitement at the prospect of a whole new bank of contacts. Networking isn't easy. It’s not easy to put yourself in the position of being in front of others, introducing yourself and getting to know how others can help you. It’s not easy but it is important!

Networking is important because of the contacts you make along the way. The more you reach out during networking events, the further your reach and the more people you have on your side to build something amazing with your business. You know that building up those connections gives you a chance to get advice from industry experts and do it in a way that is rather more effective than you think. It doesn't matter where the networking is happening, you’ll be interacting with people who could further your business, so here are our top tricks for better networking:

Prepare as much as possible. You have likely been told over and over again of the importance of preparing for a meeting. However, when you rehearse too much, you can end up talking yourself right out of the right connection. You need to summarize what you can do and also put yourself out there as a desirable contact for others. You need to be prepared but this isn't a highlight reel of your CV. Talk about you and your achievements while also reminding yourself that you are worthy of building those connections in the first place.

• Always bring business cards. What’s the point in turning up to an event without these? No one wants to give out multiple phone numbers and email addresses when you can just hand out cards and be done with it. Business cards will prevent you needing to write down all of your information to every single expert you speak to. You need to have these in your pocket all the time!

• Don't do it alone. If you want to rock a networking event you need to bring people. You want to look like you’re in the know, laughing and chatting will help you with that. You need to bring people that you can hang out with and bounce off of because then people will see that and will want to get to know you, too.

• Have a plan. Are you planning to work in the room? Or several rooms? Having a strategy of what you want to achieve will help you to move through this networking event and ensure that you are able to meet who you want to meet. You need to have some goals to achieve during this information exchange and once your event is done, you’ll feel like you got somewhere. 

Networking doesn't have to be terrifying: you just have to make sure that you prepare in advance and you’ll be golden! Your next event is going to go off in a good way when you’re ready for it.