Networking for people who hate networking

People often tell me they don’t want to come to a breakfast conversation because they hate networking. And I get it, because honestly, I kind of hate networking. I hate trying to reduce myself and my business to a one minute elevator pitch. I hate realising that people are deciding whether I’m worth speaking to based on whether I am their ideal client. I don’t want 20 business cards that I’ll just feel guilty when I find them abandoned in a pocket or a bag a few months later.

What I want is to meet awesome people, have really interesting chats about diverse topics, dig a bit deeper into who people are and have a chance to properly connect with the them. Some of those connections might later turn into clients, or maybe I’ll collaborate with someone, or pass on a name to a friend, or maybe I’ll make a new friend, find myself hugging a stranger and sharing laughter and tears - turning an acquaintance into something more. Ultimately, I want to go somewhere to connect, not to try to win business - if that ends up being good for business great but it’s not the goal.

So a Henley Female Newtork breakfast conversation is networking for those of us who hate networking but love people. The way we facilitate those connections is by inviting really inspiring speakers to tackle big topics - everything from mental health to disability, from seeking asylum to rowing the Atlantic and from sexual health to diversity and

inclusion. These talks open up genuine conversations and give us a unique shared experience which really supercharges that sense of know, like and trust.

If you think you hate networking, come along and give it a go. I think you might be surprised.

Our summer social on a sunflower farm