Introvert designer? How to make people remember you at networking.

Hello! It’s Chou-Tac

A lot of designers happened to be introvert (included me),
and we may suffer from not being able to socialize with people
as easy as we would like to.

Networking is not natural for us.

Let me share with you a simple trick I practice
that starts giving results for me. :)

Have you ever met nice people and forgot their name a few minutes later ?
Me, I did a lot, and still do.

Do you have a goldfish memory?

Since I am in Vietnam,
I may have already “met more than 100 people and names” in less 10 days.
Some more, the names got different origins.
That makes the game even more challenging.

On Tuesday, I went to an event called “Mundo Lingo Vietnam”.
It’s an event where locals and foreigners
gather around a drink and chit chat in different languages.
I invite you to check it out if you got one in your country!
It’s so exciting!

The first 10 minutes I reach there, I feel shy.
Get a Whisky Coke and walk around.
Then, people come to see you.
And magic happened.
Each people has a unique background and story to tell and ready to ear yours.

I met a girl who spoked Chinese, Vietnamese, and English all fluently.
And she was asking us a lot about French culture.

We were not talking about complicated topics trying to impress. Who cares?
We chit chat and laugh about simple things,
and she said even though we just met,
she felt good and comfortable with our group of French friends.
It was in fact such a great compliment.

It’s pretty easy to meet a lot of people.
But it’s tough to remember everyone’s name.
We end calling everyone by: “Hey you!” : P

Ok, it may not be a big matter to forget.
We might not see “all these people” again anyway. Right?
But I do I personally think that extra effort of memory is worth it
to enjoy that chit chat to the max!
It’s a real proof of interest for others.

But how to better remember names?
It’s simple.
Find an occasion to pronounce your interlocutor’s name.
It’s not enough to repeat it a thousand time in your mind.
You have to “pronounce it”.
“John, thank you.”
“Ngoc, do you wanna get a drink ?”
“What do you do in life Lea ?”
“May I have one more Tequila Shot Martin ?”
“Hey John, what do you think about it ?”
… And so on.
When you shake hand to say bye,
Pronounce it again. :) You will stand out in people’s heart.

When we were a kid.
Our parents taught us not talking to strangers.
Now as adults, I believe it’s our duty to make the first step toward others.
And connect.

I went to Mundo Lungo
to improve my skills in public speaking
I want to improve how to make the first step at approaching strangers.

It will be helpful for our professional path.
Let me give you a trick.
Do not only remembers the name of your interviewers or clients.
But also their colleagues, assistants, and secretary.
Anyone you met in the company you interact with.
That the kind of detail that will make you stand out. So they won’t forget you and even like you.

You never know who got a decision power in the company.
And to whom they ask advice from.

Be happy, humble, and treat all people as equals.
Then people will treat you back as special.

Have a nice day !!
Cheers,
Chou-Tac

PS: Feel free to ask people their names again. ;) Quite often, they may ask you back your name too. Hehe. By asking again, you may show your memory weakness, but you do also show your interest to them. Don’t look for perfection, but affection.

PPS: To a certain extent, you can take note of people’s names as soon as you leave the place. For me, I started to write the name of the people I met and took pictures on my Facebook.

PPS: On the picture, is my good friend Nico. He’s Vietnamese born in France. He’s now back here and opened a hostel named Dablend (meaning mix of culture and people ).