Why does nobody talk about the chaos of a Chamber of Commerce speed networking event?

I went to one at the Shaw Conference Centre last Tuesday, tried to hand out 50 business cards in an hour, and ended up with a pocket full of someone else's dog grooming flyers. Anyone else have a networking mix-up that made you laugh?

3 comments

3 Comments

wendyk561mo ago

Oh man, you have to get a system. I put a tiny dot from my pen on the back of my cards right before I hand them over. That way when I get one back, I know it's mine and I don't accidentally give it to the next person. Saves you from handing out your own card twice and mixing up the pile. I also try to write a quick note on cards I get right away, like "blue tie" or "talked about golf." It feels silly but it works.

williams.jenny1mo ago

The sheer panic of trying to remember names while juggling a drink and a stack of cards is its own special kind of madness. I once left a similar event convinced I'd made a great contact with a local printer, only to find the card in my coat pocket was for a pressure washing service. My follow-up email about brochure paper was probably very confusing for them. You just have to laugh at the weird stuff that ends up in your hand by the end of the night.

alice_hart1mo ago

Honestly, that pressure washing mix-up is hilarious. Did you ever get a reply from them, or did they just roll with it and send you a quote for cleaning your driveway? Tbh the worst part is trying to connect the right face to the wrong business card later. I had a stack from a real estate mixer and one was for a septic tank company. I kept staring at it trying to remember which nice woman in a blazer that was.