Chatworking ... it's the new networking!

Forget networking, you need to chatwork!

I'm kicking off 'Optimistic October' with a positive story and showing how one simple thing can lead to a whole chain of events.

This weekend me and Mr Bob have been mad for it ar kid in the great northern powerhouse city that is Manchester. Way back in July of this year I attended a PA conference and was lucky enough to win a two night stay in a boutique hotel, which also happened to be in Manchester.  All I had to do to enter the competition was to leave my email address and phone number. Well done me for getting both of them correct!  

This happy little story came about simply by me plucking up the courage to go to my boss and say, “I don’t suppose I could attend this conference by any chance could I?  I think it would be really good.”  It turned out to be a fabulous two day conference where I not only learnt so much but won this amazing competition to boot!  I'd stopped to chat to a travel management company, who I'd used at a previous company.  The two people on the stand were really lovely and although I couldn't help them in terms of passing any business their way, they still encouraged me to enter my name into the competition.  We got on so well that I'm still in touch with them via LinkedIn and I hope I can help them one day.  It really does pay off to stop and talk to people because you never know where things might take you. One simple conversation with my boss set off a whole sequence of events. 

I don’t do things like this enough, not winning competitions I mean, although that would be nice!  I mean just taking the time to chat with people. You never know what might happen.  It doesn’t cost anything and not only might they be able to help you but you might be able to assist them. I’m not talking about networking either, this is one step down and on a much more informal basis ... chatworking?!  Yep, completely made that up but I'm going to roll with it.

So how can you actually start these conversations in the first place?  Well, you can simply do as I did and start by talking to someone you actually know, such as your boss, work colleagues or friends.  Tell them what it is that you’re wanting to do, are you looking for some help with something, needing some expert advice or simply looking for recommendations such as new restaurants in the area?  Be genuinely interested in the other person too because you might be able to help them out with something.  Chatting is a two way street.

Another tip for starting an informal conversation is to try and establish something you have in common. In my case, I wanted to do something that would help my career and my boss realised that I would be learning new things that would ultimately benefit him too. Then when I spoke to the travel management company, an instant connection was that I’d used them before. 

All too often these days we get caught in the email trap when a simple conversation could be so much more productive.  I could have emailed my boss, which he might not have read for a few days and by which time the moment could have passed.  We also end up so tunnel visioned, especially at work, that we focus on the end goal without considering other options along the way.  Talking to other people means you often come up with other ideas or solutions to problems that you might not have previously considered. 

There you go, chatworking is the new networking!!  Happy chatting!!

#optimisticoctober