Make networking less stressful

Networking doesn’t always come naturally. But finding the right type of gathering that suits your strengths and interests will make networking much more successful — and enjoyable. Don’t force yourself to attend every event for the sake of ‘networking.’ Make sure the environment works for you. If you don’t like crowded, noisy functions, steer clear of boozy harbour cruises and after-parties. If you can’t find a suitable event, create your own. Bring together different ‘interest groups’ of colleagues that work in your field or that you meet at conferences. And make sure to commit when you’re at your best. If you’re not a morning person, don’t sign up for a 500-person networking breakfast. Subject every event to a cost-benefit analysis. Ask yourself who’s likely to attend, if they’re your target audience and whether you’ll actually get to connect with them.

(Adapted from Networking for Introverts, by Dorie Clark)

Work together

We’re hard-wired to want to work together. Research shows that the feeling of working together can lead to greater motivation, engagement and performance. But ironically, while we have team goals and are judged by team performance, few of us actually do our work in teams. Yes, the projects we complete are done in teams, but most of the work we do today still gets done alone. But there’s a powerful way of making employees feel like they’re working as a team, even when they technically aren’t: Simply say the word ‘together.’ It’s a powerful social cue to the brain that signals you belong, you’re connected and there are others you can trust. Managers should make use of this word with far greater frequency. By repeating that you and your employees are working toward something together, they’ll know they aren’t alone and will be motivated to do their best.

(Adapted from Managers Can Motivate Employees With One Word, by Heidi Grant Halvorson)

Optimise office space

More companies are using workspace to encourage innovation and collaboration. To design your offices to improve organisational culture, workflows and employee satisfaction, think more directly about how to meet people’s needs. Start by:

Going straight to the source. Use your company’s intranet or another internal communication tool as a way for all employees to ask tough questions or offer opinions about your office environment.

Generating more data. Gauge peak workload times and think about how your space can encourage more departmental cross-pollination during down time. Optimise the most popular spaces and reform conference room duds. Coffee bars, communal tables and quiet rooms can be more productive uses of space than under-utilised meeting rooms.

Incorporating technology. Conference room technologies can let employees know when rooms are free. They can also keep track of reservations and meeting agendas, making it easier for people to get together.

(Adapted from Design Offices to Be More Like Neighborhoods, by Max Chopovsky)

Turn your boring Q&A session around

A lot of Q&As fall flat. Not all speakers are good at handling questions, not everyone participates and not all questions are relevant. Luckily, there are ways to make these sessions better:

Do an inverse Q&A. The speaker poses a question to the audience, letting people discuss it with their neighbours.

Ask for reactions, not just questions. Invite people to share observations.

Have people vet questions in groups. Ask people to think of good, relevant questions in small groups. Then ask for some examples.

Tell a final story after the Q&A. Stop the Q&A session a few minutes before the end to share one final example. That way, even if it falls flat, you can still end your session with a bang instead of a fizzle.

(Adapted from 4 Ways to Fix the Q&A Session, by Thomas Wedell-Wedellsborg)

Get parties in sync

Many negotiations involve more than two parties, and all of them need to agree on a solution. But more people being involved means more interests to meet, more options to sort though and more alternatives to consider, so getting everyone to commit takes longer. You can accelerate the process by clarifying roles and making sure everyone focuses on only one draft of an agreement. First, list out the decisions to be made, and then identify the decision-makers in the room — the other people present are either advisers or those who must simply be informed about the decision. Next, choose a drafter to be responsible for drafting and editing the agreement. Have the drafter elicit interests from all parties and create a rough draft. After a few rounds, you should have something concrete to present.

(Adapted from the HBR Guide to Negotiating)

Published in Dawn, Economic & Business, November 17th, 2014