Your Networking Cheat Sheet

Prep these before your next event:

• One line about yourself that isn't your job title — "I help small shops find customers online" beats "digital marketing manager."
• Three open questions ready to go, so you're never stuck.
• One graceful exit line, so you never feel trapped.
• A LinkedIn profile that's current — it's your digital handshake.

Set a small goal: meet three people, not thirty. Networking isn't collecting contacts. It's planting seeds for relationships that grow over years.