You haven’t heard from me as much this past week as I’ve been busy attending a number of professional, networking, and social events. More so than usual, actually.  But every event on my calendar met the criteria I mentioned in my previous post, “The Power of Three Reasons”. What’s more, my intuition urged me on based on lessons learned from my friend Dianna Amorde, author of a powerful book called Aha! Moments: When Intellect & Intuition Collide. With each event, I noticed the power of being intentional, which is all about being more purposeful, prepared, and open to possibilities. Here are a few notes of what rang true for me while attending these events.

1. Trust your instincts and intuition, as well as your criteria and guidelines, on whether you should attend an event (or not).  At some point, your criteria and guidelines will become second nature to you.  Don’t second guess yourself.
2. If you commit to attending, take the time to set your intentions. Why are you going? What do you want to see,  hear, learn, experience, and feel? Who do you want to see or meet? What are you dealing with right now that needs a resource, solution, or answer?  Open yourself to possibilities, maybe even miracles. It blows me away every time when I experience what a difference this simple intention-setting exercise makes. I’ve even had some intentional networking skeptics finally admit to me that it really works.
3. Good people are where good people gather.  If the host or host organization has a good reputation, it’s likely they’ll attract good people.  The nature of the program will also set the tone for who shows up. Are these the people you want to meet?
4. Be kind and gracious to everyone, but remember your intentions. Don’t let others hijack your focus, energy, state of mind, or time.  Be kind and generous, but if you have to break away from a conversation, the nicest way is to simply say, “It’s been nice talking to you. Hope you enjoy the rest of the event.” Then excuse yourself graciously.
5. Be prepared to attract and recognize success and opportunity.  The next event you attend could be the setting for a breakthrough connection or conversation.  Will you be ready? Dress professionally,  smile, practice good business etiquette, have a friendly handshake, bring your notebook for note-taking, and have clean, up-to-date business cards with you, preferably in a nice business card case.  The power of intention will fizzle and flow right down the drain if you’re not prepared to reap its benefits.
6. Respond to quality introductions and connections. If someone you trust offers to introduce you to a colleague or friend and tells you why it’s a good connection (and this aligns with your intentions and goals), take them up on their offer.  And thank them.  (Disclaimer: Don’t confuse this type of conscientious matchmaking with the type that is well-intentioned but random, manic, and unfocused. You know the kind I mean.)

What would you add to this list based on the events you’ve attended and experiences you’ve had recently?
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Have you read The Intentional Networker™ yet?  It’s full of ideas and tips that can help you attract more success into your world through the power of focused networking. You can order it off my website, find it at BookPeople and BookWoman in Austin, Texas, or order it from major book outlets.

If you have read the book and found it valuable, I would be absolutely delighted if you’d help me achieve my goal of having 20 strong reviews on Amazon by the end of November.