Getting Comfortable With Connecting

I was recently at the Dublin Tech Summit, such a great vibe!?

I loved speaking to a bunch of entrepreneurs about the Secrets of Successful Unicorns, and then chatting with folks at my book signing afterwards.

Real talk: I am far from a born speaker! It took me a while to get the hang of public speaking.?

I remember my first talk in my first year as a coach. I had formed a small women’s peer networking group. We were all new entrepreneurs, and it turned out (probably no coincidence) each of us was bossier than the next. So I couldn’t say no when my friend Diane pointed at me and said “You’re going to speak to my community group in April.” And there I was, in April, speaking to the group, with Diane sitting in the front row smiling and nodding her head.

Honestly, that’s what it takes when you want to develop a new skill: find supportive (bossy) friends and do things that scare you.

I wrote this article for Inc to help founders – and you – overcome your fear of public speaking.

Start safe, start small, but start!

Another skill I’ve worked on over the years is how to network at a large conference. I’ve always been a bit tongue-tied when it comes to making small talk, but I’ve learned a few things. I now have a good opener (“Hi, my name is Alisa. What’s yours?) and I’ve learned to ask a few questions that are deeper than the weather (although to be honest the weather actually is a good topic to discuss in Dublin, especially since on the rare occasion the sun comes out people actually get giddy!)

If you want to up your own game, check out my Forbes article 8 Sure-Fire Questions To Get The Conversation Flowing. It’ll give you specific questions you can pull out when you meet people at a conference or large networking event. I hope this will calm your nerves and if you use them, I’m sure it’ll give you a deeper conversation.

As always, I'd love to hear from you! What are you pushing yourself out of your comfort zone to get better at?

Alisa