The Power of Networking...with Yarn

If you feel you struggle with networking, you're not alone.

And if you are in charge of a membership networking event, you know the key to its success is making sure that each attendee participates and connects with another attendee. Even better: get them to smile and laugh!

I recently led a networking group for Inforum using an interactive activity that involved a ball of yarn. I shared some pictures of the event, and a fellow LinkedIn connection asked if I would share the instructions. Note: this activity works well as an icebreaker, too.

1. Bring a ball of yarn to the event and ask all attendees to stand in a wide circle. The person who is leading off the activity begins by giving their 1-minute introduction of themselves, which may include an "ask" for their business. Attendees are told that they should speak up with "me too!" if they have something in common with this person, based on their introduction. For example, let's say I said I am a member of Inforum in my introduction. Someone else in the room who is also a member of Inforum says "me too" and I toss the ball of yarn to her.
2. The person who said "me too" is the next recipient of the ball of yarn. Before tossing, the person starting the activity should hold onto one end of the string. This begins the interactive part of the meeting. The audience's attention shifts to the person who is tossed the ball of yarn. Person #2 begins by explaining what is shared in common with the first person. Then, she/he gives her/his 1-minute introduction, including an ask. Keep in mind that the yarn should be pulled taut, so its easy to see who has not yet participated.
3. The activity continues and the ball of yarn is passed when someone else in the group says "me too." If there is more than one person, that's ok. Just pick someone and they will chime in later. Again, each person keeps a hand on the yarn before tossing it along.
4. As the exercise progresses, I recommend that the 1-minute introductions include broader categories of information to help those who have not yet had a "me too" turn. As the meeting host, it is your job to remind attendees of this. However, you could also spin this and encourage attendees to keep speaking and sharing information about themselves until someone says "me too."
5. The activity ends when everyone has a hold of the yarn, and it returns to you as the meeting host. At this point, I recommend asking attendees to look around the room. The point of this exercise is to show that we are all connected to one another, and networking helps to connect us. Whether that networking occurs in person or online (such as through LinkedIn), we can always find something in common as a conversation starter. That commonness can then be used to guide the conversation.

I've used this as an activity twice so far, and I've found it to be a fun and engaging exercise. The duration depends on the number of attendees. If you're including a 1-minute introduction, plan on a minute per person, plus some addition time for tossing the yarn.

Here are some pictures from our August 10 meeting. Notice the SMILES!

• A link to our Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/1902528450019462
• Read my other blogs: https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/brendameller/detail/recent-activity/posts/
• Let's connect on LinkedIn: https://www.dhirubhai.net/in/brendameller/
• Learn more about Meller Marketing: https://www.mellermarketing.com/

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