Wednesday, 06/09/2017 (Networking events the death of a university student) 2 days before getting shrekt So I saw a networking event on my university's job website and I thought oh looks interesting, oh the co-founder of Smiling Mind is going to be there, I can learn the origins about it. Only $30, people under 35 looking to start their careers and wanting to be future leaders. Seems legit, give me a ticket.
The day of getting shrekt and going through Hello darkness, my old friend .
I'm walking towards the event feeling good, I’m going to make some connections and learn about some industries and best of all there is going to be some serious university students.
Suss alert #1 : It was held in a prestigious looking lawyer building, oh it did say it would be held in a lawyer building, probably to vet out all the non-serious university kids.
I take the lift and getting out of that lift, my social anxiety kicks in, loss of confidence and wondering how to get out without anyone noticing.
Suits, Lawyers, 25 year olds, no university students, corporate.... oh shit, fuck me. I don't belong here.... my heart dies on me, I feel numb, I become passive, i'm sweating and mom's spaghetti won't save me even if I had it... what do I do?
I get an orange juice and talk with a Chinese business-women, who is equally awkward about networking with these lawyers and corporate workers. We discuss about university, being an Asian means doing accounting, law and health. I fumble my words a little, I feel too awkward. I can read that she does as well and leaves to talk to two workers from a clean energy policy firm.
I'm now left to dry and even worse there is more people and I’m just leaning on a table trying to look cool and just observing the nuances of
Professional networking in the corporate world . The Chinese business-lady ushers me in and I end up connecting with the two workers from the energy firm. We discuss Tesla and the South Australia deal, what they do, their distaste for all the complicated jargon of their industry and ask about my degree. I joke about making some maps for their company and then a mindfulness representative swoops in on the female worker and the male worker talks to an AGL representative. I'm left alone again, I then decide to take all the canapes I can because I paid $30, I may as well enjoy all the food I can never eat again.
The panel talks start, I sit alone because I'm intimidated by these people. The panel topic was about mindfulness and resilience in the workplace... yep I don't belong here.
The panel event is alright, I learn some interesting things from the co-founder of Smiling Mind on starting the company and the other panellist gives applicable advice on how to manage the stigma of mental illness.
Afterwards, I sit there and think about maybe I should leave now. I have had loss and staying any longer will not give me a return, you’re just indulging in the
sunked cost fallacy . I'm grateful, I don't leave why? I end up talking to one of the committee members who works as a lawyer at the host's building, we talk about him migrating to Australia, learn about the networks, I learn about law and he also praises me for having the guts to come.
Then two female workers for a private health insurance firm for the defence force come over, one of them is a RMIT student and we just discuss about it and I also learn about their company. I thanked them on the work their doing as I know a few war vets that love what them and companies do.
I then leave with the female workers and the workers from the energy policy firm earlier and end up getting ask for a LinkedIn (
If you don’t have this, you’re a fool, get it and add me ) connection by the female worker from the energy policy firm.
So yeah. This was a positive experience in the end, at the start it was terrible and nerve-wrecking. But I'm grateful I stayed, would I recommend someone to do this event?
No, I got lucky with some of the attendees. I only talked to 5 of them out of the 45-50 attendees that went to this event .
PS: If you want a full break-down of this event and everything I went through, reply below…
#Edit: Now with improve readability