How often do you introduce people by their job title? All the time, right?
While this approach comes naturally, it really doesn’t give people that much to go off of—especially if you want them to build a long-lasting relationship. (Or at least longer than happy hour).
As Dustin Senos points out in this short piece on Medium, people are more than their job titles—and we should strive to treat them as such.
In addition to it just being more interesting to introduce people in another way, it’s sometimes crucial to get more creative. For example, if a friend’s been unemployed for an extended period of time, you obviously don’t want to bring up where he or she does not work. Or, if there’s public drama happening at another contact’s workplace, it may be awkward to throw it into the conversation.
So, how can you introduce someone other than by his or her job title?
Here are a few ideas:
- Find Mutual Connections: If the two people know the same person (besides you, of course), went to the same college, come from the same hometown—use that knowledge!
- Talk About Shared Experiences: Maybe they both went to Europe this year, or perhaps they both just adopted pets. Whatever it may be, you can bring it up.
- Mention Passions: Be more specific about what each person loves about his or her job. For example: “This is John, and he loves helping companies build innovative new products!”
And there you go! Three new ways to introduce people that don’t involve quoting their LinkedIn profiles. So, the next time you find yourself in any scenario where networking is involved, challenge yourself to introduce people based on something that’ll actually help them connect.