Last night I attended my first meetup event. This was also the first time that I attended a networking event that was not hosted by HRMA (the Human Resources Management Association). Because this event was hosted by Vancouver’s Fun Professionals, I told myself to attend with the mindset that the evening would be more of a social gathering than a professional networking opportunity.
The event was held at Coal Harbor’s Irashai Grill. The venue was perfect for holding a networking event; intimate, stylish, yet welcoming. The bar and wait staff were particularly courteous, and there was a range of drink specials available. Fantastic appetizers were provided for the first hour of the evening, including a refreshing mango roll and a beautifully fresh spicy tuna roll.
I attended the event with a friend from BCIT, a fellow HR professional named Nicole Fortin. I usually attend networking events on my own – not for strategic reasons, but simply because most of my friends are uncomfortable with the idea of networking. To them, it feels artificial and they therefore avoid it.
Nicole and I began our evening close to the bar, where round tables and raised banquettes divided the room in half. We spent some time sitting at a table with a few women in real estate until we realized that the spot we were in limited the number of people we could meet. Although sitting at a table close to the entrance of the venue meant that it was easy and comfortable to strike up conversations with newcomers to the event, it became easier to access more people once we began walking around.
Since this was my first meetup event, I couldn`t help but notice that there were many groups of friends present. Although the people we met were kind and welcoming, it quickly became clear that at least half of the group in attendance were made up of small cliques. As a result, it was awkward to strike up conversations with strangers because they weren’t in the same mindset as Nicole and I – we had come to meet new people, while they had come to spend time with their friends. This directly affected the duration of our stay at the event.
Once you did meet a friendly face, you were soon introduced to that person’s circle of friends, which was a fun change from other events where most people only know one of two associates. I did make some friends last night, but there were no job leads. I know that I intended to attend the event with a softer outlook – that it was about having a good time more than making professional connections, but it’s hard to turn that part of your psyche off when you`ve been looking for work for so long.
Monday will mark week 6 of my job search. In the book “What Color is Your Parachute,” the author describes the job hunt to look something like this:
no no no no no
no no no no no
no no no no no
no no no no yes.
Knowing that many “no’s” must reach you before finding that magical word of acceptance, it’s hard not to attend an event filled with young professionals and hope that one of those present may lead to a “yes.”
Posted by Geraldine Sangalang 
