What to say at a networking coffee to advance your career [ACTIVATE SUBTITLES]

- Hi there, I'm your English coach Christina,

and welcome to Speak English with Christina,

where you'll learn about American culture

and business know how to become confident in English.

Coffee meetings are a fantastic way

to advance your career and get caffeinated!

You can have LinkedIn connections a mile or kilometer long,

but sometimes, there's nothing more effective

when you're trying to build your network

than face-to-face interaction.

In this episode, we'll discuss how you

can use coffee meetings to advance your career

and, of course, what to say in a coffee meeting.

So

grab

a hot beverage and get to ready to learn the art

of the coffee meeting; let's go.

(upbeat rock music)

The only thing that Apple founder Steve Jobs had more of

than black turtleneck sweaters

was his many professional relationships.

Steve Jobs is considered a genius in relationship building.

He believed that the most productive teams were the ones

that included people from different specialties.

He found creative ways that people

from different departments would interact.

He even applied this philosophy to architecture.

He would carefully choose the bathroom locations

at his company so that people from different departments

would interact, and the idea was that new connections

and collaborative teams would form.

Even if you have a small network

and even if you don't have a bathroom

where all the interesting people meet,

you can still expand your network.

One simple way is by sending a cold email to invite someone

for coffee, which I covered in a previous episode.

A coffee meeting isn't a job interview.

It's not a pitch meeting, either.

A coffee meeting is an opportunity

to meet with a professional contact face to face,

and this personal connection can strengthen the bond

that you already have online.

(upbeat jazzy music)

How can a coffee meeting advance your career?

A coffee meeting can help you learn about an industry

that you're interested in getting into.

If you're early in your career path,

you might learn how an industry leader got

to where they are, and this knowledge

can help you plan out your career strategy.

Or you might learn more about the workflow

and the challenges at a colleague's company,

and this insight might help you improve the workflow

in your own company.

And of course, a face-to-face meeting may give you the edge

if a job opening becomes available in the future.

Getting hired shouldn't be your main focus, however.

(upbeat jazzy music)

Although a coffee meeting is casual,

it's a good idea to do research and prepare.

What's the agenda for the meeting?

In other words, what's the goal?

If your goal is ultimately to try to get a job,

just try to put that in the back of your mind

because that's too much pressure for a coffee meeting.

Instead, think of feasible goals,

that is, goals that are easily achievable.

And one of the easy ways to have something

to say during your coffee meeting

is to have a list of questions prepared.

(upbeat jazzy music)

If you requested the meeting because you're interested

in how the other person got started in their career

and how you might learn from their path,

you could ask them questions that focus

on how they got their start.

For example, how did you get started in your career?

And this is a simple, open-ended question

that the other person will have no problem answering.

After asking this question,

listen to their response carefully.

You're looking for areas where you have things in common,

and this can be a city that you both lived in,

a school that you both attended, or perhaps an interest

outside your industry that you both share.

And connecting in this way builds a rapport

and a stronger professional connection.

(upbeat jazzy music)

While you're still learning

about your invitee's origin story,

you can ask followup questions

that involve how they got their start.

For example, where'd you go to school?

Where'd you study?

What was your first job after graduation?

(upbeat jazzy music)

Keep in mind that, after they share their story,

they'll likely ask you the same questions.

So be prepared to answer questions about your education,

your course of study, your career path,

and this is an opportunity to impress them

and demonstrate how well you know the industry

and your passion for this career path.

(upbeat jazzy music)

Asking them about their day-to-day responsibilities

is a great question.

This will give you a good idea

of the kinds of tasks you might be expected

to do further on in this career.

And this knowledge can help you prepare

and advance your career further.

So you could say,

so what are your day-to-day job responsibilities

or what's a typical day at work look like for you?

(upbeat jazzy music)

Asking the other person for suggestions

on networking events or meetups

is a great way to learn more about the career

or the industry that you're interested in.

For example, you can say,

can you recommend any networking events

or meetups that you find valuable?

And this question is great because you get

to discover new resources and communities

in your industry, plus you have an excuse

to follow up with them in email down the road

after you've attended an event.

And you can mention how valuable the event was

and why and thank them for that suggestion.

(upbeat jazzy music)

Leave your expectations at the door.

I'll demonstrate.

While it's fun to imagine that this coffee date

will lead to an amazing new job,

that can put a lot of pressure on the meeting.

Instead, try to go to the meeting

without any expectations other than to learn.

Be interested in the other person

and excited to learn more about them and their experience.

Your interest and curiosity will shine through,

and that'll make you even more memorable.

And don't forget, the conversation doesn't have

to be all business.

If it feels appropriate, you can bring up other topics such

as sports or travel or see if something resonates.

Who knows, you might hit on a subject

or hobby that you both have in common,

which in turn may create even more opportunities to bond,

whether that be over soccer or a favorite television show.

(upbeat jazzy music)

Now what about you?

Have you had a coffee meeting?

How did it go?

And did you find that it helped you to advance your career?

Do you have any tips on what to say during this meeting?

If so, share all of that in the comments below.

And if you wanna practice speaking English,

then consider my Faster Fluency Conversation Club.

Members can participate in three group sessions per week.

You'll be paired up in a small group

with other motivated students and get some help

from a Fluency Club leader, too.

The small group size ensures that you get plenty of practice

to speak English and receive feedback on your mistakes

and ways that you can speak more colloquially

so that you gain fluency faster.

You can get all the details and join the Fluency Club

by clicking on the link below.

And you also get extra resources

and a conversation guidebook

to help you increase your vocabulary

and become more confident in conversations.

Thank you for learning with Speak English with Christina,

and I'll see you next time.