TECC 163: Getting Involved in Professional Associations

Getting Involved in Professional Associations In this episode, I talk with Cynthia D’Amour, MBA, President of People Power Unlimited, and author of The Lazy Leader’s Guide to Outrageous Results, about getting involved in professional associations as well as the importance of networking and building your confidence. Engineering Quotes: Here are the key points discussed on getting involved in professional associations: The key to developing your professional association experience is that you have to show up. To get involved in professional associations, first, you have to show up, walk in the door and start talking to people. Almost everything you do at professional associations can be valuable as long as you are following up and building relationships. Quantify the value that you bring back to the company after you have been at a professional association meeting. Find out what is important to other people and what excites them when networking at a meeting. Networking is not about collecting business cards, it's what you do after that. Follow up with the people you meet and keep in touch with them. When trying to start a conversation by walking up to an existing group at a meeting, look at their body language, and walk into the group so that you are in the group hip-to-hip. Listen in on the conversation and see where you can add value when the time is right without losing the rhythm of the conversation. Be polite, happy and excited to be a part of the conversation. Before you go to an event, think about what you can learn that will be beneficial to you and/or your company. The most challenging meeting is your first meeting. If you just keep showing up and you don’t do anything, then you're not really getting involved. More in this episode… In the Take Action Today segment of the show, we give you one action step that you can take in your career to immediatley improve your networking skills. About Cynthia D’Amour, MBA Cynthia D’Amour, MBA, President of People Power Unlimited, and author of The Lazy Leader’s Guide to Outrageous Results, is no stranger to developing powerful leaders. She has served more than 67 total years of boards and recruited more than 450 members. A certified teacher with a degree in marketing, Cynthia has been an award-winning manager for Macy’s Department Store as well as a nationally recognized 8th-grade history teacher. Twenty years ago, Cynthia shifted her focus to teaching adults a relationship-based approach to leadership. Since then, she has trained and coached tens of thousands of executives and association leaders. I encourage everyone out there to get involved. - Troy Vincent Resources and links mentioned in this session include: The Engineering Management Accelerator Workshop People Power Unlimited  This episode is brought to you by PPI, the leader of FE, PE, or SE exam preparations. Use promo code TECC for 20% discount at PPI2Pass.com/coach. Books Mentioned in this Episode: Networking The Skill That the Schools Forgot to Teach What You Need to Know to Get Ahead in Business How to Win Friends & Influence People  Never Eat Alone The Lazy Leader’s Guide to Outrageous Results We would love to hear any questions you might have or stories you might share on getting involved in professional associations. How can you get more involved in professional associations? Please leave your comments, feedback or questions in the section below. If you enjoyed this post, please consider downloading our free list of 33 Productivity Routines of Top Engineering Exec...