• Shyam Patel (Twitter @shyampatel) was the first presenter to take stage. His high energy speech addressed the overload of Internet content with The Next Epidemic – Mind Obesity.
• Jasmin Brand (Twitter @brandpointe ) entertained the crowd by discussing What Social Media and Ike Turner Have in Common.
• Mike Orren (Twitter @mikeorren) persuaded us to take an Improv class with his speech Stop Thinking and say, “Yes, and…”: Why Everyone Should Take an Improv Class.
• Laura Vatalaro (Twitter @lvgraphics) promoted eco-friendly practices and sustainability in print, design and marketing in her speech Go Green Graphic Design.
• My friend Mike Merrill (Twitter @mikedmerrill) loves bacon. He really loves bacon. He closed the show by visually tantalizing us with his presentation For the Love of Bacon – American’s Cult Meme.

It was a different yet interesting kind of event. It really got me thinking, if I had the stage for just 5 minutes, what would I present?

What are you passionate about? What would you present if you only had 5 minutes?

Function: noun

The exchange of information or services among individuals, groups, or institutions; specifically: the cultivation of productive relationships for employment or business.  (http://www.merriam-webster.com)

I was recently at a professional networking event and met a lovely woman who had just moved to town.  She just launched her own consulting firm and was looking for connections and asking about additional local groups for other networking opportunities.  We had a short conversation about what we each did, exchanged business cards and I offered to connect with her afterwards to provide additional online links to other networking events in the area that may be of interest to her.  She was pleasant and professional and thanked me for offering to help.

About an hour later, the same woman approached me holding two alcoholic drinks – one in each hand.  We carried on a brief conversation which quickly turned ugly.  The woman had apparently been drinking as she was swaying, speaking very sloppy and was literally spitting in my face.  I kept taking steps backwards as she kept taking steps forward, getting closer and closer to me until I was cornered.  I quickly excused myself and told her it was nice chatting with her.  As I was leaving the event, I noticed she was taking shots at the bar and had become quite obnoxious.  

So, if I may offer one piece of advice when you are planning to network in a professional environment, be sure to know what your alcohol limit is and stop when you get there.  One or two alcoholic drinks over the course of the evening to help take the edge off is typically ok, however becoming drunk at such an event shows your unprofessionalism and others will take note. Your personal brand is on the line.