A Robbery and a Networking Event

Yesterday was crazy. 

It started out normal-ish. I was sitting at my work desk spacing out/listening to music. Then I heard Fred -the Engineering Manager- yell, "Hey get back here!" and run out the door as fast as he could.

For a brief mila-second I thought it was one of the stray cats that lurk around the building complex. I figured a cat had tried sneaking in since the door was slightly ajar and then Fred had chased it out. But then Brian, Paul, and Jim went running outside about 2 seconds after. 

There was a squeal of tires and then Jim called off in the distance, "We've got your license plate A**hole!" That's when I realized a thief must have come up to the door, grabbed the laptop sitting on the laser machine, and run off.

It was kind of stupid to have the laptop sitting out there. It was close to the door, and Fred was watching it, but still... 

Fred said the thief -a young, Hispanic man in a black track suite, had just walked right up to the laptop and grabbed it. The police were notified and in about 5 minutes one showed up to our office. 

The car and the license plate we reported had recently been stolen from a garage in Palo Alto. So essentially the thief stole the car and then used it to steal a laptop. 

Crazy morning. 

Then last night Jos hosted a "Speed Networking" Mixer. I was put in charge of the registration booth. We were hoping for 30 people to show up, but only 20 did. We didn't promote the mixer as avidly as we could have. Meetup.com and Facebook were our main outlets to inform people of it. 

The mixer itself went well. I told Jos that I wanted to take notes ad observe rather than participate, but Jos had other ideas so I ended up participating in the Speed Networking itself.

Basically it works like speed dating -you get 2 minutes to shpeel and the person across from you gets 2 minutes to shpeel. You share what you do, why you do it, and what the person across from you can do to help support your business. It is pretty amazing how well you click with some people naturally and others not so much. 

I loved all the people I met. I usually avoid social situations, but when I'm in them the time just flies and I enjoy connecting with the people I meet. 

I met a woman who sounds like a great, focused Life Coach -one I'm seriously thinking about trying out. 

I met another woman who was selling health products I wasn't necessarily interested in, but I loved her caring, attentive nature and the way she didn't speak like a pre-recorded message. Everything was genuine.

There were a few people that I met that didn't "click" as well with me, but I just kind of sat their patiently listening -letting them BE whoever they were.

I'm never really attached to the details. I'll note a person's face and appearance, but it's their energy/ personality/ charisma/ vibe that I notice more than anything. It's amazing how some people can draw you in and make you feel really close while others tend to keep you at more of a distance and don't seem to embrace you the same way. 

At the end of the hour of networking I felt drained. I felt like I had been consciously focused for a little too long, but I also wanted it to continue so I could hear more from people. I was like a sponge absorbing everything until I couldn't take in anymore. My head was pounding, my ears were ringing, and my throat was soar. But I felt like I'd done something worth doing. 

We "less-socially inclined" people need those like Jos in our lives. they drag us out of the known-comfort-zone and into the unpredictably unexpected. They share us with others like a child shows off a beloved toy they let others hug and hold onto. If we didn't have people like that in our lives we'd just assume we were better off in the comfy closet away from the fray of the world.