NETWORKING TIP: HOW TO PROPERLY ANSWER THE QUESTION "WHAT DO YOU DO?"

NETWORKING TIP: HOW TO PROPERLY ANSWER THE QUESTION  "WHAT DO YOU DO?"

Today I decided to write something about personal branding. Specifically, I want to focus on the biggest mistake that people make when they are networking: not answering the question What do you do? properly.

This question is everywhere. It has become the foundation of networking conversations all over the business world. We constantly get asked What do you do? But the huge mistake that we make when answering this question is to respond with our job title or the company we work for. So we end up saying things like I'm an account manager or I’m a web designer or I work for XYZ company.

But the fact is, that’s not what they asked. When someone asks the question What do you do?, the word "do" is an action word; it’s a verb! They are not asking for your label; they want to know what problems you solve as a professional. This is a vital concept for us to understand because it is fundamental to personal branding.

If you want to be memorable, you have to explain the problems that you solve.

When you do this, you should explain them in a way that gets people to easily recall this information at a later date. That’s what personal branding is all about. Telling people that you are an account manager doesn’t do much. Telling them that you work at XYZ company, unless it’s Google, doesn’t tell them much either. It will go in one ear and out the other. So if you change the way you answer that question and really do tell them what you do, you’ll do it in a way that they never forget.

Let me give you an example. It would be very easy for me to go to a networking event and, when someone asks me the question What do you do?, just say I’m a career coach. Maybe they would find that interesting, maybe they’d ask me a question about it, or maybe they’d just move right on. Who knows; because I didn’t tell them what I do.

But if I go to a networking event and I answer the question by saying Well, I love to help job seekers learn how to make job search fun. Or maybe I would say I’m passionate about teaching job seekers the new rules to job search so that they can find a job faster. I could also say I am all about helping people understand the right way to look for work so it’s less stressful, it’s more fun, and they get better results. Do you see how I am telling them what I do? When I explain myself this way, there is a greater chance that they respond by saying Really? How do you do that?

When this happens, I am going to get an opportunity to explain myself. And then the chances are going to go up dramatically that they’re going to remember me because we had a meaningful dialogue around the problems that I solve.

So, when it comes to personal branding, if you really want to make an impact and really want to be memorable, answer the question What do you do? correctly! Don’t give them your job title or the name of the company where you work. Tell them the problems that you solve, and do it with passion and enthusiasm. I guarantee that this will generate much better dialogue between you and the person you are networking with, and you’re going to be a lot more memorable.

By
Joel Caney