Back in my "other life" in Australia - a couple of decades ago - networking consisted of a lot of standing about in odd little groups in uncomfortable shoes in echoey arty spaces, usually holding a glass of chardonnay.
FFWD to Thailand emerging from its Covid collapse - that economic devastation that happens when you suddenly switch off the tap in a largely tourist driven economy. How large? In 2019, Thailand (population 68 million) welcomed just on 40 million tourists!! 😳 In 2020-21, it has been tragic with less than 2000 tourists welcomed in 13 months. More than 85% of businesses in tourist centers like Chiang Mai and Phuket have closed - with more than half of them permanent closures. This is a country without any unemployment benefits - the "stimulus" a very few Thai people received (certainly not us!) was in the order of $250, once. Last year.
How did people respond? After the first months of food queues and community outreach, when it became apparent that there were no tourists coming in the foreseeable future, people sold what they could, pulled down the shutters and locked the doors and simply walked away. Back to the villages and the mountains.
With few government initiatives, the survivors (us included!) have started to get together to plan for a "soft reopening" of Thailand in July, as vaccination programs kick off and quarantine regs are being relaxed for inbound tourists from green light countries with non-variant strains. Collaboration and networking are the new national sport, as small businesses (most of Thailand is small biz!) try to make the most of what they have, and minimize spending.
Business networking here has begun to be something akin to speed dating online.
Yesterday I look part in an online business matching based out of Bangkok (I'm 850km northwest of there in Chiang Mai) and I found myself having odd moments of incredulity - both at my ability to DO business speed dating in Thai language 😆, and at how quickly it has begun to be normal. The new normal.
It was a group of 50, with two senior moderators - one from Business Network International Thailand, and the other from Junior Chamber International Thailand.
What does one wear to one of these Business Matching events? I had makeup and my reading glasses and a blazer (appropriately, visibly) on the top half, and just shorts and bare feet out of sight on the bottom. 😆 It being 40C. 😆
It started out innocently, with a group of 50 people listening to the moderators and learning about the resources each organization offers.
But then....
We were broken up into small breakout rooms by the moderators. We had EXACTLY 60 seconds only to deliver our elevator pitch of who we were and what our businesses are looking for and needing right now. The mods were so tight that people were literally cut off mid-sentence.
When everyone had delivered their 60 second pitch, the mods led a lively Q&A to draw out points of connection.
Everyone back to the main 'room', where the mods fed back to the big group particular things people might be able to engage with, and then we were divided up again and sent to a different group, with different people.
Holey Moley. Where was the chardonnay?? I was EXHAUSTED after 3 rounds of break out rooms!!!
Was it useful? Oh yes. Very.
But such a culture shock!
It makes this coming from other countries thing look easy-peasy.
I walked away with 10 great names of people I feel may be helpful to link me to new clients and new business as Thailand reopens. It was free, and I still had my shorts on at the end. 😆
2 intense hours and a HUGE PILE of hastily scribbled notes and saved chat threads, and I found myself suddenly and wistfully recalling the low key, chardonnay driven, no desperation style networking of the 1990s.
By 4pm I was DONE. Headache. Tired. Neck pain from trying to help my head "at attention" for my camera for just over 2 hours. Urgh.
One day, people will write PhD theses about The Great Transition, just as now people glibly chat about and research The Industrial Revolution.
Meanwhile, my motto is Adapt & Adjust. And Breathe.
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Well honestly the oldschool networking in a room with people laughing just a bit too hard at bad jokes back in the days was also no winner.
But this?? Wow! How can you get a good impression out of this? I guess it does help if you are more comfortable in in instagramming an presenting yourself like this.
But uhh
. Jobhunting?
You are SOOO RIGHT that 90s networking really wasn't a winner either. LOL. But I'm not a JOB person like you are, working in a controlled emvironment with customers supplied by someone else. And so I do what I have to do, to keep the customer pipeline primed.
It's networking rather than job hunting per se... yes, looking for new clients, that's true, but also looking for new suppliers, now corporate partners etc. Events I can partner with etc.
Having a job is SO MUCH EASIER (even if - in my opinion anyway - it is soul destroying for most).
Hugs and a beer soon, I hope. x
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