Network, Network, Network
~by Nicole Mott (@nicolemott)
When looking for a job during my senior year of college, the advice I received over and over again was “network, network, network.” So moving back to the DC area I’ve been very lucky to have an internship in which the primary focus of my role is to set up networking events. Luckily, these “networking events” really don’t even feel like networking at all. Attending the #DCTweetup at the Science Club this past week felt like less like a networking event and more of a “non-awkward party of people meeting each other” (I hope that makes sense)!
It was my birthday on Wednesday, so I wasn’t planning on going to the #DCTweetup due to prior dinner plans but as I heard more and more hype about the ever expanding attendee list for this event, I knew I couldn’t miss it! I compromised and made a reservation at Firefly, just a few blocks down from the event at the Science Club so I could at least be there for half of the #DCTweetup. I’m so glad I was able to make it! I met many people, reconnected with friends, and even had “Happy Birthday” sung to me by a group of people I had just met, while trying to slip-out to make it to my reservation (PS- Thanks for that!).
Liz and I had the best view all night. We sat at the front door checking-in guests, so when there wasn’t a line at the door, we were able to meet and talk with literally every person that walked in. As I’ve mentioned before, I’ve only been a twitter user for a month or so, so it was crazy to see how this tweet-up worked. People would give shout-outs on twitter or even request songs via twitter to our DJ… crazy! My last post was about the importance of phone etiquette while out in social settings and I can say that I learned even more about proper tweeting while talking out in public (it’s a skill I’m still developing). Tweet, Tweet and more Tweets were sent while at the party and I loved it!
It was a great #DCTweetup and definitely the largest one I have ever been to (well, I’ve only actually been to one before, so definitely the largest). I loved meeting new people and seeing a few friendly faces. How awesome to be a part of an event like this. Over 200 people signed up, but with a bunch of hard-nosed bouncers, like Liz and I at the front door, we let a few “slide” in off of the waitlist, because in my opinion the more the merrier! And that was definitely the mentality of the #DCTweet up at Science Club.
After our first big tweet-up under our belts, I’m even more excited to plan the next few events. A #DCTweetup only once a month? I’m so excited I feel like we could handle one twice a month… once a week? Well, maybe I’m getting ahead of my event coordinating skills too early on. If you didn’t make it to this tweet-up, keep checking out our event website because you missed a great night. Here’s to more tweetups, twirlies and twixers to come!
Pros & Cons of Manning the Sign-in Desk
~by Liz Glomb (@eglomb)
Week 5 of my internship with Sisarina brought one of the biggest parties and social media events I have ever been too. Sisarina and Lisa Byrne co-sponsored the Social Media Day party on April 30th at the Science Club.
There were a few pros and cons to being the “check-in” girl, but mostly just pros:
Pro #1: I got to meet everyone who walked in the door for the party, and I mean EVERYONE. We had over 150 people show up and I got to meet and great every single one of them. This was a benefit because some of these people I’ve been following on twitter for a long time and finally got to meet them in real life. I’d say a few people might’ve slipped by me because Nicole checked them in, but you can pretty much say I met everyone.
Pro #2: Getting to meet everyone means that everyone got to meet you, which led to people wanting to talk to you even if you had to sit by the door the whole time. Even though I left my chair once the entire night, I had an amazing time.
Pro #3: Everyone wanted to know what I want to do with my life and I answered them. This has led to a couple possible business ventures for myself. We’ll see what happens next.
Con #1: I never got to leave my seat so therefore I still really have NO idea what the inside of Science Club looks like. Oh well, guess I’ll go there another time to check it out.
Con #2: People had to bring me drinks because I couldn’t get them myself. Oh wait…. Shouldn’t that be considered a pro? ;-)
Con #3: I had to make over 200 nametags for everyone that signed up, and of course I still ended up missing people (sorry to those that didn’t get a name tag, I promise you’ll get one next time, I swear!)
Anyways, Social Media Day was a blast. You can check out the recap and pictures here. Enjoy the recap, I helped write it! Adios!
