Networking at Conferences or 5 Ways to be Social Butterfly and less Awkward Potato

Why didn’t anyone teach me this?

One of my colleagues is an amazing go-getter and very passionate about her role as a mentor. Over the past couple years she has assembled a lecture series, known as the “Academic Skills Workshop,” and I am honored to have contributed to the series. Last year I talked about the data analysis software programs FlowJo (Treestar) and Prism (Graphpad). It is hard to gauge the impact of lectures given via Zoom, but it must have been pretty well-received as I was invited to give a lecture on FlowJo this year for an immunotherapy course. So despite my newness to professorship, and the fact that we are not actually trained how to be good teachers as part of our scientific training, I must be doing okay.

This year for the Academic Skills Workshop I selected the topic, “Networking at a Conference.” I filled my lecture with as much frank discussion of the topic as I could because I believe this to be such an important skill set.  Like many life skills, there are things that I wish someone had told me earlier in life. 

Halfway through my postdoc, I realized that networking was important for career growth and opportunities. It quickly became clear that a lot more was at stake than I realized, and also I felt like I was not maximizing my time and effort at conferences. I tried to search out blog posts or other online advice, but what little I found was unhelpful. 

In this post, I will go over the content of my lecture. While I was uncertain at first whether the content would be helpful or just, “no duh, professor,” it seems for the most part, the reception has been positive. Of course, I am still not an expert and have much to learn, but at the very least, this has been sufficient to get me here. 

Networking: what’s it good for?

The importance of this topic may not seem obvious. The ability to network seems most applicable in the corporate world, where there is a mantra of “it is not what you know, but who you know.” As academics, we may feel that we are exempt from the social pressure to perform. As there is no classroom or formal instruction on networking, it can be easy to not take career social development as seriously. However, good communication skills can be just as important as technical expertise or the quality of your work. Science favors itself as being a meritocracy, and this is true to a certain extent.  However, there are a lot of scientists, and so the scientists that are liked and known can get their message across far easier than those that are distasteful. The conference is a way to practice and build your networking skill set.

Conferences have been very awkward during our virtual time, but as safeguards lessen, many people are eager to get back to in-person conferences. Scientists secretly know that the interactions that can help your science and your career often happen when you ‘bump into’ people.  With academia spread nationally and internationally, conferences are a way these encounters can happen. We should think about conferences as career investments: they take valuable time away from the bench, they take mental energy to talk about science all day, and a not insignificant amount of money.  

Like any other conference, scientific conferences are just a way for like-minded people to get together and focus on their interest. Scientific conferences have had a long history, especially since the late 19th century and the age of the ‘gentleman scientist.’ Now they are very important because of the increased speed and scope of scientific output.  Conferences can also serve as a chance for discussion and consensus: we need groups of scientists around to agree or disagree on what is most important. Lastly, scientists may be many things, but they are definitely humans, and most humans like to interact with others of the same kind. It feels good to have others as excited about the esoteric things we study as our livelihood.

Academic and scientific conferences vary, but there are common attributes that you can expect. Usually the conference is officially opened with a ceremony, group meeting, opening remarks or lecture. The opening agenda will include an oral presentation with a speaker, at a podium or virtually, who was either invited by the organizers or selected from applicants. Later in the conference, poster sessions allow a showcase of many different presentations without having to allot specific time and lecture space for each one. There is often a keynote address, where a distinguished speaker is invited to speak. Many larger conferences are sponsored by companies, and these vendors get the opportunity to interact with potential customers during a showcase. Some conferences for national organizations may give awards during the conference.  Conferences usually offer some informal events, centered around food and drink, and sometimes activities to enjoy the location. The conference concludes with an official closing event, with some teasers for the next meeting.

Now that we know what a conference is and why we should go, let’s discuss how to plan for it. I have distilled five guidelines that I believe can help you make the most of your conference. I have found that if I don’t have any expectations or intentions prior to the conference, I miss out on the more meaningful aspects because I find them to be overwhelming.

Your conference game plan: 5 rules for a meaningful conference experience

First, Know Yourself.

Taking a personal inventory will be helpful in focusing on your goals. 

Why are you going to this particular meeting? Why are YOU going, or why does your advisor want you to go? This often depends on where you are in your scientific training; the early graduate student or post-bac may want to get a sense of the field that is new to them. As you level up in grad school and postdoc, you will want to connect with peers and leaders in the field. Technicians, research scientists, and faculty will all have their unique backgrounds to draw from and have their own needs from the conference. In general, the conference will be a way to get updates in the field and share your research activities. Sharing will enable you to establish yourself in the community. If the conference is outside your expertise, it is a great way to be immersed in the language and context of another field.

Once you have thought about your role in this community, you need an effective way to communicate this to new people. For this, I believe in having a Power Sentence. No one needs a long rambling description of your thesis. Seriously, no one. You want a short but compelling introduction you can serve up. Think elevator pitch, but for a very brief elevator ride where both of you realized that you were on the wrong car and exited nearly immediately. By keeping it short, you are also being courteous. Your unsuspecting victim can now say “tell me more!” or “that’s great! bye!”

An action statement is good, because it can easily follow the first thing you will say...your name! Verbs are your friend here.

If you can put in the why or the broader implication, even better! For example:

I study the impact of ________ on __________

I am looking at the role of _________ in _________

I am creating a model for __________ so that we can __________

A power statement can perform double duty as summary headers for your resumes or blurbs for your social media profile. I also suggest 2 versions, one that is snappy and without jargon, meant for a general audience. The other can be specialized for the dozen or so scientists that study the same things.

My current Power Sentences:

General Version:

“I study the impact of aging on the immune system.”

Specialized Version:

“I study the mechanisms within the lymph node microenvironment that change with age, leading to decreased naïve T cell homeostasis and activation.”

The power sentence is always a work in progress. You always can refine them as you use them, gauge how well people instantly understand what you are about, and as your interests change. I recommend writing the power sentences down, then practice them. Say them out loud a few times so that they feel natural. Bonus points if you can work them into a conversation in real life!

Me, “Hi! I’m Jessica. I study the mechanisms within the lymph node microenvironment that change with age, leading to decreased naïve T cell homeostasis and activation.”

Victim, “um, hi Jessica. Welcome to Starbucks. What can I get started for you today?”

See, that wasn’t so hard, right?

Have something to offer.

Now that you have established what you are about and how you will introduce yourself to others, you must have a Deliverable for the conference. For most, it will be a talk or poster presentation. Give yourself the time and effort to practice this! Trust me, I used to think I could just coast and give talking points cold, because I thought it was dumb and would take too much effort to rehearse my talk. Unfortunately I discovered that my brain doesn’t work like that, and that it could actually be difficult to form precise, articulate sentences on the fly. I freeze up, and then I ramble. It wasn’t fun for me, and now my audience have drifted away to other thoughts.

I now practice everything.

In general, the first few tries of rehearsing a talk are editing. Only after those tries does the talk actually start to feel and sound natural. A few more tries after that will burn the talk into your brain and keep you from forgetting the next line when the big moment arrives. Paradoxically, the shorter the talk, the more you need to rehearse it. It needs to be precise, yet natural like a reflex, otherwise if you realize you forgot your next talking point you will panic and begin to ramble. For longer talks (30-60 min), you can get away with rehearsing the entire thing 2-3 times in completion. It is best to focus on nailing the introduction, after that you can relax and take your time in explaining the data. I will elaborate more on the art of the talk in a future post.

If you are merely there to visit and don’t have anything official to present, have an expanded version of your Power Sentence. Someone is going to find your topic interesting, and so you want a coherent and easy to follow summary of your research, so you can wow them and get them to hire you and/or give you opportunities (without the aid of Powerpoint). Think of this like an elevator pitch, where you are selling that your topic is actually worth researching.

If you are lucky enough to be thinking about jobs, bring hard copies of your resume or CV to gently thrust into people’s faces. Telling them you will email them later can lose your momentum.

Here is something I am bad at but am trying to improve: be well-read in your field. It feels great to know the paper someone brings up, or be able to talk about something you just read to the person who wrote it!

Last, think of those vendors! They are there to interact with you and build their customer base, they can be your allies.  Think about research problems you have, or techniques that don’t work. These are scientists by training so they want to help you. Many sales specialists are there because they enjoy working with customers so usually they are super friendly and outgoing. They got hired and have excelled in their industry because they are very good at social skills and networking, so it’s not a bad idea to watch them at work.  Get to know them, you may find out about great career opportunities or technical resources because they serve geographical locations and meet many labs.

Graze at the buffet, don’t drink from the firehose.

Sorry to mix metaphors; this is about expectations. I had gone into conferences thinking that I was supposed to learn absolutely everything, only to end up feeling like a failure because I didn’t. It is ok to not absorb everything. I don’t think it is possible to learn everything at a conference--at least not for me.  I can’t drink from the fire hose.  Instead, I think of the conference as a buffet—something where you should NOT eat everything. Eat your favorites or those that look interesting. To avoid missing out on what is important to you, use your schedule and make sure to highlight those that are most important to you. Prioritize getting the most out of those topics or sessions.

After you have prioritized, make sure that you are focusing and making it count. For me, I need to take little notes and draw a schematic--not for later reference, but it is how I keep myself from drifting off. I’ve never gone full bore and bullet-journaled conference notes, regretfully, but it is enough for me to pay attention.

Take physical and mental breaks.  Some conferences are structured as one continuous section for blocks at a time, so it may not as feasible. Don’t just bounce from talk to talk to talk for all 10 hours of the day. For me, I can only listen to 2-3 science stories, then I can’t pay attention to any more new ones. Between talks, go for a quick walk. Get outside if you can. Grab some coffee or a snack. I have learned the hard way, budget and prioritize your mental space!

Self-Portrait

Break out of the Awkward Potato orbit.

A fellow postdoc told me about the ‘awkward potato’. She would describe being an awkward potato, out in space, and that she hoped to evolve into an awkward asteroid. I found this image to be pretty hilarious and relatable, because deep down, many of us are awkward potatoes, and conferences can really make us feel like that, especially in the beginning.

So, how do we get out of being an awkward potato? I like to imagine that I am my own publicist. What career moves would you suggest for yourself? 

If you consider yourself an introvert, don’t let this be the excuse to not talk to a stranger. Lots of people in science, even those in the public eye, are self-described introverts. Perhaps it is genuinely draining or anxiety-provoking to meet new people: if this is the case, you must optimize your energy as the precious resource that it is. Go back to step 1 and think about what you need for yourself.

It may help to reframe what you are trying to do: this isn’t a chore, but the OPPORTUNITY to meet amazing people you otherwise never could because they don’t work in your lab building. This is the chance to feel like a part of the greater academic community, and that is actually a very neat feeling.

If this is you, resist the urge to hide. Also, safety in numbers can actually be a detriment to your new opportunities, so avoid the temptation to ALWAYS be with your labmates or PI. You see them every other day, and continuously chatting with your tight group may discourage others from bothering you.

If there is someone you want to meet but don’t know a good way to go about it, tell your mentor. Sometimes it is easier and more natural to have someone introduce you. Your mentor may already do this, but if not it couldn’t hurt to ask (sometimes mentors are busy and worried about being awkward potatoes that they forget).

Also, realize that a conference is a totally artificial thing, so just about everyone feels weird and out of place. I have seen Keynote speakers with decades-spanning prestigious careers standing around by themselves at wine socials. But usually, they just need to wait for someone eager enough, maybe me, to meet them and start a conversation.

Whoever needs to hear this, you are good enough, no matter your academic rank, to talk to any attendees there. Just be respectful of time and personal space and you don’t need to worry that you are ‘bothering’ someone. They are there too, to meet people at a conference.  Those people include you!

Here are some action items as you get practice getting out of your comfort zone:

Meet your heroes. Here is the author of all those papers you read! My postdoc was in thymus research, and at one meeting after my presentation, Ludger Klein, who worked on the mechanisms of central tolerance with the late Bruno Kyewski, came up to me and started asking questions. I had no idea who he was at first, but as soon as I realized it, I was starstruck! Ludger Klein cared about my research! If you see your hero and want to start talking, compliments, questions are all good ways to get the ball rolling. Everyone loves to talk about their research.

Set a stretch goal for yourself. You can introduce yourself to someone you admire, maybe the postdoc at another institution with a very similar research focus. I lovingly call this person my nemesis, but it is all in healthy competition with myself. I actually want to meet this person and be her Best Friend. 

Sit next to a new friend. If you are in the breakfast hall or during a wine social, sit down at a table with people you don’t know--this is actually really fun because it may be the only socially acceptable place to sit with a stranger and invade their space.  Not only can you learn something new and potentially useful, but this is how cool and humanizing interactions occur, and you realize that other scientists are just like you.

Lastly, not everything will go smoothly. I’ve had plenty of fails, where I stood around awkwardly waiting my turn to talk to someone, or when I introduced myself to someone influential and he brushed me off. It will suck but it probably seemed worse to you than it actually was, and don’t let it keep you from taking the initiative again.

Create a lasting impact.

The conference is over.  You are exhausted and mentally spent.  You feel the warm, gooey love of your global academic community. Now you need to integrate it into your scientific psyche. Follow up with people you have met, a quick email to thank them for their time, or let them know you enjoyed your conversation. If there is a way they can help you, find a tactful way to ask.

If there were papers, techniques, new concepts, or resources you heard of, get to reading or planning experiments!

Some labs will summarize their favorite talks to their groups. It can be informal, but if you heard something that your labmate or mentor could benefit from, let them know. Mentors especially are often managing many projects, so many will be grateful and admiring that you picked up something new. Hopefully, you will have a next meeting you can be excited to present at.

* * *

In summary, a little forethought is enough to make sure you don’t feel like you wasted your time and energy to attend something that just made you bored or nervous. Know what you are there for and what your deliverables are. Set a plan to prioritize the topics you want to learn about because it is impossible to absorb everything. Be proactive in your social engagement and put yourself outside your comfort zone. The conference is all about exciting new interactions. Find a way to make your experience last-- tell your colleagues what you learned, maintain a network of new peers and mentors.

Lastly, have fun at the conference! I didn’t put this as part of the plan, because from my first conference it became obvious to me that many scientists take this as an opportunity to visit and cut loose with old and new friends. Science is a special community filled with amazing and weird people, and this is your chance to take your rightful place among us.