How to rock a MEETUP and get the most out of it!

It's still January and if you are here on BiggerPockets most likely one of your resolutions was to further your real estate investing career. There are so many ways to move that mark...reading books, being active here on BiggerPockets, and probably some networking or meetup events! As a meetup host and serial meetup attendee I have learned how to make sure I get the most each time I attend one of these events. They aren't all good, but you can always walk away feeling like you got the most out of whatever it was you attended. Here are my 5 things to rock a meetup!

Just say hi and tell them your name! That's it, it doesn't have to be long and in depth (unless you want it to be and you feel the atmosphere is right). As the person in front of the room, this is really nice when people come and introduce themselves to you and at the end if you have any feedback, or anything you might want to hear about, please share it with them (again, with the right opening to do so).

Do not go around shoving your business card in everyone's hand, or taking everyone's business card that's available. Take the time to meet and talk with one person in the room that interests you and dig in. What brought them there? How long have they been interested in RE? Where are they in their journey? What is their strategy? Think about if there is anything that you can do, or that you know which could help them along their journey. Maybe take the time during the presentation to think about it and reapproach them at the end with a idea, contact, or piece of encouragement.

This is easy, people love to share something they think other people will find useful! It's an easy conversation starter or interrupter.

Ask someone what the best local meetup they attend is or the one that they hear the best things about and make sure you ask them why. Then make a plan to meetup at the recommended event. It might be nice to show up at a meetup and have a familiar face.

If you are at a REI meetup, then this is a topic that you should be able to connect with on some level. Write the date, the presenter's name, and the topic at the top of the page (you people know this) and start to take notes as they talk. The important thing to wait for is what is going to happen while you are taking notes and listening...other ideas are going to start to flow to you. For me, when I am in a room of motivated real estate investors getting educated on a topic, something happens to my brain and it lets loose. It's almost a subconscious flow of ideas, brainstorming and magically to do list making that happens when surrounded the the collective real estate energy in a meetup room! Super weird, but maybe it happens for you, too. My note page is a wild web of genius and that is where I start the next day when I hit the ground running.

GET OUT THERE AND NETWORK, IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE FUN :)