Stop Asking 'What Do You Do?'? Maybe Not. | Go Savvy Social

Stop Asking 'What Do You Do?'? Maybe Not.

There are deeper networking questions than 'What do you do?' but the question itself is not the enemy. For many people it is a sincere attempt to start a conversation in a room where networking already feels difficult.

Why does this matter for your business?

Business culture sometimes mocks basic networking questions as shallow. That can create another standard people feel they have to perform correctly.

Where do businesses get stuck?

The bigger problem is not the opener. It is what happens after the answer. If nobody listens, asks a follow-up or looks for a meaningful connection, the conversation stays transactional.

What does better execution look like?

Use the basic question as a doorway, then get curious. Ask what the person is working on, what they are trying to change or what kind of customer they help best.

• Listen for one detail worth following up on.

• Ask how the work affects customers or the organization.

• Offer a useful introduction when you genuinely see one.

• Practice explaining your own value clearly when someone asks you the same question.

The Go Savvy Social point of view

Networking is hard for a lot of people. Give the person willing to start the conversation some credit—and then make the conversation better.