On October 17th, I attended the HSMAI Chinese Auction. This event was intended to raise funds for the HTM program at San Diego State. The night included an open networking hour, dinner, and then the actual auction. I attended with another student from the HTM program, Nineth Salazar, and we split coins to participate in the auction. I felt slightly nervous when I arrived because there were a lot of industry professionals there and Nineth and I were the only students actually attending the event. I did create three goals for myself for the event: actually have a conversation with at least one professional at the event in order to practice interpersonal communication, connect with one on LinkedIn to stay networked after the event, and receive at least one business card in order to practice my professionalism by asking for one. I felt like my goals were easily attainable if I was willing to go a bit out of my comfort zone and approach people I’ve never spoken to before.
At the event, Heidi Alcantara, Edlen’s San Diego Branch Director of Sales, went up to Nineth and I to introduce herself and encourage us to reach out to talk to people. She explained how she was in charge of hosting and planning the event and that she was excited to see us there participating. Although she approached us first, it was still nerve wracking to talk to a professional, but I managed to pull myself together quickly and hold a conversation about the event, her role, and even how she got to her current position, which meant one goal down! It was also reassuring to hear that all the professionals are open to talking to students and give them advice.
My second goal was to connect with one of the professionals there on LinkedIn. I had encountered Gillian Ware from the San Diego Tourism Authority before when she came to speak to my 330 class, but seeing her at this networking event allowed me to interact with her on a more personal basis. I sent her an invitation to connect on LinkedIn because now that i’ve interacted with her more than once, she knows I am interested in possibly working the operations side for a DMO. I foresee myself going to her as a resource if I’m interested in learning more about what it is like working for a DMO or even if I have an assignment that requires looking further into DMOs.
My third goal was to acquire a business card. Luckily, upon interacting with Gillian, I managed to get her business card. I felt this goal meant a lot to me because it’s usually the last thing you get when you finish your conversation with someone, and I’m glad she gave me the time to talk to her. Also, having her business card means I can save it and have her personal information, which makes her a lot more accessible to me.
Overall, the Chinese Auction was very fun, because all of the professionals were having a good time trying to win the auction. I also managed to connect with some professionals and practice communication and professionalism in a setting that I will be around a lot when I begin to join a professional association. I look forward to using what I learned from this event and propel it to make me a better networker; I was a bit awkward at some instances and felt intimidated because of my status as a student, but now that I know what to expect, I’ll do a lot better next time I attend a networking event. I like that I’m making connections with people that are in specified sectors of my interest because it means I can begin to develop myself professionally in the event industry and have a network of professionals that can help me reach my goals.
