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"I recently went to a wedding full of smart, young, ambitious guests. So of course as we all chatted, our jobs came up. I wish some of those people realized that the rules for making business connections are a little different at weddings... The bride and groom are off-limits for wedding networking. Presumably, you know the couple well enough that you&amp;#x27;ll see them before or after their wedding so you don&amp;#x27;t need to trade business info at the reception. But if you&amp;#x27;re someone&amp;#x27;s date or aren&amp;#x27;t too close with the couple for another reason, you still can&amp;#x27;t use their wedding as a chance for you to connect. Wait &amp;#x27;til they&amp;#x27;re back from the honeymoon. They&amp;#x27;ll still know who you are then. Don&amp;#x27;t give out a business card unless someone asks you for one. I think it&amp;#x27;s a little strange to pack business cards with your lipstick in your tiny purse, but I see how they can come in handy. Still, don&amp;#x27;t shove one in another guest&amp;#x27;s face until a card is requested. Wait &amp;#x27;til you hit it off with the guest before talking shop. Bringing up business right away often can cut conversations short. I know I feel like the guest is only talking to me to see how I can help her if that&amp;#x27;s the first subject she mentions. Even if business is your main reason for chatting at length with someone else, don&amp;#x27;t let on. Ask for an introduction. If there&amp;#x27;s a guest you want to meet and you have a mutual friend, see if that common comrade can make the meeting happen. Try not to put the bride or groom in that situation, but if either one is your only hope, you could ask, &amp;amp;#8220;When you go over to say hi to Samantha, would you mind if I tagged along? I&amp;#x27;d love to meet her. No problem if not!&amp;amp;#8221; Step outside for digit exchanges. I&amp;#x27;m guilty of this: I was typing in guests&amp;#x27; phone numbers on my cell on the dance floor. I should have moved off to the side, even though the bride was thrilled a few of us were planning to keep in touch. Have you ever networked at a wedding? What other rules should guests follow if they&amp;#x27;re interested in making business connections? Or do you think weddings are never a place for networking? More Wedding Etiquette Issues Can You Leave a Wedding You&amp;#x27;re Not Enjoying? Questions No Bride Needs to Answer Can I Send E-Mail Reminders to Guests? More Ways to Get Glamour Visit Shopglamour.com for cute stuff starting at just $10! Enter the latest Glamour sweepstakes! Follow us on Twitter Add us to your iGoogle homepage Photo: Jupiterimages"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/weddings/blogs/save-the-date/2010/08/the-need-to-knows-of-networkin>