After a one-to-one coaching session with our networking expert Simona Barbieri, Stylist's Jenny Tregoning went out into the field to put the tips into practice. Here's how she got on...

There are plenty of things I’d rather be doing on a Sunday afternoon than walking into a room full of strangers for the purpose of networking (renewing the car insurance, alphabetising my paperbacks – hoovering, even).

But for this month’s Year of You theme, I was tasked with learning how to network without awkwardness (or at least slightly less awkwardly) then putting my new-found skills to the test.

My coach was Simona Barbieri, founder of women’s networking community Hub Dot. The idea behind Hub Dot is that each attendee has a coloured sticker representing why they are there (to share expertise, to ask for help with an idea, to find inspiration) and women are encouraged to tell their stories, rather than be restricted by job titles or labels.

Simona’s first tip was to do something that makes you feel happy and confident before going into a networking event, to set you off on the right foot – put on your best lipstick, call a friend for a chat, read your favourite poem, or even sing (though I'm not sure how well that would have gone down on a packed train).

I chose to listen to my ‘happy’ playlist, though as I haven't updated my iPod since about 2009, it made me more nostalgic than upbeat. Nevertheless, it buoyed me enough to stride confidently through the door and get started.

I should mention at this point that Hub Dot like to choose unusual locations for their events, so this one took place at Bhuti, a new health and wellbeing centre in Richmond. This meant shoes off at the door (thank goodness I put decent socks on), cucumber water (no alcohol to lubricate conversation here) and calming, zen-like spaces to roam around in (Namaste).

Walking into a room where everyone is already deep in conversation is daunting but I soon got chatting to a woman named Carey (Simona’s tip: if you need to break into a circle, be brave and voice any awkwardness). One of Simona’s other key bits of advice is to do your research before the event. Find out who is going to be there, know who you want to talk to and come armed with plenty of things to talk about.

It turned out that Carey ran her own business making superfood chocolates and, as I write about food for Stylist, we found common ground straight away and later exchanged cards – so far, so successful.

Next, we moved upstairs into the yoga studio for talks which provided a welcome break (no talking for all of half an hour) and it was fascinating hearing from such a diverse group of women. After the talks, it was back in networking mode. Trying to break into an existing chat is tricky but I noticed other people were similarly nervous, so I followed Simona’s advice to keep smiling and try and put others at ease. It worked and I got into a good chat with a woman called Helena and found out that she worked in a similar industry to me and that we even had friends in common.

I still don't think I'm ever going to enjoy networking, but I certainly feel better equipped to get the most out of it. And the one bit of advice from Simona that will stick with me is to be honest and voice any awkwardness. It’s better to just say sorry for interrupting if there's someone you really want to introduce yourself to, or being honest and saying that you came to meet as many people as possible than get stuck talking to the same person all night.

Be honest, be brave and be open – you never know what might come of it.

Networking without awkwardness: expert tips on how to make meaningful connections