A GROUP of conference attendees making strained conversation at the bar have realised they are networking.
The delegates at the Birmingham print management event at first sipped wine silently while waiting for something to happen before working out this was actually it.
Carolyn Ryan of Leicester said: “I was discussing the future of direct mail with a man staring at the floor when suddenly it dawned on me I was doing something really dynamic and exciting.
“You hear about people networking all the time but, like skydiving, you never think it’ll ever be you.
“I was assessing people entirely based on their potential value to my career, giving out business cards, and fake laughing at print industry jokes.
“I really feel like I’m on my way to becoming a deeply unpleasant, status-obsessed bully.”
