Hey buddy, can you spare some time? I promise you won't regret it.

Heather Townsend's "9 classic mistakes guest speakers make" on her blog The Thoughts and Ideas Of The Efficiency Coach (now at The Efficiency Coach). Don't let the title fool you. These mistakes aren't limited to guest speakers. And frankly, if you step back and think about them, the nine mistakes Townsend identifies are probably committed in one way or another by virtually every professional at any networking event: "not thinking about your audience," "no prepared introduction," "going on too long," etc. The point is that whether you're speaking to one person or one hundred, they're giving you their time. Townsend's post will help ensure that they don't regret it.