If you survey a room and ask if they would rather spend the evening with a group of close friends or a group of strangers, you can almost guarantee that they would unequivocally choose to spend time with friends. Your perception of attending a networking event may be wearing a name tag, struggling to start or maintain a conversation, making mindless small talk and receiving business cards from people you may not have the intention of emailing or seeing again. I get it. I used to feel the same way until I learned to network authentically. I started asking questions that made the conversation insightful and interesting and left me feeling inspired and motivated to connect. I’ve met people who have become close friends, mentors, employers and clients. I reached out to a few successful women to find out the best questions to ask at networking events.