not following up within 48 hours

(common gotcha)

what happened

met great people at the event, exchanged info, then never reached out. by the time you remember, it's been two weeks and the connection is cold.

why it's a gotcha

the window for a warm follow-up is about 48 hours. after that, you're just another name in their contacts with no context. the energy from the event fades fast, and so does their memory of you.

the fix

send a short message within 24-48 hours. reference something specific from your conversation. "hey, great meeting you at [event] — loved your point about [specific thing]." that's it. short, specific, timely. don't pitch them on anything in the first message — that's networking-as-extraction. you can't follow up without the contact, which is why you get it on the spot. and if you recorded the conversation, you can reference specifics that make the follow-up feel personal.