This may blow your mind—get ready for it…
Your goal when someone gives you their business card is to get rid of it!
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Think about it—do you have business cards of colleagues with whom you are routinely in touch? No. Because you know where they are and you know where to find them. You have their contact information stored on your phone or in your email. So the ultimate goal of getting a business card is to create a real relationship with that person—if they are ready and interested. It does take two to tango.
Once you follow up with someone who gives you their business card, ideally they respond positively. Once they respond I throw their business card away. They’re no longer a name on a card, they’re a colleague who is in my network. And I would much rather spend my days developing that relationship than tidying up business cards and paying rent on the space they take up in my home office.