No matter what your business is, you need to be able to network.  For some people (including myself ...I can't tell you how many social events I've been to where I couldn't figure out how to break into a single conversation circle, and ended up wanting to hide in a corner and hyperventilate) networking can be a scary and mysterious process.  How do you do it without coming off as being pushy? What do you do with the cards once you've collected them? How can you make yourself seem like a professional if you're really just a beginner?

If your have any anxiety about networking, or the book Effective Networking: the Fastest Way to Win Clients and Grow Your Business, by Ilise Benum, is a great resource.  She begins by helping you think about what you do from other people's perspectives, and showing you how to discuss your work in many different situations. 

By the way - Being able to your listener's point of view can make a huge difference.  It made me think of what happened when I brought my husband (he was my fiancee at the time) home to meet my family.  He was studying plasma physics at Columbia University, and my relatives always asked whether he studied blood plasma, or plasma TV's.  It would have been much less confusing and more considerate to tell them about it in layman's terms. 

Benum takes a lot of the confusion out of networking by giving you a lot of concrete ideas of how to relate to people, and make meaningful connections and follow up.  I already feel much more confident about approaching strangers and potential clients!