Okay, so we’ve all heard of great online social networking tools, but here’s an offline idea that was recently shared with me by a friend.

The next time you throw a big party, give everyone nametags…okay, this may seem hokey, but here’s the concept – on the nametags, have each guest write his or her name and then below their name, write a word or phrase in big letters that they want to be asked about.

Don’t understand what I’m talking about…here’s a photo example:

 What is NOLS you may (and should) ask…well, aha, there you go…now I can tell you about my 3-month sailing, sea kayaking and backpacking expedition I took during my last semester in college…maybe we’ll have something in common (maybe not), but at least someone will know something interesting about me and I’ll know something interesting about them when I ask about their “word”…

So now you have an idea for your next client party and an excellent way for your party goers to break the ice with each other without needing you to make introductions for everyone…