updated July 2021 How do you walk into a room of strangers and make new friends? Or what about staring at your screen at a bunch of smaller windows in a Zoom call. How do you make it less awkward and actually connect with someone when you aren't even together? Those are questions that sneak into into our minds when we join a group of people we don't know. And there's no easy answer in sight. That's why networking events, everything from conference cocktail hours to Chamber of Commerce breakfasts to online networking lunches, fill so many of us with dread. In fact, it's why so many of us skip them altogether. But what if … [Read more...]
How to Stay Open to Networking Opportunities Everywhere
Humans like putting things in categories. Whether it's movies, music, or restaurants, it's comfortable for us to parse things into different groups in our minds. It's one of the traits that allows us to manage a world of staggering complexity. We also like to do it with our relationships. We put people into relationship buckets: he's my work colleague, she's my friend, he's just an acquaintance, etc. But it's not always as clear cut as we would like it to be. What about a long-term client who has become a friend or a friend who you hired to work for you? This has only been exacerbated by the advent of social networking platforms … [Read more...]
How Ambitious College Grads Can Network Better
The first few years after college can be exciting: The freedom, the friends, the fun. It's also stressful. You have to find your place in the world, figure out how you're going to pay the rent, and what you want to do with your career. Building a strong professional network around you is important for your short-term career success. More importantly, though, it's how you can plant seeds that you can harvest the rest of your life. This is especially true because the work world continues to become more and more mobile. If you're a recent grad, you’ve probably seen statistics quoted with the average number of jobs you will have in … [Read more...]
The Technology Yin and Yang of Millennial Networking
"Are different demographic groups better (or worse) than others at networking?" That was a question that was lobbed at me after a recent keynote on networking. OK, the actual question was, "Don't Millennials and other young professionals have an advantage in networking these days because they are so used to technology?" The person who asked it really wanted to validate her fears and concerns that because she wasn't young, and wasn't comfortable with technology, that her struggles with networking weren't her fault and she should just give up. It was a valid question, but there isn't a simple answer. I didn't let her off the hook, … [Read more...]
The 5 Real Reasons Your Network Sucks
There's a good chance that your network sucks. I don't know you personally, and I haven't gone through your contact list, but I'd be willing to bet that you're not getting a lot out of your networking. Most people don't. I'm sure that you might have gotten a job offer here or there, or maybe the occasional prospect referral. That's fantastic. Done right, though, networking should provide a steady source of opportunities and information. There could many reasons that your network isn't getting you what it could. The first step in fixing the problem is knowing what the problem is. Here are five reasons your network may suck: 1. It's … [Read more...]
The Two Networks Young Professionals Need for Success
Who should I target when I'm looking to build my network? I mean, who should I actually go out and try to meet? Who should be on my radar? I don't even know where to start!!" This stream of questions came from a recent college graduate after I had spoken at an alumni networking event. She was running into a common problem that many young (and not-so-young) professionals face when starting their network: creating a connection strategy. It used to be that you would network with whomever was in your general physical location. With the arrival of LinkedIn, Twitter, and email, though, it's possible to research and reach out to professionals … [Read more...]
Networking on the Cheap for Millenials (And the Rest of Us)
I was having a cup of coffee with a friend the other day and the conversation turned to my upcoming book on networking (somewhat shameless plug - Networking in the 21st Century: Why Your Network Sucks and What to Do About It). She asked me if it was possible to network on a budget because she found that all of the networking lunches and coffees and events can really add up. She works in alumni development for a large university; and she shared that a lot of young professionals right out of school feel that they can't build a strong network because they don't have the financial resources to keep up with it all. I can understand their … [Read more...]
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