I learned all of my best networking strategies from punks. No, really. Back in the late 90’s and early years of the 2000s, I played drums in a ska band in Chicago. You don’t have to know what ska is for the purposes of this story. But you do have to know that due to a weird historical hiccup in the 70’s, the ska and punk music scenes were inextricably linked. So while my band had a horn section and suits, most of the shows that we played included at least a few other bands that sported lots of guitar distortion, combat boots, and mosh pits. I’m often asked where I developed my networking chops. Was it at business school, running … [Read more...]
How to Network for Success in the Second Half of Your Career
Too often, the advice we hear about networking is tailored for meeting new people at networking events and having the perfect "elevator pitch". Sure, that's important, but what if you already have a robust network that you've developed over a successful career? What steps should you take if you want to leverage that network to continue to grow and re-imagine your career? Done right, successful networking for career veterans looks very different than it does for those just entering the workforce. Instead of focusing on building new connections en masse, they need to look at ways to uncover the power of existing relationships and … [Read more...]
Someone in my Network is Talking Smack about Me!
"Don't wrestle with a pig. You both get dirty and the pig enjoys it." - Mark Twain I was talking with my massage therapist the other day, and as often happens, our conversation turned toward business development. At one point (right when she was working on the knot in my right shoulder), she shares, "Someone in my networking is bad-mouthing me, and I don't know what to do!" This is a big problem for her, because as a solo practitioner, she gets all of her clients on her own. She has built up a robust business solely on relationships in our community - both through client referrals and from the recommendations of various centers of … [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...]
Why You Want LinkedIn Endorsements
The Skills and Endorsements section on LinkedIn has become a staple of the LinkedIn profile. Because you can have up to 50 Skills listed, it can be challenging to decide upon a strategy with them. Which do you list, which do you highlight, how do you get your network to endorse you? While those are valid questions, don't let them stop you from using this section. It's a keyword bank that the system uses to return better results when users search. Here's my advice: While you are deciding what your strategy is, add some skills so that you can start building endorsements. LinkedIn Endorsements Matter From a networking and … [Read more...]
Building Your Network Big and Strong
I often tell people that networking is not a mad dash for business cards; that the people you see at professional events who scurry around passing out and collecting cards as quickly as possible are doing it wrong. I also say the you don't need a huge network to see positive business results from your networking efforts. But the other day I was running out of room in my desk drawer, so I had to throw out a stack of business cards. There were over 1,200 business cards from the networking connections I made during the first five years I was running RockStar Consulting. It was not a small stack. So then, why do I tell people to not … [Read more...]
3 Things Everyone Likes to Talk About
You want a useful professional network? Then you need people in it. You need more people in your network than there are now? Then you should meet new people...and get them to want to spend time with you. And that’s probably where I lost you… One of the biggest challenges in building a strong professional network is that we have to bring new people into it. And let’s face it, meeting new people can be tough. It takes a lot of energy to start and develop a conversation with a complete stranger. It’s especially daunting when you feel that you have to carry the bulk of the weight and be conversationally awesome. Luckily, you … [Read more...]