Networking 101 - Life Lesson 2

What is Networking and how does it change your career? Networking is one of the single most important things you will do to prepare your career for longevity and growth. It occurs at the office, industry events, dinner, parties .....etc.
Networking is when you build your network of people who can effect your career in positive ways. It can be meeting potential customers, meeting future employers or meeting people you can use to mentor you from time to time (i will post a blog on mentoring soon, also very important). There are even ways to network now using social media (another future blog!) The important thing to remember is you have to get out there and sell yourself to everyone you meet. Now don't get me wrong you don't need to walk around with an ego and brag but you should have the confidence to talk about your accomplishments in casual conversation. What do i mean??? Recently we started a social media campaign at work and i never pass up the opportunity to talk about it and let people know how smart it was to do and how good we are at it! You can highlight your own accomplishments but talking about a project you worked on or a product you sell successfully. You should limit your personal information to the basics that you are comfortable with. This is ESPECIALLY for younger people early on in careers. No one is impressed by how many clubs you go to or what fraternity you were in. That leads me to the next little hint.....DON'T drink too much! Have a beer or light mixed drink at cocktail hour and a few glasses of wine with dinner. TRUST me on this one. Best way to blow positive networking is to be the drunk girl/guy everyone is talking about the next day. Kills your credibility as a business acquaintance.
What do you do if you don't know anyone? My trick is i look for someone else alone, i walk over and talk to them to get the group started. I then look for other people alone and invite them to join us. Instant group. Less intimidating than joining a already started group if you are shy. I am lucky not to be shy and i still do this as i find it a great way to control the conversation to steer it to my knowledge base.
What do you talk about? First and foremost, the business you share in common. That's a no brainer. Second, the news. Get yourself a subscription to business week and Newsweek. Watch the news every night...not your local stuff but a world news outlet like Nightly News with Brian Williams, love that one. You need to know what is going on in the world for your own benefit and not to be left out of the conversation. Third, have a few funny stories (appropriate of course) at the ready. Test them out on friends and family and then stick to them.
And for heavens sake SMILE. You want to be informed on your industry, the world and be engaging. Key recipe to networking and business dinners.
Join Join Join - If your industry has committees, associations, groups, whatever.....Join them. Be as active in them as your time allows. You will increase visibility for yourself and your company this way. You should try to be a mini celebrity in your industry. I worked at a company before the one i am at now, they did not participate in alot of industry events, i changed that and went to everything i could and 10 years later there are very few people that don't know who i am in the industry. I am currently a chair of a committee for one of the associations ...... more on that later........
Join Linked In and use it for professional contacts. Keep it separate from your facebook. Join Twitter and follow things that interest you, at least so you know what the heck people are talking about!
I will post more tips and tricks on Networking, but for now.....JUMP in and start building your Social Capital!!!!!!