A guide to successful networking

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Did you know that the average job now lasts less than three years and most people who spend 30-plus years in the workplace will change jobs about a dozen times? It’s also more than 80% likely that your next job will come through someone you know, and over 72% of people hired are known to the company/organisation that hires them. Statistics such as these tend to emphasise that old saying ‘It’s not what you know but who you know that matters most’.

Whatever stage you’re at in your career – at the beginning, at the end, or somewhere in the middle – being able to network successfully can give you an advantage over other people. The reason networking is so highly rated is that it can help in a number of ways –  to ensure you keep your current job, achieve promotion, are personally more effective, get on better with others, spot workplace politicians, or simply remain cool and calm when other people around you aren’t.  

You may be wondering why ‘other people’ matter when you’re quite capable of doing your job efficiently on your own without help. But do bear in mind that most successful people didn’t get where they are today without advice or assistance from others. Most high flyers are extremely well connected and have spent years developing powerful personal networks. As a result, they’ve built strong working relationships with all types of people from a variety of backgrounds.

Networking takes practice

You must have come across colleagues who are lacking in ‘soft skills’. They cause challenging situations on a regular basis and can be a nightmare to work with. If you can get on well with others, on the other hand, and work successfully when under pressure, your self-confidence will increase – this has a powerful effect on your personal performance.

Remember, networking is a three-stage process. First, you need to be proactive and meet new people whenever you have the opportunity. Secondly, try to make connections with people that you meet. And thirdly, develop professional or corporate relationships from these connections.

Always have a plan  

This involves working out who’s already in your personal network, what they do, what role they fill and how they connect with you. Make a list of them. They could be people you know from any part of your life: your family, relatives, friends from school and childhood, teachers, neighbours past and present, people you’ve played sport with, former colleagues who may already have moved on to other positions or companies. The key to networking is that all these people know other people. Someone out there could be looking for your help, or they may be the solution to a problem you need to solve.

Networking is a way of increasing your chances of knowing the right people in the appropriate places, should you ever need them. If you find it easy to engage with new people, the process won’t seem too daunting. However, if you have reservations, your natural personal strengths will help – having a ready smile, being empathetic with others, using your curiosity to start conversations with total strangers, etc. The best way to approach it is to be interested in others rather than trying to be interesting yourself.

Developing good listening skills is another way to be ‘attractive’. There’s a reason why we have one mouth and two ears – good networkers listen twice as much as they speak.

When you’re thinking about the people in your personal network it’s useful to put them into certain categories. For example, your ‘bridges’ are people who could introduce you to someone you don’t yet know but would like to. Others could be ‘links’ – people who belong to an organisation or association who could assist you with information. Other people might be ‘referrers’ – for example, someone who knows you or your company’s services and can recommend you. Another important category is an ‘influencer’ – someone with a special knowledge of a company, organisation or type of work, who could provide useful contacts for you.   

If you’re patient, and take your networking seriously, you should be able to develop a group of people who can potentially solve any challenging situation you find yourself in. This does work best, however, if you’re willing to help them should they need it too. When it comes to networking, you need to be interested in others rather than yourself, be a giver not a taker, show kindness and listen more than you talk. These are all excellent ways to win friends and influence people. You’ll gain too: in confidence, in your communication skills, opportunities that you never anticipated would come your way and you’ll make immensely valuable new contacts and friendships too.

Join us at a special networking event...

Join the Executary News team on the 30th September for some early evening networking in the luxurious setting of London’s May Fair Hotel. You’ll be treated to drinks, some sumptous canapés plus our Partners will provide a team of experts to give you free and impartial advice on how to plan the perfect Corporate Christmas.

Space is limited, so please reserve your place before Friday 17 September.
Call today on 020 7440 3875 or email adaku.johnson@nhmedia.co.uk

It works both ways

• Networking is a two-way process: the more you’re prepared to help people, the more likely they are to reciprocate. It’s best to start simply and make your networking journey enjoyable. Here are a few rules:

• Don’t force yourself to do something you’re uncomfortable with – if you hate breakfast meetings (because you’re an owl not a lark), choose evening events rather than those that start at dawn.

• Finding the right networking groups is important – there are so many – and virtual networks are popular and equally valid.

• Make sure the first impression you make is a positive one – develop good conversations (it is a two-way dialogue, not a monologue) and effective listening skills.

• Don’t take rejection personally (if at first you don’t succeed, keep trying). Follow up on potentially interesting contacts appropriately – don’t be a stalker.
  
  
• Ideally, be generous with your contacts and share information – thanking people for their help is vital.  

Four steps to successful networking

Keep track of how well you’re doing with this handy guide

Step 1 Review your contacts database and list your achievements and successes over the last month. How many new contacts have you added? How many existing contacts did you manage to reach? Were these virtual or face to face exchanges?

Step 2 List the obstacles you have overcome and those that are yet to be resolved. Was it just time management that stopped you? Did you attend enough networking events? How did you expand your online network? Which method was the most successful?

Step 3 Make a note of the action you’ll need to take to resolve the latest issues. Do you need to contact more people? If so, how will you do this? Have you moved on certain connections as far as they will go? Are you waiting for information from other people, which they promised you? Have you followed through with the information, introductions, etc, that you offered people in your network?

Step 4 List your goals for the next period. How many people do you want to connect with by the end of the month? How many of these are existing contacts and how many are new ones?