It’s not what you know, it’s who you know and with our economy in a state of flux, this has never been more true. With unemployment hitting new highs, networking has become a way of life for both the individual looking for a job and the person who still is employed but feels the pressure of a shaky economy. These folks are putting out feelers and networking everywhere and every way they can. One for survival, and the other for security. How can you make networking fun, and profitable?
The first step would be to become a “joiner”. There are any number of organizations in every town that would welcome a new face. For starters try your local Toastmasters club. Not only will you meet people, they will more than likely be professionals and they will certainly have connections. Through networking, their connections will soon be your connections. Another great way to meet people is to volunteer. Find out which organization is in charge of the July 4th or other holiday festivities. In many towns it’s the Chamber of Commerce. You won’t have to join the Chamber to volunteer, and here you can build a strong network of local business owners.
Here’s the fun part: Don’t talk about you! Enough about you, ask about them! Networking is all about finding out about the other person. This allows you find out how you can help them, and how they can help you. It is surprising what you can find out by asking just a couple of questions. People will open up to you because you listen, and they will remember you favorably because you listened.
Networking is a skill, and just like any skill it takes practice. I suggest writing down a few questions that you might like someone to ask you. Another must is to make sure you have a business card. When networking always give a business card so that you may be sure to receive the other person’s. The other person may lose your card, but you know you will be keeping theirs to add to your network.
These are just the basics to networking for fun and profit. As you get into it your personality will shine, and you will develop your own style. You will quickly see where the fun in networking is, and only a little bit down the road; you’ll reap the profits.
I write these articles not only to answer some questions, but more importantly to inspire you to look further. For free business cards look online for Vista Print. Your local library has many books on networking including the popular one with the yellow cover: Networking for….