Networking is one of the most, if not the most important way forward in the working world today.
If you are a good “networker” your chances of being successful in which ever job & business you are involved in increases more than you can imagine.

Networking from day 1 in a new company is one of the essentials, as when you start out your are likely to be introduced to people that will possibly become some of your most important contacts.

What is networking really about?

Networking is about helping people and the most important rule of networking is never consider what’s in it for you.

If you help people with something yourself (or even refer them to someone you know can help), it builds a relationship, trust and shows the person you know the area and what you are talking about and they will likely come to you if they have other challenges in the same area.

Why is this important? Well first of all a demand for your knowledge and skills is really one of the most important things in business, that’s how you develop and grow, it’s how you’re more likely recommended for anything and that could be a new job, an advisory role or anything else really.

The second is that when you help someone, they are a lot more likely to help you, so if you have a challenge and you could use their help, it’s usually a lot easier to get!

I have always said that the good things you do in life comes back 10 fold some day, so get helping people!

Is helping people the only way to network? No not at all, but it’s usually the fastest.

How do I start networking?

Well you started networking already, you know people and that’s a key, but how do you manage to make your networking more business focused and not just social?

First things first, take where you work, I’m sure there is people you can help even more than you do today. You also need to “get out there”, get to know people, not just in your own office, group etc, but meet people from all parts and layers of the company, and how do you do that? Again you need to seek the opportunities, attending social groups, courses, training classes, anything where you know you are very likely to meet new people that you haven’t meet before and then don’t be shy and sit in a corner talking with the one person you already do know!

What else can you do? What jobs or area’s interest you? Where do you want to expand your knowledge, you probably already know some people that you think are doing an interesting job, contact them and say you have some questions or are interested in the type of job role they do and if they would meet and discuss over lunch as you’re looking for some advise in that particular area etc. and again don’t be shy, people are generally very happy to help and yes most people eat once in a while, just remember though don’t be to pushy, while people like helping, they like helping friendly people

Another way of getting in contact with people is to be “referred” through a friend, if you again have someone you think does something interesting and you know someone that knows him/her, ask them if they could introduce you as you would like to get to know some more about the job that person does.

Mentoring is also a fantastic way to build very strong professional relationships, if you’re looking to develop in a particular role or to develop new skills, finding a mentor that is already very good in that area can be a massive boost – for both of you. (I will post a topic on mentoring later)

Networking, with who?

Everyone is the answer! Some people are very focused on networking only with people “higher” up the ladder than themselves and really you can grow your network a lot faster in the area you are in or people below you, and why would you do that? Well knowing the “big boss” is not a bad thing, but by knowing a lot of people around you are just as likely to have access to the same resource and maybe instead of using a lot of time getting to know one of them “big bosses”, one of the many people you get to know might introduce you to the “boss” when/if you need it. Personally I don’t care if people are above or below, the important thing is if they have skills and knowledge that I can use doing my job, taking particular decisions and of course the other way around.

Networking and that new job!

I will post a most specific “interview” guide later, but again when it comes to applying for a new job or having an interview for a new job, in the company where you are already employed, it’s key to make use of your networking skills and if you don’t know the person who’s going to be interviewing, get going, ask if they want to meet for a coffee as you are very interested in this new position and you want to understand a bit more of what they are looking for in a potential candidate etc. this is a must and it will help you big time, at least having had a good conversation with the person interviewing you makes a world of difference, both because  you’re familiar in his/her eye’s and because you are more conferrable with that person, also the more interest an interviewer can see you have in the job and the more eager you seem, the higher the chances of getting it.

Networking in networks where you are very skilled or want to learn about.

Nowadays it’s easy to find either forums, network groups and the likes in any area. If you’re extremely interested in finance go find a network/forum and start helping people with your knowledge, the more you help and the better answers the more your knowledge will be in demand.

Another key thing is that when you help people you learn, the best way of learning is teaching!