"Try calling that recruiter back
after you've snubbed them and now you're in trouble. Yeah, right."
Networking.
How many times have we heard it? It’s like saying, “Bless you” when you sneeze.
It has, in a sense, lost its real meaning.
How
you network can make all the difference in your career success. If you want to
get ahead, your networking skills have to be sharp, savvy and yes, leveraged in
such a way to propel you forward. Otherwise, you pretty much run the risk of
getting overlooked for promotions, considered as a great candidate for a new
job or advancing your current position.
When
given a choice, people will always do business with people they know or with a
person that has come highly recommended by a valued and trusted member of their
network. The benefits to networking are endless but you have to be good at it.
Really, really good. Great networking improves your ROI on:
- Friendship benefits: You’ll make new friends that last for a lifetime.
- Receiving and giving advice: You’ll get viewed as an expert.
- Opportunities: Whether you garner upward career mobility or are making a move, employers want people who are highly recommended from others in like or supervisory positions. Your network can give you that.
- Assistance on the job: You have somewhere to go for assistance, suggestions, referrals and you even have someone covering your back or giving you a heads-up when you goof.
- Positive influence: You become who you associate with.
Here are five of the biggest networking
mistakes you can make:
1. Avoid a great profile on LinkedIn.
1. Avoid a great profile on LinkedIn.
LinkedIn
is your biggest advantage for entry into good, solid networking. It has
become the winning social media tool for career networking. Whether you are
trying to grow your reach, find content or explore opportunities, this virtual
meeting vehicle is the first and last stop for many professionals. The latest
trend is employers are looking at your LinkedIn profile at the same time they
are reviewing your resume. Potential contacts who can give you career help will
also check you out first on LinkedIn.
However,
you will generate no interest without an interesting summary. LinkedIn is not a
playback of your resume. To attract contacts, you’ll need to demonstrate your personality,
take on the business world and show your worldliness. If you want to be taken
seriously, you cannot go without a full and professionally written LinkedIn
profile.
2. Don’t go to association meetings,
seminars and get-togethers.
It’s
one thing to join your association. It’s another to work the networking
advantages it brings. Face-to-face encounters render far longer benefits than
an occasional email to someone you have never met. People tend to
remember you. What will you learn from association networking? What’s happening
in your community, new techniques, where the jobs are, the latest software,
what firm is doing what (so you can take that information back to your firm and
be valuable to management), salaries, and important events. It’s a great way to
stay current, uncover “hot buttons” in your field and who knows? You might even
have a little fun.
3. Be sure to alienate every recruiter who
calls you.
Networking
needs to include recruiters. Connect with them. They are invaluable. They hold
the key to hundreds of contacts: HR, managing partners, CEO’s, COOs, VP’s,
supervisors, in-house legal counsel, legal service providers, colleagues and
more. They know salaries, firms, trends, and in particular, where the field is
headed. In fact, they often know if your firm is in trouble before you do.
Don’t
be so smug if a recruiter calls or emails you about a new position. I can’t
tell you how many times people ignore the call or treat the recruiter abysmally
only to wake up a few weeks or months later to find their firm is laying off,
merging or otherwise purging. Then what? Do you know where to go? You think
back. “Oh! I’ll call that recruiter who called me about that job.” Right.
Try calling them back after you have snubbed them. Most likely, they won’t
take the call.
4. Don’t network with colleagues in your
firm.
One
of the biggest mistakes people make is that they are networked in social media;
go to association meetings; build a network; and reach out into the community
but neglect to network within their own firm!
If
you're able to build rapport with hiring authorities at your firm, you can be
the first to find out about forthcoming internal promotions and strategically
position yourself for growth.
Similarly,
you may discover the firm is opening a new satellite office in your dream
destination, and if you're connected with the right person, you could get a
head start on applying for the transfer.
Who
do you know? Some of the most important people to connect with are the conduits
to the power in your firm. That is, someone who can speak for your job
category. Network with colleagues, partners, associates, managers,
administrators, staff – be sure to include everyone. People can tell you what’s
going on in your own firm. You’ll get noticed. Everyone wants to be with
a winner that other people respect. Hanging out alone in your office or cubicle
will not get you advanced up the ladder.
5. Ignore the benefits of
networking.
Continuing
to build new relationships and nurture exisiting contacts can be tremendously
beneficial as your network grows into the next phases of their career.
Success
stories such as Whoopie Goldberg, Mark Cuban, Warren Buffett and Jay-Z all rose
from humble starts. You can be sure those who showed them support with no
agenda during their growing pains enjoyed the ride once these icons’ careers
exploded.
The
key is to keep your networking process going without needing to ask for
anything in return. Show genuine interest in other people and their hopes,
wants, dreams and desires. Ask questions they'd be excited to answer.
Listen carefully to what they say and you'll have surrounded yourself with a
circle of people who would not only be willing but excited to help take your
career to the next level.
