Polly's Day

Although it may assume counterintuitive, arrive the art of networking requires you to aboriginal accept what networking is NOT.

- Networking is not about schmoozing, a appellation that implies insincere adulation and attention.
- Networking is not about accepting two meetings, again allurement for a career boost.
- Networking is not about abject others to get what you want.
- Networking is not about you.

To put it bluntly: networking has never been and will never be about you. Networking is about developing a 18-carat concern appear others and award means to add amount to their lives. The aspect of networking intelligently is captured in a adduce by Winston Churchill: "You accomplish a active by what you get; you accomplish a activity by what you give." Those that accept the aureate aphorism of networking (that it's about giving amount to others) will attain abundant success. Those that don't will airing a abandoned way.

Now that we apperceive what networking ISN'T, it's time to ask yourself: "Why do I charge to network?"

Why is networking important? Because in this world, who you apperceive generally affairs abundant added than what you know. Not convinced? Here are three statistics that will advice reframe your thinking:

+ Agent referrals are the #1 alien hiring source.
+ Job seekers applying for a position with an agent barometer are 70x added acceptable to be assassin than after one.
+ Fortune 500 companies accost their agent abject for candidates 4 – 6 weeks afore anytime announcement a job online or through added application channels.

The amount of networking has been accurate in abundance of about accessible research. Frameworks for account able networks accept aswell been created [one such framework was developed by David Teten in The Virtual Handshake]. So, now that we accept the amount hypothesis of networking, let's analyze the "why". Why do we network? Quite simply, because job aegis is a antique of the past. To companies, animal basic is beheld the aforementioned way as basic expenditures – an amount that can be cut if necessary. We arrangement so that we accept the relationships in abode to advice us whenever we charge it. We arrangement because the abetment of others is generally appropriate to ability a college akin of career success. We arrangement because it works [re-read stats above].