Tips For Effective Networking



In my opinion, networking should be mandatory of all positions within a company.  I'm not saying it's easy for everyone to do it.  It certainly can induce panic for even the mildest case of agoraphobia*.  However, this is no excuse if you want to get ahead in your career, or change careers.  With everything else in life, practice makes perfect. 

Definition of NETWORKING:  1: the exchange of information or services among individuals, groups, or institutions; specifically : the cultivation of productive relationships for employment or business

See...by definition, networking plays an important "productive" part in our job roles. Cultivating these relationships should not be seen as scary but necessary on our road to success. 

Opportunities to network can be everywhere:  On an airplane; at your kids ballet, baseball, gymnastics, soccer practice, at a party, on the bus, at the hair salon, ...you get my point... you never know when you could meet your next client or future boss!

This article suggests a few basic tips to help get you feeling comfortable networking in no time:

How to Network Effectively - eHow.com

I am, by nature, a social person and would say that I have a high level of comfort talking to strangers in the settings I mention above.  A work related networking event - an event specifically meant to encourage networking among professionals - for some reason, can induce an elevated feeling of anxiety even for me.   I tend to do what is easy/comfortable - attach myself to someone I already know in the hopes that they will introduce me to new people.  This is ineffective most of the time because I will typically end up in a small group of people that I already know, who are also hoping that the others will make the introductions! 

So I have a rule that I adhere to before I allow myself to hook on to someone that I already know.  I introduce myself to three people - sometimes, by the nature of the event/meeting, it's obvious who I need to approach, but most of the time it's just random selection.  If, at the end of the evening, I have three new contacts, I feel a certain level of success.  Once I've reached my goal of three contacts, one of two things will usually happen - 1) I start to relax and realize it's not that bad and everyone else in the room is doing it too. or 2) the event hasn't cultivated the kind of contacts I'm looking for and head straight to the valet stand to get my car and go home.

How about you?  What tips to you have for effective networking?  I'd like to hear!

*agoraphobia - fear of embarrassment

CLUTTER - noun: a crowded or confused mass or collection

www.clutter-buster.com

This article should inspire all of you who swear you are going to tackle the piles on your desk, the overstuffed front hall closet, junk drawer, backyard shed, shower you use for extra storage....someday.  According to the professional home organizer in the article below, if you've ever spent more than 10 seconds looking for anything in your house, then you need to declutter and get organized.  The process can be habit forming and good for your peace of mind. 

AZcentral_Professional Home Organizer Advice 

Karina Bland writes the weekly column My So Called Midlife for the Arizona Republic.  I look forward to reading it every Sunday.  You may like it too.  You can follow her blog (now that you know how to!) at:

http://www.azcentral.com/members/Blog/KarinaBland

How to follow a blog...and why you would want to.

Hi fans and followers -

Thank you for your interest in reading my blog.  I write this with the utmost sincerity, because, seriously, I hope that you find my anecdotal writings about my experiences and perspective about the workforce, homefront, and ettiquette enjoyable, humorous and informative.  Yes, I'll admit it, this is also a shameless attempt to get more followers on my blog.  

So, if you read this blog because you see a new post on my Facebook or LinkedIn pages and like what you read, but are not a follower... please become one.  It's free!...and I promise I won't spam you.  Don't know how to become a follower?  Go to the section to the right labeled "Followers"...where you see the beautiful faces of my current followers...just click on the Followers widget and it will lead you to your Google account or ask you to create one.  Once you have established a Google account, you can easily view all the blogs you follow on your dashboard and/or reading list.  Here...just click on this link for the official blogger instructions on how to become a follower...and it will all make sense.

 

Google - how to follow a blog

To text or not to text...that is the question.

Texting Etiquette

Texting sure is a convenient tool, but remember to exercise proper etiquette while doing so.  This article is a good reference for when texting is and is not appropriate.  As an outside sales professional, it's good to know that face-to-face connections are still important in this rapid fire digital age!

Now let's address talking on the phone while you are in the stall of a public restroom... take my poll to the right. 

Are Chinese mothers really more superior?

"Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior" by Amy Chua
The article above, printed in the Wall Street Journal on January 8, 2011, has created a firestorm of responses to the strict parenting tactics used by Amy Chua and previous Chinese Mothers before her.  When I look back on how my parents raised my siblings and I, I would say that they were pretty strict, but not a fearful way.  Although I was never spanked or ridiculed by them, I was afraid of disappointing them.  How did they do that?  They were very loving, encouraging, and nurtured us in finding our own paths in life.  Is being strict and setting boundaries such a bad thing?

Here is another take...
"In Defense of the Guilty, Ambivalent, Preoccupied Western Mom", by Ayelet Waldman

Ayelet Waldman puts it best when she writes, "Amy Chua and I both understand that our job as mothers is to be the type of tigress that each of our different cubs needs".  Thank you Amy Chua for giving us the Chinese Mother's perspective.  You can read all 8000+ reactions to Chua's article on the http://www.wsj.com/ site.

Business travel...a time to relax?

Making the most of a business trip... 

On a recent business trip to Las Vegas, I decided to partake in the hotel's happy hour that they provide to their guests Monday-Friday.  Trying to be obscure, I drank my free beer and ate my free tortilla chips with salsa while standing at a bar top table in the corner, alone, until, that is, a flight crew joined me at the table.  We started chatting and (since I had just read the article I share above) I had asked them if any of them explored the cities where they travel to for business.  They all laughed and said, "no - not really".  Me too, I admitted - thinking back to an earlier blog post about how I was going to make the most of my time in each city I traveled to.  This was my first time at the hotel's happy hour event, so I guess that counts as doing something different and new! 

Anyway, the pilot admitted that his wife always tries to encourage him to do something new and fun while he's away.  On this trip, he decided to walk down the Las Vegas Strip.  He happened upon the Bellagio hotel right when the water fountains started their impressive show.  He stopped to watch the 10 minute show, took a picture of it on his iPhone, then emailed it to his wife.  When it stopped, he thought to himself, "that's cool" and headed right back to the hotel.  He laughed at the fact that he was only gone for about 25 minutes, but his wife congratulated him on "getting out" while in Las Vegas.

What perks me up while on the road is knowing that I'll get a solid 8 hours of sleep, I can watch whatever I want on the TV, that I can actually take the time to groom my eyebrows in the large magnifying mirror in the bathroom instead of the rear view mirror of my car between appointments, and, finally, the venti latte and Big Dipper Donut from Starbucks that I can expense as "Breakfast".  It's the little things...

A New Year...New Resolve

It's the first week of the new year and during this time of reflection of the past year and goal setting for this year.... I just want to say, "blogging is hard". 

One of my New Year's resolutions is to re-commit myself to writing this blog....again.  I still feel that the topics I blog about are relevant to my readers...and I do hope you continue to read and enjoy this blog.  Thank you for your encouragement!

The article I share below gets to the meat of how to keep a resolution.  It can't be a grandiose statement about what you are determined to change about yourself, which ultimately will lead to resignation.  Instead, it encourages you to take the time to set goals for yourself for the coming year.  We all know that good goal-making takes planning, time, and patience.  I have a stack of articles I've ripped out and saved for future blog posts on my desk (neatly tucked away in a file folder, as keeping a tidy desk is another NYR).  I have also blocked time on my calendar (one hour once a week) to commit to blogging.  Consistency leads to success -so does going public with your resolutions, by the way.  What are some of your resolutions?

Good luck to you in keeping your resolutions and meeting your goals in 2011! 

New year's resolutions: Always an uphill climb