I was chatting about work and life the other day over tea at Starbucks. The conversation drifted in the direction of business networking. Not the computer kind of network but the personal type of network. The type that’s hard for me.
Networking really hasn’t changed at all since the first business office was set up. Having a wide circle of friends and acquaintances always pays off. Although we may live in an interconnected world of instantaneous communications we still have to initiate contact with other people in order for it to work.
I don’t mean just send emails back and forth or maybe even have a phone conversation but actually “talk” to the other person. Whether that person is a client, a colleague or even a competitor at another company. Being more than just a contact card in an email directory is important. It means that you’re an actual human being that the other person might think of when it comes time to ask for a job, a business opportunity or an introduction to someone else.
Initiating contact doesn’t have to be a big production involving flowers or lunch or whatever. You can just initiate contact by asking the other person how they’re doing during the course of your regular work exchange. Do some “industry gossip”. Talk about that other third company that has nothing to do with you or speculate on the future of your field. Ask about their goals and plans.
The main thing is that you become a known quantity, that you have a personality, and that you’re a factor in their life. Not a giant factor but a factor. You’ll never expect them to break down and cry on your shoulder and you should not expect them to lend you money but at the very least if things go bad you can send out resumes to them, you can ask them if they know about any open bids, you can query them about some job applicant that they may know.
This is the way that the business world works, folks. It always has and always will be this way.
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