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When
I think of networking the first thing that comes to mind is “I don’t
know anyone”. Ok, I do know
some people so eventually
I come up with a list of names of people. Then I go into the
“I don’t want to impose on friends” mode and find myself back
at square one. Networking is not imposing. What you may consider imposing can turn out to be a win/win
situation. If you are looking
for a new position there are referral awards or even simply filling an
open position with a competent employee.
For businesses you may have services the people you network with
actually need and can benefit from. You may find the people you have
chosen to network with may have
services you can use. So free
your inhibitions and network!
Where
do you start? First
take out a pen and paper and start listing friends and family.
Add the ex co-workers. Do
you patronize any business where you chat while doing business?
(Example hairstylists, the person at the espresso bar you talk to
while getting your morning coffee), college/alumni buddies, church or
social activities? This list will get you started but don’t stop there.
Be creative. Do you go to PTA meetings?
Collect business cards!
Second,
be prepared. Keep a folder in
the car of resumes or brochures. Keep
a healthy stack of business cards with you.
Develop a verbal presentation.
If it is for employment, be creative and prepared in ways to
approach the subject of possible openings.
If it is business related, have a verbal description of what your
business is and how you can (and have) benefit others.
When you are at that hairstylist, during the course of a casual
conversation you may bring up you were laid off (or you have a virtual
assistant business) a simple “May I leave my resume with you?
If you hear of someone needing my qualifications you can pass it
on” (or business cards/brochures if networking for your
business). Leads can come
from the simplest of situations. Having you
"marketing you" speech prepared will take most of the fear out
of approaching others and make networking not such a scary concept.
Most
people are more then willing to help out.
If you find someone who passes your information back, don’t take
it personally and move on to the next individual.
Through your information someone else may benefit.
It never hurts to ask, but you will never get a yes if you don’t
ask. You never know, the
people on the list you are networking with may use you for their
networking needs in the future, so get out and network today!
Below
is a spreadsheet (with a few examples) you can copy and use to keep track
of whom you network with.
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