Networking can be very good for your health!
Networking
is good for you. So we are told all the time!
You
know already that you should network if you are looking for work and,
oh yes, of course you must network if you are starting up a new
business.
But
for some of us, the prospect of networking can be quite daunting.
Now
why should that be so? Let us think a little about networking and
what it is really about. Networking
is about finding and building new relationships. It is about meeting
new people and finding an opportunity to make an exchange, be it simply
an exchange of friendship. We
go somewhere to meet someone new. We exchange information and then
test out whether they are interesting to us and in return we hope to
be interesting to them.
Most of us do it all the time in our private
lives. But when it comes to networking for work, many of us feel
much more diffident because we are not just looking for friendship. We
are hoping this new contact will give us something. Will they become
a customer or provide us with information about a new job
opportunity? That can make us feel embarrassed.
In fact, we want to make a fair business exchange. We can be kind and
supportive to the people we meet in business, just as we can in our
private lives. We can give time and attention and share the
information that we have. At the very least we can listen
attentively and offer advice, if it is requested.
There
is always something we can offer in return. Even if it is only our
very sincere thanks for an opportunity they have given us. I can't
think of anything nicer than the thank you letters I have received
after giving a reference or passing on a contact. They can brighten
up a dismal day no end.
But
we still feel diffident. I started out as a very nervous networker.
I was very lucky, I met someone who was prepared to train me in how
to go about business networking. That made a huge difference.
If
networking was not good for your business you wouldn't find such a
long list of business networking organizations in existence and
business networking events. And I found that from my business
networking events, I was making some real friends; friends that I
value in my private life as well as in my business life.
Networking does require confidence, particularly when you are new to
it. So, I
would be delighted if you would join my free teleseminar about
Confident Networking. You can find out more about it at this link,
http://confidentnetworkingwithwisewolf.eventbrite.co.uk/
Want to be a Confident Networker? Join my free teleseminar on 26thJune 2012
Wendy Mason is a Life and Career Coach. She helps people have the confidence they need to be successful at work and to change career while maintaining a good work/life balance. You can email her at wendymason @wisewolfcoaching.com
Comments
Post a Comment
I am very grateful for your comment. Thank you!