Art of Networking: 3 Key Ingredients

In order to master the art of networking there are three key ingredients that must be part of your strategy. Think of it like trying to bake a cake. You have flour, sugar, and salt. However, if you forget one of these ingredients the cake might not turn out that great. Same with networking!

CREATE: The first part of networking is creating relationships. In order to do this successfully you will need to have focus and have done your research on the company or contact. This will allow you to write a personalized networking email. No generic or templates, please.  Remember – if you don’t know what to ask then you are not ready to network. 

MAINTAIN: This step is critical and where most people fall off the networking wagon. If you are actively looking for work, you should be touching base with your contacts every 6 weeks. If you aren’t actively looking for work then don’t stop! Reach out to contacts every 3-4 months. Why? Maintaining your network allows you to be able to utilize your network when needed and to pay it forward. This shows you are invested in your network and proves to your contacts that you aren’t a fly by networker. If you have a bank account and you keep taking money out without putting anything in then you will run out of money! Same with connections. Maintaining relationships is as important as making connections.

UTILIZE: You’ve put in all this work and now it is time to utilize your connections. This could be by asking for a meeting, other contact names, advice on interviewing or questions about a particular company. Ask yourself what do you need help with? What advice can your contacts give you? Help them, help you. The purpose of creating and maintaining contacts is developing a support system, a network of people you know you can call, and can call you, for mutual benefit.