10 networking tips: How to be active, successful and indispensable

The future belongs to those who can create networks. Sound networking abilities are essential in a knowledge-based society. In consequence, people with broad and effective networks are usually both successful and in demand.

Futurologists tell us that in time to come, the route to success will be ever more dependent on wide and relevant networks – you will have problems if you just sit back and hope that everything will work out. This is why you should know what good networking is all about. To become a skilled networker, you can start by studying the following 10 pieces of advice.

Networking skills from A to Z

• 1. Remember always to carry your business cards – which should include all relevant details. A photo on the business card makes it easier to call a person to mind, if you want to contact them later.

• 2. You will not build a network by sitting in your office and making phone calls. You have to be physically present at receptions, conferences, trade fairs, networking meetings, courses, etc. It happens in the field. Obsession with the idea that “networking” is boring and filled with failure needs to be transformed into something positive: you have to go out and meet new people, who for sure will be able to contribute one way or another to your life and your business. Think about the fact that good networks represent power and influence.

• 3. Your body language signals something about your state of mind, your comfort, and your energy levels. Always be the best edition of yourself. Remember that we are attracted by winners and their attitudes. For losers, it’s an uphill struggle; so, if necessary, fake it so long as a reception or a conference lasts, in order to achieve optimum return from a networking situation. If you don’t have the strength to do that, or if you cannot force yourself to summon up the energy you need, then best stay at home this time.

• 4. Be active! Make contact, introduce yourself, and have always three opening small-talk questions ready. Examples: What brings you here? Where do you come from? What do you do? Be a good listener, follow up with questions, and stay on topic. Seek out common interests or passions. This encourages the possibility of further conversation, and makes it easier to remember people subsequently.

• 5. Be good at circulating, so you can talk to lots of people. Remember to close by handing over your card and making an arrangement about when you will be in contact again. If you do not arrange a contact, then phone or e-mail no later than the following week. In such a situation, offer something concrete – a meeting, lunch, or an offer. This makes it easier to phone, and easier for the other party to relate to the contact.

• 6. Use small talk to create a good atmosphere, so that other people relax and you will be relaxed yourself. Be aware of those around you – praise them, talk to them, and let them feel accepted and welcome. If you are a man: be polite, it pays off. For the women it is all about receiving attention and showing happiness when you get it.

• 7. When we go out to meet new people, we Danes prefer to contact people we already know or who seem similar to ourselves. And that is fine, if we are just out to have fun; but, if it is about business, it is important to move out of our comfort zone and instead be aware of people who can enrich us with new and different opportunities, approaches, and perspectives.

• 8. Choose relevant networks and also individuals in the swim who might benefit your business. Well-known, admired people are not necessarily difficult to get in contact with. A determined effort based on serious preparation might help by making the contact more relevant for that person, and also by dissipating your own nervousness. Go for gold! No one thanks you for not doing it! Remember that good networking is also about sharing your own knowledge. What you share will usually be reciprocated.

• 9. Give yourself and your staff a goal every time you devote a few hours to a reception, a day to a conference, or a week to a course. These networking opportunities should result in at least one new contact for your company – preferably more. By setting this as a goal, you will escape your ego-centredness, and you will turn seeking new contacts into a professional activity. That way, networking can become a sport where the challenge is to do ever better.

• 10. Make networking a work discipline. Find role models, or be someone who leads the way and shows how to choose good networks and how to act within them. Set criteria for what networking activity should contribute to your company. Prioritize the function and show that it is valued; offer attention to those staff who take this function seriously, and reward them.

Do you want to learn more about networking? Then “Networking” written by Simone Lemming Andersen is the right book for you.

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