The #1 Networking Mistake
Often clients come to me complaining that they’re terrible at networking. Sometimes they’re doing the work to reach out to their people. They’re having multiple conversations a week…and yet nothing comes of them.
They say, "We had an interesting chat, but who knows what will happen." Or "He asked me how he can help me and I froze."
There’s an easy fix for this common challenge.
Have a goal in mind for each conversation. Each meeting's goal will be unique and most often it is NOT – give me a job.
Here are 10 examples of networking goals:
Learn about the person’s role.
Learn about the culture in his/her/their company.
Ask for an intro to a specific person or company.
Ask for intro’s to colleagues in a new city in which you’d like to relocate.
Learn about a specific leader or colleague with whom you may be working closely.
Learn about the organizational structure in his/her/their company.
Learn about his/her/their career transition and tips to making a switch.
Ask about skills or education needed for his/her/their role.
Ask to send in your application for a role to a hiring manager or HR.
Share specific roles you’re looking for so if they hear of them, they can reach out to you.
When you have a clear goal for the conversation, you know if it you hit your mark or not. You’ve also given the other person a specific and actionable way to help you, which makes them feel good, like they hit their mark.
Remember that when it comes to networking, long-term thinking is best. While you will have a goal for the conversation, you also want to consider that you are building a relationship, and this is not simply a transaction.
Your sub-goal is always expanding and curating your network so that you can continue to expand your impact within your career. With this sub-goal in mind, even if you didn’t meet your specific goal in the conversation, you can continue to cultivate the relationship.
Perhaps you will reach out when you are clearer in your own vision of what you need and most importantly you can show your gratitude with generosity of your time and expertise.