MODERN NETWORKING
Getting Connected
By Caroline Jane Knight
W
ith such focus on getting
connected online, many
are neglecting the
powerful and effective business
development tool of personal
networking. In my experience,
my deepest and longest lasting
business relationships may be
supported by an on line connection,
but are primarily cemented through
personal contact. Some of these
personal connections made
actively networking have gone on
to be my most loyal customers,
my best employees, my most avid
supporters and my greatest source
of strength. I meet people with
experiences and skills I wouldn’t
ordinarily meet which expands both
my mind and the broad knowledge
and connection base I can call upon
in the future.
Most ‘networking resisters’ do so
due to lack of confidence and/or
believe it is insincere, delivers a
perceived lack of immediate results,
resulting in networking not being
seen as a good use of precious
time.
1
Keep it in perspective:
Networking is simply joining a
group of people that have an equal
interest in getting to meet some
new people that may have a mutual
benefit in knowing each other. As
with any group of people, everyone
is different and there are those that
use networking to ‘sell’ and those
that appear to be hugely confident,
however most people at networking
22 ModernBusiness
March 2016
events are in the same boat as
you, i.e they are equally as nervous
(or they will remember when they
were) and are not there with a sales
pitch. They have chosen to attend a
networking event, so you can safely
assume that your fellow attendees
want to meet people, and you are
one of those people.
2
Choose the right event: To start
you off, chose an event that is
likely to attract similar people to
you, perhaps a similar age, level of
seniority, profession or interest as
it is far easier to talk to people we
feel we are likely to have something
in common with. The event should
only be for a short time at the
beginning or end of the day and
include a speaker or activity you
are interested in, with ‘networking
opportunities’ before and after.
As an example, I encourage my
developing and middle managers
to attend the excellent Professional
Development Forums run by the
Australian Institute of Management.
3
Prepare for the occasion: As
well as the obvious, such as
making sure you are well presented
and have business cards, spend a
little time researching the speaker
and the event hosts [