Dirty Networking

Welcome to The Shift, a weekly newsletter where I provide thought-provoking ideas to help you think differently about your career and money.

Last Week + This Week = It’s All Connected

I’ll make this quick.

Last week I wrote that the future of work could be more contractual in nature. Read here if you missed it. This week I will talk about changing the way we think about networking, because to build a career based on contracts, you need a network.

Networking Reframe

We’ve been thinking about networking all wrong.

If you are like me, networking feels like work. It’s not fun. I dread it.

It feels transactional (tit for tat), ingenuine, uncomfortable, selfish, and time consuming. What did I miss??

Yet, it’s a necessary evil of sorts. It’s the key to professional growth and building your business. The stronger your network the more quickly your career can advance, and so on. We all know this.

So how do we make the process more enjoyable?

Believe me when I tell you it’s easier than you think. I’ll explain.

Given & Take

Subconsciously, we believe we need to network to make (more) money and gain power, as quickly as possible.

Those goals have negative connotations, which means we are automatically going to view networking as a negative experience. Adding the speedy timeframe to the equation makes it a lot less genuine.

Instead, we should associate networking with relationship building, learning and helping. Those goals have positive connotations, making networking a more favorable and inviting experience.

Networking done right is about giving, not receiving. 

No Agenda Approach

When you are giving, you are less likely to have an agenda.

Not having an agenda automatically does two things:

• Removes stress and anxiety.

• Allows your interactions to be more genuine.

This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t target individuals to speak to when you attend networking events or are at work functions. It means that you should be more focused on learning about the people you meet by asking questions and listening.

If you can offer help in some way, then all the better. This way you are creating value with no expectations of anything in return.

There is no better form of networking.

Also sounds like a good way to make friends, right?

Blurring Lines

Making friends is actually pretty similar to building a professional network. Seriously.

Both relationships start with having at least one thing in common.

The difference is the new friend almost always gets (1) a base level of trust up front and (2) our natural inclination to spend time and effort growing the friendship. Networking doesn’t have those benefits. Why?? It’s once again because we were taught to expect to receive something in return for the relationship.

In friendships our goal is to make a human connection. You know, to find people we enjoy hanging out with. If we start to view networking the same way as building a group of friends, it becomes less intimidating. 

You also get much more joy and energy out of it. Even better than that? It becomes much easier (less painful) to maintain your network – you’ll actually want to reach out and share insights or business ideas.  

Networking is a long game. Just like a good friendship.

The Bottom Line

Make networking less work, more fun.

• Be a giver, not a taker.

• Go into it with no agenda but to learn.

• Treat your network like you treat your friends.  

Afterall, job opportunities, new business, promotions and raises are all on the other side of your network.

Let’s make The Shift!

Lindsey