This can be a dangerous piece of advice, so let me clarify. When you begin to make changes in your networking strategy, you are going to have to move out of your comfort zone. After all, if everything you are comfortable with is working well, there would be no need to change. Moving out of your comfort zone can be scary. It may mean doing things you don’t like. But as you get more comfortable with the new activities, you may find that the thing you hated at first ends up being a lot of fun.
For example, I used to hate evening networking mixers. I don’t drink alcohol, and the venues are often loud and crowded. But I needed to work them, if for no better reason than I needed to be able to advise my clients how to work them effectively. Hard to do if you’ve never done it yourself. So I forced myself out of my comfort zone and went to them. I did all the things I had advised my clients: set goals, talked to new people, etc. And guess what? They aren’t that bad. They still aren’t my most favorite or effective way to network, but I can do them. And I have made some very good connections at them. And I would have missed those great connections if I hadn’t talked myself into moving out of my comfort zone.
That said, I do them as little as possible. There are other ways of networking that I enjoy far more. And I pick the events that are most effective for me. I don’t just do them to do them because I “should.”
And it’s okay for you to do the same. Just because someone tells you “Hey, this is great. You should do it too” doesn’t mean you have to. Give it a fair try. If it works, continue it. If it doesn’t, stop. The minute networking becomes a “chore” is the minute you will give it up.
And that would be too bad. Networking is the best source of job security I have ever found. So stop worrying about the right or wrong way to do it. Do what works for you. Try something new every so often, but mostly just do it.
Tags: Networking, Networking Groups