Another apology to the Immortal Bard, but I am an English major.
I did a post several months ago on being consistent in your on and off-line image. This post builds on that and the one on finding your networking presence.
You need to be yourself when networking. No two people network the same way. No two Twitter accounts can or should use exactly the same techniques. Are there basic principles that apply? Certainly. But within those, there’s a lot of variability.
An example. I have a client who is a very giving person. He was talking to an associate about giving away information for free. The other person talked him out of doing it, saying that it’s never worked for him. Well, considering how much I loved Go-Givers Sell More, I disagreed with the advice. It won’t work for my client. He’s in a different industry and is a different personality than the person who gave him the advice. Following the advice would have made it harder for my client to look himself in the mirror every morning.
Obviously, we need to live with ourselves and what we do. I’m not talking about not breaking the law. That’s a given. But always remember to evaluate business and networking advice by what will work for you.
It also applies to who you refer. One person may have had a great experience with a service provider and wants you to refer him. Maybe you know the person and have doubts. Follow your gut. If you’re not comfortable referring him, don’t worry about what your friend might think. It’s your reputation and peace of mind at stake.
Most people have good instincts. Follow them while networking and most of the time you’ll end up doing the right thing.
And always remember. If advice doesn’t sound like you and makes you uncomfortable, there’s probably a good reason for it. Listen to your gut.
Anyone else have anything to add? Advice that went bad. A referral you made because someone else wanted you to? Share them in the comments.
Tags: Referrals, reputation