Relationships do matter to everybody under the sun. You cannot live in a world of your own and be truly successful. We all need each other. Regardless of where you look, it is all about relationships – your relationship with your, family, relatives, friends, friend’s parents, money, bank, and employer. This brings me to the importance of networking, and the value of forming and maintaining a strong circle of contacts. There is no better time than now to strengthen or build your network. A solid network will serve you well for years to come and will be an additional tool in your toolbox especially during these times of economic uncertainty. Networking includes both internal and external. Internally, be visible at your current job/college – don’t hide in your office or lecture hall. Volunteer for projects and make yourself available. Expand your lunch partners. Meet and talk with new coworkers and students and continue to communicate with them on a regular basis. Be informed; know where your company is going. You may want to consider brushing-up your skills or broadening your knowledge which leads me to external networking. This can also enhance your current situation. An easy way to do this is by joining a professional organization within your field or school. Network by regularly attending the meetings, meeting new people, and benefiting from the information and knowledge presented through seminars and speakers. Keep in mind that networking is not easy, To help ease your apprehension, consider arriving early at a meeting when there are fewer people or invite a colleague to attend with you. Then, take your membership to the next level by becoming a member/official or chairing a committee. This opens many new doors and looks good on your resume. Also, consider joining an online professional network such as LinkedIn. You can add your professional memberships/organizations to your profile for added visibility. Invite your contacts to join and continue expanding your network with updated information. Always exchange contact information and follow-up. Start and maintain a database of the contacts in your network that includes their name, email address, phone number, as well as how, when, and where you met with any additional pertinent notes to help jar both your memory as well as your contact’s memory. Continue adding to this database and make it a point to keep in touch with any appropriate news or possibly pass along an article of interest. The importance of career networking should never be underestimated for example, when employers are hiring new staff, if they are not limited by company hiring policies, their first inclination is typically to ask existing staff whether they know of anyone who would be a good fit for the job. There’s a certain amount of built in trust that comes from a referral because the candidate has already been pre-screened by the person who made the referral. Employers typically prefer to hire someone who has been referred and avoid advertising a job and sifting through huge stacks of resumes from strangers who may or many not be good fit for the job. The best jobs are typically found through networking, so it is crucial that networking and job hunting must always go hand in hand. No man is an island. No man is self sufficient. You cannot have everything you need in your life and it doesn’t matter how rich you become. From time to time, you will need other people in your life. It is the people that you relate with that you will talk to when you have a problem and need help. It is through relationships cultivate that you get a helping hand in your hour of need Importance of networking. 1. Relationships give lasting happiness- It is through the relationships you, be it family or friends or colleagues that one derives true and sustainable happiness. There is joy in sharing other people’s successes and helping them in times of need. 2. You get help through relationships. It is through relationships cultivate that you get a helping hand in your hour of need. 3. Relationships are a source of learning. Through our different relationships we get to learn about life, about ourselves and about other people as well. The relationships that we keep are a great source of knowledge, insight, and influence. We learn a lot from the people we relate with regardless of age, race, and gender. There is something to learn from everyone we relate with. 4. Relationships drive our ambitions. One of the reasons why we work so hard everyday is so that we may guard some relationships that we have in our lives. Everybody wants the best for their children and will do great things to make sure they have met them. You want to impress a girl, you work very hard to afford that expensive car. Your friend has a PHD, you work tirelessly to get one too 5. Relationships are success There is victory and joy in having stable and mature relationships, be it at work, or with your family, or even with your friends.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Jul 2013 15:35:36 +0000