How to Use Your Connections to Network
Have you ever been afraid to actually ask your network for help? It’s really easy to be friendly and have fun and meet new people. But what happens when you are trying to grow your business or search for a new job? It can be scary or intimidating to reach out. It is easy to attend events and be social but now you need a little help. If you’ve mastered growing your network of friends and professional connections, here are some ideas to unapologetically reach out.
Think about a time that someone may have reached out to you for advice. How did they approach you? Did you feel excited to help or annoyed that someone would even ask? I’m pretty sure most of us are happy to give some time to help others! That is if the ask isn’t too big. This is why when are you looking to ask for help, keep it simple. Make it easy for them to respond and give you advice in a way that works for them. Reach out via email or LinkedIn with a professional and short note asking to connect to learn more about their career path. (People can always talk about themselves!)
Here are some simple and easy ways to connect:
Meet for coffee before work
Meet for lunch
Meet at their office during a time that works for their schedule
A 20-30 minute phone call (keep it to 15 minutes if they are a very busy professional)
Host a video conference for 20-30 minutes
Meet for happy hour (keep it professional though!)
Join them at an event that they are already attending (conferences, networking events, speaker series)
I’ve used many of these tactics while I was job searching. It is best to ask the person what works for their schedule. I really like the last bullet. While in graduate school, I met a marketing professional at an American Marketing Association (AMA) event. I reached out via LinkedIn to further the connection and ask to meet again to talk more about her career. She mentioned that she was going to attend a speaker panel and I could join her as her guest. This was a fantastic opportunity because I could meet her to talk more professionally and it wasn’t an inconvenience to her, she already had plans to attend the event. Additionally, since this was a professional speaker series, I took the opportunity to connect with other marketing professionals in the room. Guess what? From there, I asked another professional to meet up to tell me more about her role! I met this woman at a lunch spot inside the building where she worked. She needed to eat lunch and I didn’t make her go far from the office. It’s about making the ask simple and easy for someone to help you!
Keep using each opportunity to meet the next person. Even if that person can’t directly help you, usually they are willing to bring you to an event for better networking or pass your information along to another colleague that would be more help. Don’t shut someone out just because they can’t directly help you, it’s all about expanding your networking and casting a wide net.
