If your job search seems stuck in a rut, it may be time to shake up your networking. Here are some practical ways to move beyond the endless business card swaps to make better use of your current contacts and cultivate useful new ones:
1. Get Outside the Business Box
The more people you meet, the more likely you’ll encounter someone who can offer you an opportunity or pass your name on to someone else. Make a point of communicating your job search goals to virtually everyone you interact with: your hair stylist, the dog groomer, your next-door neighbor. Reach out to those old high school friends who found you on Facebook. Probe your common interests, and you might be surprised how many contacts turn up in your industry.
Everyone wants to help a volunteer, right? Offer to help with events, committees or projects that can put you side-by-side with new faces in a fresh context. Volunteering gives you a common purpose that helps open up conversations.
Don’t be afraid to approach a big shot. Scott Ginsberg, author of The Power of Approachability, urges people not to be intimidated by leaders they admire. Send an appreciative email to an expert or speaker, and you may be surprised when they follow up.
Even your dog can help. People really open up around their pets. Visit dog parks and talk to other owners. Some bars and restaurants even have “yappy hour” events with treats for Fido and drink specials for you.
2. Be the Duck in a Pool of Swans
It’s tough to stand out at traditional networking events, so get creative. If you’re a man, try going to a women’s networking group. If you’re an executive assistant, try attending some executive-level mixers. When you’re the odd duck in the room, you’re a walking conversation starter.
Depending on your industry, you might be able to get away with an attention-getting gimmick. A South by Southwest conference attendee once brought along a volleyball and Sharpie pen and approached everyone for a signature. You can bet they all remembered him a day or even a month later, especially when he called to follow up.
If that’s not your style, consider being an interviewer. Networking strategist Tim Tyrell-Smith suggests using your smartphone to shoot video of other attendees talking about their worst interviews, for example. Then, use their responses to craft a blog post. In The Most Human Human, author Brian Christian uses a rock climbing analogy: offer people an easy first “hold” to make yourself approachable, like wearing or carrying a striking accessory.
3. Be the Expert
It’s great to attend networking events, but it’s even better to be the speaker at one. Put together a presentation on a niche topic that’s in your wheelhouse and offer it to groups that may be interested. Be sure to include tips and examples from your own business experiences—and be entertaining! Networking groups and professional associations are always clamoring for speakers; consider service clubs like Rotary and your local chamber of commerce, too. You’ll expand your network, build your resume and raise your visibility, all at the same time.
You can also take the lead and make yourself the hub of a network. Arrange a lunch for a small group of people you’ve met at recent networking events, or introduce your various networks to one another.
Finally, do what 9 out of 10 networkers don’t: follow up. Scott Ingram, founder of NetworkinAustin, says most people never reach out again to the people they meet. When you take someone’s card, make notes on it immediately about what you discussed, plus any other impressions. Then call that person the next day.
Be creative, grab the spotlight, and you’ll stand a much better chance of making a connection that turns into an opportunity.
Megan Pittsley-Fox is a Transition Specialist at RiseSmart, an industry-disrupting career transition firm getting displaced workers to their next jobs 61% faster than the national average. Megan has more than 10 years’ experience in recruiting, HR, resume writing and career advising. Based in Silicon Valley and originally from Boston, she has helped professionals across the country in a vast array of industries to achieve their career goals and dreams. Megan also has a book being published on developing career centers in libraries. In her free time, she enjoys wine tasting, cooking and dining, organic gardening and traveling with her husband.
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