Networking for Life

Career Management, Interview, Job Search, Networking

“Really?” you say. “Networking for life? You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

Nope, I’m not kidding. The two biggest mistakes job seekers make when networking are staying out of touch and getting in touch only when they need something.

Imagine Joe Job Seeker went to college with Carl Company Man. Joe and Carl haven’t been in touch for years. Joe picks up the phone one day and calls Carl inquiring as to whether Carl knows of any job openings. That is the “you’ve gotta be kidding me” part.

Seriously, what do you think Joe’s chances are of having Carl help him?

Let’s Script This Out:

Joe: Hey, it’s Joe. How have you been?

Carl: Joe! Haven’t heard from you in ages. Talks about what he’s been up to and asks Joe about himself.

Joe: Talks about his life, then says: I just got downsized, so I’m looking for a job. I was wondering if you knew of any openings at your company?

The chances of Carl saying yes, he knows of an opening are close to 0%, so they hang up with Carl saying, “I’ll keep my eyes open for you.” And that’s the last Carl hears from him.

It could have gone like this:

Joe: Hey, it’s Joe. How have you been?

Carl: Joe! Haven’t heard from you in ages. Talks about what he’s been up to and asks Joe about himself.

Joe: Talks about his life, then says: The challenge I’m facing right now is that my company was downsizing, and I was one of the ones laid off. I haven’t had to conduct a job search in years. What I would love to hear from you is your thoughts on what might make my job search successful.

Carl might say any number of things in response to that query; it’s intrinsic in people to want to help.

With the “do you know of any openings” conversation, although Carl might have wanted to help Joe, he didn’t know of any openings, so Joe batted zero. Yet I would bet that 99.9% of people queried would have some advice on how to search for a job—a home run.

Remember the old adage “It’s not what you know; it’s who you know”? In the art of good networking, it’s more like, “It’s not what you know or who you know; it’s who knows you.”

So now that Carl knows Joe is looking for work, of course he would think of him if he did hear of an opening. That comes naturally, and you don’t have to ask.

In addition, Joe will send Carl a thank you note (yes, please, make it handwritten) thanking him for his time. It will give Carl another opportunity to think of Joe. Then when Joe carries out Carl’s advice, he will send Carl an email telling him what he did—yet another opportunity for Carl to think of him. If another few weeks go by and Joe hasn’t found work, he will send Carl another email updating him as to his status.

Look at how many times Carl has thought of Joe as opposed to the first scenario, where it was “Hello…Goodbye.”

Networking Isn’t About Finding a Job; It’s About Making Lasting Connections.

You talk to people (who know people), and then you talk to those people (who know people), and so it grows.

Networking will not get you a job, but networking can produce a lead or open a door, which can lead you to an interview, which can lead you to finding a job. Networking is all about relationship-building. It is a lifelong, career-long process, and it doesn’t happen overnight.

You say you don’t know enough people to network? Think again.

You go to the dentist, doctor, post office, repair shop and on and on, don’t you? You had a job before and came into contact with people? Do you attend church? Belong to the PTO or any other organization, whether it’s professional or hobby-related?

See how easy it is to get started? All you need to do is the following:

Think of everything you do in which you interact with people and make a list of it. There you have it—the beginning of your contact list! Now, wasn’t that easy?
Prioritize your list. Create your own system, whatever will work for you. The goal is to review the names on your list and decide who to contact first. If you’re new at this, your decision should be based on who you’re most comfortable with. If you’re not a newbie, base your decision on who you feel might have additional contacts.
Detail your list. Write down email addresses, phone numbers and mailing addresses—all the contact information you can find.
And now, you’re ready to start contacting!

How to Network the Right Way

So, how do you do this intimidating thing called networking? What do you say?

As evidenced by our example of Joe above, one thing you should not do when networking is ask for a job. What you say should depend on how well you know the person you’re contacting, and only your judgment can tell you that. In most cases, however, your approach will be similar.

Tell the person you’re calling that you’ve initiated a job search and that you would welcome their advice and any suggestions or ideas they might have. See where the conversation leads from there. If they say, “Gee, I don’t really have any suggestions,” gently come back with, “Do you know anyone I can talk to who might?” Your goal with each conversation should be to come away with at least one name of someone else you can contact.

Key points to remember:

Tell the person you’re talking to that you will keep them apprised of your employment status—and then do that! You know the saying “out of sight, out of mind”; don’t let that happen to you. Let them know once you have secured employment.
Thank the person you’ve talked to. If you meet with someone in person, send them a written thank you note. Although most are done by email, it really makes an impact and is hard to delete when it’s handwritten and sent via the U.S. mail.
Follow up on any leads they may give you, even if you don’t think you’re interested or that it will lead you anywhere. Not following up can put the person who you spoke to in an awkward position. Say, for example, they tell you to call Carl Company Man, and a few days later they run into Carl and ask about their conversation with you and Carl says he never heard from you. That alone could lose you a valuable contact, much less whoever else Carl might have referred you to. You need to be dependable and not waste people’s time.
Try to meet with people in person if possible. Promise to take only 15 minutes of their time. Stick to those 15 minutes unless they invite you to stay longer.
If anything comes of any of the leads, such as an interview or even a job offer, be sure to get in touch with your contact to let them know and thank them again. People like to be appreciated.
Don’t contact people once and then forget about them. Let an appropriate amount of time go by and contact them again. On your second and subsequent contacts, you can simply say something like, “I’m just getting in touch to keep you updated on my job search status.” You can then give them a brief report of any meaningful activity if you think they might be interested. You can also ask them if they have any additional ideas or suggestions. Whatever you do, don’t wear out your welcome. Contacting people once a month is usually sufficient.
As you continue to network, start eliminating people from your contact list who haven’t been helpful. There’s no need to continue to contact people if every contact with them leads nowhere.

Cold-Calling Referrals

How do you contact someone and start a conversation with them if you’ve never met or talked to them before? What do you say?

If you network properly, you will encounter this situation quite frequently. In fact, you must if you’re going to make your networking efforts pay off. If your networking contact knows the person they’re referring you to, it may be appropriate for them to call the person first to give them a heads-up that you will be calling. Let them offer to do this; don’t ask them to. Remember, people like to help and very well may offer to go one step further and do an introduction.

Be prepared, however, that you may have to end up contacting the referral without an introduction from the person who referred you.

Once you do connect, your conversation might start something like this: “This is Arnold Applicant. Rachel Referral suggested I call you…” and then tell them why and what for. Be very careful about asking about a specific opening. Never put the person you’re calling on the spot. Give them time in your conversation to tell you about anything specific that they can help you with.

After being laid off from her longtime job as an HR director, Kathy Barany decided to start her own HR consulting business, Strategic Management Solutions. She has a master’s certificate from Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations and is an expert in general HR consulting, including legal compliance. Kathy is a sought-after speaker on a variety of topics, including the job search and the art of networking. When she’s not practicing her passion for business success, she spends time with family and indulges in her passion for classic cars, including her own 1957 Thunderbird.