Win friends and influence people
Networking is making contacts and giving people the chance to help you in a way that's mutually beneficial. You do it all the time without realising - when you get a friend to suggest a good car mechanic, join a school lift-sharing scheme or ask a neighbour to feed your cat or go to a party. It's what makes the world work smoothly and applies to career development as much as any other aspect of life.
Around half of all vacancies are filled through different forms of networking. Who you know and how you get on with them can have a more dramatic effect on your career than any other factor. You still have to be competent to do the job, but networking opens the doors of this hidden job market. Someone knows you or has heard that you are just what they are looking for. Rather than going to the trouble of searching among strangers, they come to you. You know when it happens, but are never aware of the opportunities you may have missed because you were not at the forefront of someone's consciousness.
Building a network for job hunting
So how do you get yourself into the situation of having an effective network? Many people find the idea of approaching friends or strangers with requests for help in their working lives daunting or unappealing.
- The first hurdle to overcome is your worry that you will appear to be a nuisance. People like sharing their experience and giving advice.
- Start with people you know such as friends, relatives, colleagues and previous employers. Try to think of five people who could help you with the task you currently want to accomplish.
- Arrange meetings with them that have a specific purpose, such as finding out more about a particular career area. Don't ask contacts for a job, ask for guidance on getting into their industry, advice on your CV or a period of work shadowing.
- Do this by phone if you know them, by letter or email if they're a contact that's been suggested to you.
- Aim to interest people in who you are and what you can do rather than blatantly trying to sell yourself.
- Follow up meetings with a letter of thanks.
1 | 2 | next
printer friendly
send to a friend
Delicious
Digg
reddit
Facebook
StumbleUpon
Horoscopes| Message Boards | Quizzes | Newsletters | Join
iVillage Ltd is a UK company registered in England & Wales (3837269) at 80-110 New Oxford Street, London WC1 1HB
