Useful Professional Networking???

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Useful Professional Networking???

🔥 Despite the fact that social networking is all around, many business people find networking activities distasteful and avoid them even if it can contribute to job and business opportunities, broader and deeper knowledge, and improved capacity of innovation and advancement. Here are some tips to help you overcome an aversion to professional networking:

• FOCUS ON LEARNING. Focus on the positive growth, advancement, and accomplishments that networking can bring and the activities will begin to seem much more worthwhile.
• IDENTIFY COMMON INTERESTS. Social psychological studies have proved that when people work together on tasks that require one another’s contribution, they are able to establish the most long-term and collaborative connections. So it is useful to think about how your interests and goals align with those who you meet in networking and how that can help you build meaningful working relations. Common interest identified through serious research often works well on leading to qualified relationships as it will feel more authentic and meaningful.
• THINK BROADLY ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN GIVE. It is true that when people believe they have a lot to offer, such as advice, mentorship, access, and resources, networking feels easier for them. But even those with lower rank and lower power can have many more resources than they can think of, such as heartfelt gratitude, understanding of other’s values and identities, or unique insights or knowledge.
• FIND A HIGH POSITION. The primary purpose you have in mind determines your effectiveness at networking. As any work activity becomes more attractive when it’s linked to a high goal, finding the underlying meaning and joining the activity with that in mind will be easier for you.

Source: Casciaro, T., Gino, F. and Kouchaki, M. (2016). Learn to Love Networking. Harvard Business Review, 94 (May), pp.104 - 107.

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		12 Jaap de Jonge Editor, Netherlands
	Professional Networking and Learning at 12manage Thanks for sharing this article about useful professional networking, Chloe. I think 12manage fits well to the characteristics as provided by Casciaro et al. Because we obviously focus on: LEARNING and SHARING ideas/know-how/experiences around management methods and models, and PROFESSIONAL NETWORKING IN SPECIAL INTEREST AREAS (helping and linking each other). Our way of professional networking is somewhat different from Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. In simple terms, while Facebook is focused on sharing experiences with family and friends, LinkedIn on finding jobs and Twitter around hot news, 12manage focuses on learning and is more long-term oriented.

		2 Carlos Cardenas HR Consultant, Peru
	Social Networks Threaten our Concentration and Focus for Complex Tasks There are tasks that require our attention. The more complicated a task is, the more concentration we need. This happens in all areas of our lives, but especially in the professional field. For example, when we are in a meeting, we should be as attentive as possible to what a colleague tells us. When I say attentive I mean not only to understand what your exposure is, but also the way it is said, with the intensity and other nuances with which a good communication and listening is painted. But what about social networks? In my opinion they are a danger to our attention, they distract us, they break the dance that occurs when we communicate, we lose concentration. In that sense, we must know how to manage the use of social networks, we can set timetables and filter different types of networks, putting filters and establishing channels for really urgent things. All the others can wait. If I fail to focus, I lose concentration, my performance goes down. (Translated by 12manage) Hay labores que requieren de nuestra atención, mientras mas complicada la tarea mas concentración necesitamos. Esto pasa en todos los ámbitos de nuestra vida, pero sobre todo en el ámbito profesional. Por ejemplo, cuando estamos en una reunión debemos estar lo mas atentos possible a lo que nos expone un colega; cuando digo atento me refiero no solo a entender de que se trata tu exposición, sino a la forma en la que lo dice, con la intensión y demás matices con los que se pinta una buena comunicación y escucha. Pero que pasa con las redes sociales; a mi parecer son un peligro para nuestra atención, nos distraen, rompen la danza que se da cuando nos comunicamos, perdemos concentración. En ese sentido, debemos saber administrar el uso de las redes sociales, podemos poner horarios de atención y filtrar distintos tipos de redes, poniendo filtros y estableciendo canales para cosas realmente urgentes; todas las demás pueden esperar. Si no logro enfocarme pierdo concentración, mi desempeño baja.

		2 Tarja Laila Marita Raman Partner, Finland
	Concentration is Demanding @Carlos Cardenas: I agree "The more complicated a task is, the more concentration we need." However, concentration is nowadays a little bit problematic ability, because there are so much things around us asking for attention in the work and in general. If you learn to close most part of your environmental, perhaps you are then missing also something important. On the other hand, if you are aware of everything, you'll soon burn out. So we need CONCENTRATION and we must CHOOSE WHAT IS IMPORTANT and valuable for us/me and we must RELAX. Creativity absolutely needs concentration (and inspiration from the environment) and time to rest.

		3 Gregory Waddell Teacher, United States
	Create a Professional Interest Map Something I did recently that helped was to create a map of my professional interests. I used SimpleMind, a mind-mapping software, of which there are many. You can even do it using paper and pencil. The point is to create a map of all your areas of interests. Once that was done, I took several of the nodes and expanded them into questions that I have, areas where I want to learn or deepen my knowledge. The reason I bring this up in this discussion relates to the comments about focus. My professional interests map helps me to maintain focus. I can zero in on those areas of growth and find people who are experts in those fields to network with and filter out much of the noise.

		3 Norman Dragt Netherlands
	Useful Networking: Is There Such a Thing? As the four points state, networking should be about bringing something to the network, but also you should be able to take something from it, even it is only a lesson. It seems that most people think...

		1 Norman Dragt Netherlands
	Learning to Network A real problem for most people in (social) networking might be remembering what happened to them and discovering the important contacts and information in the bunch of people they spoke to and the hea...

		3 Gandhi Heryanto Management Consultant, Indonesia
	Networking Can Make Some Feel 'Dirty’ An earlier study by Casciaro found that people who had more power in the office were less likely to report feeling dirty when it came to networking. It means those already in power are more comfortabl...

		2 Graham Williams Management Consultant, South Africa
	Useful Professional Networking I see social networking (on the internet) as similar in some respects to live, face to face networking in different contexts. In choosing or discerning who to network with, my primary criterion is to ...

		3 Naresh Sinha Coach, India
	Conditions for Successful Networking You may want to network with people, but start with thinking about do they want to network with you? Why and when will people like to network with you: 1. Build an image: # Of being a somebody who ...

		1 Paramathmuni srinivas Kumar India
	Networking and Happiness There is a saying in this part of the world... Yogaratova, bhogaratova, sangaratova, sangavihenaha, yasa bramhani ramane chittam, nandati, nandati nandatyeva Those who have evolved in consciousness ...

		1 Anonymous
	Definition of Professional Networking I found this definition of networking and professional networking by Andrew Hennigan: “Networking is a deliberate activity to build, reinforce and maintain relationships of trust with other people to...

		1 Anonymous
	Reasons for Professional Networking The main reasons for engaging in professional networking are: - To gain access to information and tacit knowledge. - To be perceived as a ‘top-of-mind’ expert in some field of business. - To establ...

		4 Maurice Hogarth Consultant, United Kingdom
	Networking is Marketing not Selling Attending a local networking group, I discovered it was a chapter of an international networking organisation with the focus being for members to recruit members. Members marketed to each other on th...

		3 Graham Williams Management Consultant, South Africa
	Networking is Marketing not Selling You are spot on Maurice. I recently posted in LinkedIn (a platform for linking people) that in line with a wide 'me first' push, LinkedIn is moving from collaborative linkups to advertising and market...

		1 Maurice Hogarth Consultant, United Kingdom
	Foundation of Professional Networking @Graham Williams: Agreed, my comments also apply to a great extent to LinkedIn. However in one of the sub-groups on LinkedIn this very point has been raised and some of the sub-groups are focusing mor...

		1 Graham Williams Management Consultant, South Africa
	Professional Networking with Care for Others @Maurice Hogarth: I love your NET metaphor. Without getting philosophical, although I do believe this is practical: the WEB metaphor has been used to illustrate that we are all interconnected, what we...

		1 Maurice Hogarth Consultant, United Kingdom
	Working the Net Connections @Graham Williams: Thank you Graham. I take your point re "working the net". If people take up networking to 'work the net' as a self-serving selling channel then there is a high potential for disillus...

		0 Graham Williams Management Consultant, South Africa
	Intent and Attitude towards Professional Networking @Maurice Hogarth: Good point Maurice! So how and with what intent and attitude one enters and traverses the net shapes the quality of experience....

		2 Jaap de Jonge Editor, Netherlands
	Success Factors of Professional Networking Thanks all for your excellent ideas and builds. Among the main "success factors" for professional networking are indeed one's focus, investments, interests, values, reasons, motivation, intent, attitu...

		2 Melanie, USA
	New Job? Start Networking Immediately! William C. Byham recommends new managers should start to network right away when in a new job. The main reason for this is that networking is the best way to quickly acquire crucial information about ...