Power of Networking

Successful people in the world look for and build networks whereas everyone else looks for work.  Networking is the exchange of information and ideas among people with a common profession or special interest, usually in an informal social setting. It also provides us with opportunities we can’t find on our own.  Network has bigger impact than education, marketing and anything else you do for your business.  It’s not only shortcut to success but it also helps in building long term relationships. You can build and strengthen relationship through networking. One of the cardinal key of successful networking is give before you get. If you want to form a relationship with another person you need to show how they will benefit from you.

In Covid 19 era Networking is ubiquitous. Although we can’t network face to face but there are various platforms where we are meeting now-a-days like zoom, cisco, LinkedIn, etc.   Now-a day’s it’s almost impossible to imagine our lives without these platforms.  We have business or professional meetings, schools, colleges, social gatherings, you name them and you have on these platforms.  Covid 19 has taught us to live new way of life.

   There are magnificent benefits of networking.

1. Networking strengthen business connections. It’s about sharing, not taking. We can have the best prospective, support and ideas as we all have different minds so when we are all together we can exchange different ideas.  …
2. We can create fresh ideas by collaboration and partnership through networking.
3. Raise your profile. Networking gives us exposure. We can raise our profile the more we have the network the more people start recognizing our names.
4. It advances your career and gets access to job opportunities
5. We Gain more knowledge and Get career advice and support. …
6. When a businessman has more networks it helps him to grow his business. Now-a-days many business have flourished because of networking.
7. Toastmasters itself is a networking opportunity.
8. We can network personally, socially or there are community social events where we can network.

I would like to give you some action events when you go for next networking events.  These five skills make connecting simple and natural.

1. Planning: Take the time to perfect your elevator pitch and always carry business cards, even when you’re just running errands
2. Active listening: Good listening skills can help you to make valuable connections. Work on being a good, active listener by maintaining eye contact, paying attention, and responding with insightful, relevant questions.
3. Strategic question asking: Learning to ask good questions takes time, but it’s a valuable skill for networking. Use active listening skills to ask questions that build on what the other person is saying.
4. Focusing on the other person: It’s all too tempting to talk about ourselves. However, if you reach out to connect with someone, you need to make the conversation about them. It’s fine to talk a bit about yourself, but then turn the conversation focus back to the other person – and definitely don’t try to sell anything during your first conversation.
5. Adding value: Think about ways you can offer value to others through your knowledge, skills, or even through your connections. Understanding the value you offer can help you establish mutually beneficial.

So, if you want to be successful in life have a strong Networking connections.  It’s one of the way to get success in our lives.