To piggyback on my Blog last Friday…..A couple Dos and Don’ts I like to stick by and believe you should to when networking.
DO post your profile on LinkedIn, Facebook and/or Twitter (whatever you find more appropriate), and join all relevant discussions. For some reason it took me sometime to be convinced to jump on the LinkedIn “Bandwagon”, mainly because I just thought of it as another profile to create and keep track of. But LinkedIn has especially helped me connect with many people in my industry, it also post jobs daily that are relevant to your profile.
DON’T forget to bring a lot of business cards. No one wants to be that guy that says, “Sorry I’m all out” or “I forgot”. That’s a great way to make a first impression, not!
DO ditch the Clique. Guilty! I prefer to stick around with my coworkers, it is obviously a more comforting situation. But let’s be honest, if this is one of your problems try going to an event alone to break out of that shell.
DON’T feel obligated to set up one-on-ones. Sometimes they are hard to duck out of because you can’t find an appropriate way to turn them down. But if you don’t see them as being able to help you then it is best not to waste your time and theirs.
DO make it personal. Besides knowing everything about what someone does for a living, try to get to know something personal about them as well. You can always address this in your follow-up email after meeting them. This will let that person know that you don’t just care about what they can do for you.
DO try to attend a variety of events. Don’t just stick to the “same ole, same ole” or you are going to keep networking with the “same ole, same ole” and really you can’t even consider that networking. Branch out, even if it is not in your own industry.
DON’T drink too much at evening events. Let’s just leave it at that….
I know that some of these might seem like no brainers to people, but read through them thoroughly it is at least a nice reminder.
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