In a normal week I meet with three to five new people all interested in expanding their personal networks. Most are in job transition trying to uncover the “hidden job market” while many others are prospecting for new business. A few people really understand the networking process, which makes our meetings enjoyable with anticipation of our future. Most treat these meetings as one night stands without focus or purpose. My hope is that more people will follow these guidelines to improve the quality of their networking by building long term relationships.
Rule 1 – Quality is more important than quantity.
Rule 2 – Do what you say.
Rule 3 – Be interested, not interesting.
Rule 4 – Help others be successful.
Rule 5 – Stop keeping track. If you are tracking who called who last or who bought the last coffee then you are not building a relationship, you are becoming a creditor. If you want to build a relationship with a person you need to invest your time and effort. If after a reasonable time, the other person does not respond, move on.
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