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. I
Rule 6 – Protect your network. Do not provide introductions and contact information to people in your network unless you have a specific purpose that you can verbalize to those involved. To successfully connect people you need to develop a win-win for both parties.
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