Ever heard of networking? Of course, you have. Do you participate in this activity? Yeah, I mean, when you hear about a car for sale, do you text your friend who\u2019s looking for a car? If you stumble across a great recipe, bit of advice, book marketing idea, good editor, etc., do you automatically share it with someone who might benefit?<\/p>\n
Or do you just take from those who are good networkers\u2014who are thoughtful and who reach out when they have something to share?<\/p>\n
Networking\u2014in order to be successful\u2014is a give and take proposition. You probably have friends and colleagues who constantly or even occasionally send you something they think might interest you. What a gift! You may not use everything they send your way, but those bits of information and recommendations you do use to make your life easier, to move your career forward, etc., are priceless\u2014wouldn\u2019t you say?<\/p>\n
Do you adequately acknowledge and thank those people who have your back\u2014who think of you often\u2014who share, share, share? You should. I should. Sometimes we get busy and don\u2019t give appropriate thanks. With that in mind, I want to publicly thank my friend and colleague, Sandy for being such a great networker. She is constantly bringing something to my attention. And I\u2019m pretty sure that I do not adequately thank you. She also always lets me know when I\u2019ve posted a blog without crossing all of my t\u2019s. Thank you Sandy. I really do appreciate you!!!<\/p>\n
Now, let\u2019s discuss the other part to networking. It\u2019s called \u201cgiving.\u201d This, for some, is hard. It means that when something crosses your desk or your path that you think might benefit someone else, the generous thing to do is to pass it on. Share. Give. Do something selfless. Think of someone else. Take time out to give back. Pay it forward. Yes, while Sandy and certainly others give to me, I might discover a great resource or idea for someone else I know. It\u2019s okay\u2014in fact, recommended\u2014that one networks outside of his or her circle.<\/p>\n
I remember, as a child, waiting near the mailbox in case the mailman would bring me a letter. My mother finally told me, the best way to receive a letter is to write one. It\u2019s the same with networking. You\u2019re more apt to receive help, advice, information, useful resources, etc. when you are in the habit of giving.<\/p>\n
But don\u2019t give with expectations. Oh, now there\u2019s the downfall of the system right there. Thinking, \u201cWell, I\u2019m not passing this along to Derek because he never thanked me the last time I sent him a potential new client,\u201d is counter-productive. No, no, no. Give without stipulations and without expectations. Just give. Be openly thankful. You will get something back immediately. Giving makes us feel good\u2014don\u2019t you think?<\/p>\n
Today, consider looking for ways to give and just see what gifts you get in return.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ever heard of networking? Of course, you have. Do you participate in this activity? Yeah, I mean, when you hear about a car for sale, do you text your friend who\u2019s looking for a car? If you stumble across a great recipe, bit of advice, book marketing idea, good editor, etc., do you automatically share […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t