Networking on Purpose: The Why and the How

Networking. 

The very term often elicits either fear or resignation. Professionals know they need to do it but often are unclear as to why or how.

Building a personal & professional “sphere of influence” is a critical part of proactively managing and developing your career. It also enables you to become a more respected and valuable asset to those around you, both personally and professionally. However, most people say they don’t enjoy networking.

Kristen Kenton, President of Kenton Talent Management, and Patrice Barber, Founder and CEO of Career ConX,  know how you feel. They share tips from lessons learned from over 20 years of discovering the most effective networking personally. They include examples of what to do and what not to do gleened from the over 500 executives they have worked with collectively.  Learn the how and why of warming up and adding value to your professional relationships  –without feeling like a “schmoozer.”

“True networking simply involves “warming up” relationships with friends of friends or colleagues of colleagues, and then proactively adding value to those relationships. ” – Kristen Kenton

To get the primer on how to network most effectively with the How and the Why of Networking, click here.

Kristen shares sure-fire ways to open the conversation and get people talking about themselves – so you’ll know how to add value to the relationship. Other topics covered include:

• Why exposure is just as important as your performance
• How networking positively impacts your personal and professional life
• How to develop and deliver an authentic “elevator speech“
• How and where to network in order to maximize time and increase ROI
• Creative ways to follow up and stay engaged while adding value

If you would like to discuss building a personal & professional “sphere of influence”  in person with other executives (Director and above) and try out some of your ideas to get feedback from experts in person, you can join in the upcoming lunch event here. Take a look at future events to see if there are other topics you want to read about or join in on. Bring all your questions and concerns about networking, as well as your business cards for practice!

If you can, please join us and RSVP here. We look forward to hearing your comments and getting your feedback afterwards.

If you can’t make it in person,  check out the full post and leave us your comments below.