Networking Insight

6 Ways to Improve Your Appearance

Non-verbal communication is so important during any situation in which you have the opportunity to meet people.  In fact, we judge people generally in the first few seconds of seeing or meeting them.  A major component of non-verbal communication is your appearance.   How you communicate yourself physically is a reflection on your integrity and tells others what kind of person you are.

Below are 6 ideas to help you improve your appearance. Some of these ideas are reminders and some may be new thoughts for you.  After all, first impressions can make or break your ability to build relationships.

1. Keep your hair well groomed.  Before you enter a room full of people, take a look at yourself in the mirror.  Chances are that the wind has blown it around so fix this before others see it out of place.

2. Keep your shoes well shined.  The more you wear your shoes the more they will get scuffed.  Make sure that you get regular shoe shines so they look top quality at all times.

3. Watch for shirt holes and stains. Before you put your shirts or other clothes on each morning, double check for any holes or stains.  It is better that you catch this at home than someone else noticing this because you want to come across as a polished professional.

4. Wear your nametag in the correct position.  When attending events, it is important that you wear a nametag so people can easily identify who you are.  Also, it is crucial and insightful if you wear it in the correct position, which is high and on the right side of your body. As you shake hands with your right hand, you want the nametag to be in the line of sight so wear it on the right side of your body.

5. Dress appropriately in every situation.  If you will be attending an event, then take the time to research or talk to people about what you should wear.  Regardless, you can’t ever go wrong with professional attire.  So, more times than not dress professional.

6. Clean your face and teeth.  It is easy to forget to check your face and mouth after you eat something.  Before and during any meeting make sure that you go to the bathroom and clean any food from your face and teeth.  The last thing you want people to see is what you ate for lunch.

Remember that your appearance is a component of your personal brand.  At all costs, you want to have a positive and memorable brand so take this serious.

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Why Too Much Relationship Building Can Actually Hurt You

If you are a person who is constantly attending events and thrives on meeting people, you are not alone. While it is important to be visible and put yourself in situations to meet others, you can sometimes do this too much. As your network grows, opportunities will continuously present themselves for you to help people and organizations.

We all have our limits and breaking points so be careful about how much you commit yourself to.  At some point, you will get overwhelmed and won’t be effective in all of your efforts.

It is easy to want to pursue every opportunity that comes your way. After all, it is fun to get involved and nice to help people. I am guilty of this because I rarely say “no” to an opportunity, however, in the future, I need to re-evaluate some of commitments. 

The more you take on, the less effective you may become.  It is very important that you follow through with people and that you perform a professional job at all times.  As your mind share gets filled up, there is only so much that you can handle and think about.

So, only take on what you can comfortably handle when building relationships.  It is important to stay connected but don’t do too much.  If you start to fail in your pursuits, then you will start to make a bad name for yourself. Your reputation is crucial for your personal brand so do whatever it takes to keep it intact.

Remember that quality is more important than quantity.

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Corporations Are Finally Embracing Social Networking

Corporations are finally starting to take a hard look at social networking technology. They are learning from the twenty somethings that it is an important tool for people to connect with each other.

"Forrester, which surveyed 2,200 corporations to gauge their plans for new Web applications, found that  closer to 20% of companies surveyed will at the very least consider investing in social networking tools by the end of 2008, which is higher than the 16% that said they would consider it in September."

This is good news for firms like AboutFace and SkyLounge that target corporations. In reality, corporations tend to adopt technologies after consumers show the value and demand.

For a complete article on this subject, read Innovation: Corporations Embrace Social Networking

What is your experience with social networking in the corporation sector?

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Is Networking a Burden?

The following article, Beyond burden of networking, discusses two individuals - one who thinks that networking is a waste of time and one who thrives on meeting and helping people.

For the person who dislikes networking, here is what he had to say:

"Frankly, I'm tired of being reminded that I should cultivate an ever-expanding circle as a kind of insurance policy against extended periods of unemployment, even if it is good advice. I like meeting people but not when the subtext of our conversations is how we might further one another's careers. And the notion of joining a group to "network" is unappealing."

This person is missing the point of why you should build relationships. Every person has a different style so don't force any uncomfortable situations. I can guarantee you that this person has a circle of influence already and may not know it.

For the person, who thrives on networking, here is what she had to say:

"It just became so crystal clear that business is about people and the more people you know and can help and genuinely appreciate" the better off you are, she says. "People will introduce me to people who are really open to meeting others. There's an immediate foundation. There's this unspoken understanding, we're both about meeting other people to grow our businesses."

This person understands that you need to help others and build relationships before you need them.  Your premise for networking should not be to find a new job. If done right, then finding a new job will be the result of you networking effectively.

Make sure to read the entire article at Beyond burden of networking.

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5 Techniques for Becoming a Consistent Networker

Consistency is a big key to building and growing relationships.  Without a focused and regular regimen, you will not be able to maintain quality and long term relationships. So, take the below techniques to heart so you can position yourself to become a more effective networker.

1.  Follow-up, Follow-Up, Follow-Up – I can’t stress this one enough. After each first time and subsequent encounter with someone, make sure that you follow-up. You can follow up with a phone call or email. Whatever method, make sure that you always follow-up and follow through when appropriate.  You don’t have to do this for every person who you meet. Make sure that you are proactive and consistent with people who you want in your network.

2.  Set up Meetings – A very important component of building relationships is to get to know people. So, make it a regular habit of inviting people out for coffee, lunch, dinner, or drinks. Every week, you should be meeting with new people. Face time is a crucial aspect of relationship building.

3.  Create an Email Newsletter – Just as important as #2 above, you need to find a way to communicate to people on a regular basis. As you network grows, it will be impossible to reach out to everyone consistently on a one-on-one basis. Therefore, set up an email group or newsletter, which will allow you send valuable information to your network in an easy and quick method.  Of course, you still need to reach out to people individually when appropriate.

4.  Connect, Connect, Connect – Like #1, this one is very important. As you have heard over and over, it is important to help others before you ask for help.  With that said, continuously think of people who you should connect together. When you meet someone for the first time, a great way to show that you care is to offer to connect this person to another individual in your network.  At the same time, you need to constantly be thinking of ways to stay in front of your network. So, by making an introduction, you will show that you were thinking of this person, which will be appreciated.

5.  Willingness to Help – As mentioned is #4, is important to help others before you ask for help.  As your network grows, people will come to you with requests ranging from industry questions to introductions to people. Whenever possible, accommodate these requests either yourself or make a referral to someone who can. You want people to view you as a go to person for information.  Once this happens, you will become very valuable in other people’s networks.  As a result, opportunities will present themselves to you and people will respond to your requests without much hesitation.

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Expand Your Network by Reaching Out to the “Power Connectors”

The following article that I wrote appeared in the latest Personal Branding Magazine.  Check out my prior post: Personal Branding Magazine - Featuring Founders of Google

Expand Your Network by Reaching Out to the “Power Connectors”

In every industry or profession, people of big influence exist. These are the people who have large networks and can make things happen.  You can call them the “power connectors”.  Because of their network, they can virtually reach out to anyone they need to, which is a big component of their success.  Having one of these people in your network is a huge asset that can quickly expand your reach.  So, how do you identify one of these individuals? 

First, if you attend a variety of industry events, then you will eventually meet some of these people or hear about them from others.  These are the people who everyone in the room knows.

Second, the speakers at industry events can be well connected. How else do you think that they were chosen as a speaker?

Third, executives in your industry from leading firms are fairly connected.  By having a top position, these people will naturally have a large network.

So, how do you get to know these “power connectors?”  You need to be proactive and reach out to them by 1) leveraging your network to get an introduction, 2) attending an event to listen to the person speak and then introducing yourself to this individual, or 3) finding a valuable reason to contact this person such as sharing industry news or sending a book of interest.  How ever you decide to contact this person, make sure that it is tactful and you are putting the other person first.

When building relationships with “power connectors”, find out how you can help them before you ask them to open up their networks. Take time to nurture these relationships and do whatever you can to gain credibility and trust.  Make sure that you top of mind so invite them to events and keep them in the loop on your successes.  When the time is right, these people will help you.  These are some of the most important relationships you can have in your network so only leverage them when absolutely necessary. “Power connectors” are asked for favors all of the time so don’t take advantage of your relationship with them.

Over time, you can too become a “power connector” by branding yourself as an authority in your industry.  By having this image, you will have the opportunity to connect with many individuals.  As you start to build new relationships, make sure that you focus on integrating a variety of people into your network with various backgrounds, titles, and industry knowledge.  It is good to have a diverse network to draw upon, which will be helpful when assisting others.

Every network should have a “power connector” so take the time to find yours.

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Hoover's Launches Professional Networking Tool. How Many More Do We Need?

Hoover's announced that it is "launching a business social networking tool that promises to help users find ways to connect with people and establish new relationships."

"Hoover's Connect will allow Hoover's subscribers to build their professional networks by using automatic evaluating Outlook e-mail and calendar programs.   Also, Hoover's said that it has signed an agreement to acquire corporate social networking company Visible Path, which provided the technology platform for Hoover's Connect."

My question to you is why do we need yet another social networking site? Based on Hoover's purchase of Visible Path, they seem to want to embed themselves deeper into the business community.

For the entire story, go Hoover's launches professional networking tool.

Do you think that this new social networking site will survive?

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