Are You Networking or Needworking?

Posted By: Lauryn Franzoni
Filed Under: networking, job search, lauryn franzoni, communication, opportunity, executive career

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Congratulations! You're taking charge of your career, and you've been reconnecting with everyone from college friends to people you met two jobs ago. Your network of contacts has quadrupled in size. You've connected — now what?

If your next step is to systematically contact these people to see if they've heard of any openings for a person with your strengths and qualifications, you're not networking, you're doing what career coaches call "needworking."

The people you are contacting know it. And they don't like how it makes them feel.

Put yourself in their place. They know and like you. You're not the one who rushes around cocktail parties pushing your business cards on people. You're the person they've relied on as part of a team. Now you are singling them out, putting them on the spot. How many executive job leads do you have in your back pocket?

I can hear you muttering, "But if the vast majority of executive jobs are found by networking, what else am I supposed to do?"

The first rule of networking is network unto others as you would have them network unto you. Translation: give, not ask. Your network needs to support you for many years. It will become brittle and weak if you are always asking it for favors. Instead, reach out to someone in your network and learn more about what they need. Look for ways you can help, by sharing your expertise or by making introductions on their behalf.

Think about what you know or can do that others would find beneficial. For example, long before a network was something electronic, ExecuNet's founder, Dave Opton, used his love of writing and communication skills to share useful information between a few dozen executives in our tri-state area. Then, he shared some expertise from a résumé writer, tips from a recruiter and some job leads some of the group members had heard about. Now, he's in the middle of a myriad of member discussion groups, while still making sure that members who need something get connected to the right someone to get it done regardless of whether it's about looking for a new job or doing a better job in their role.

When you are focused on the other person and what they may need, you don't have to burden the people you know best. Strangers with a few things in common with you become close connections. Names and faces on a web page become contacts you look forward to meeting in person some day. Instead of gathering more gumption to email someone you know well (for the fourth time), you are reaching out to someone totally new with the intent to improve their day.

The good thing about networking by giving ("paying it forward") is you become the person people run toward, not away from. Forward motion creates opportunity.

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Lauryn Franzoni's avatar Lauryn Franzoni
Lauryn Franzoni is vice president and executive director of ExecuNet�s membership, leading the group�s proprietary research initiatives, website and publication content, membership and customer acquisition, executive career management resources, and the building of mutually beneficial communities of interest. By harnessing the power of the collective experience of our members, we assist business leaders in connecting with each other, with new ideas and opportunities, and we provide them the expert insights, education and pragmatic assistance they need to further their careers and help their organizations grow.