They key to networking is being able to maintain real<\/em><\/strong> relationships with people. Too many people go to conferences and events and hand out business cards to random people, or add random people on LinkedIn with little thought. That is not<\/em><\/strong> networking \u2013 what you\u2019ve done is just made a weak connection with someone, but it likely won\u2019t help you in the future.<\/p>\n Ok, so what\u2019s best way to network and stay in touch with people:<\/p>\n Be productive with your networking \u2013 quality over quantity. When you meet someone, try to actually listen to them and get to know them. Ask them questions about their job, their interests, or their family (don\u2019t get too personal, though).<\/p>\n If you are a student \u2013 ask them for advice on something, or if you are looking for a job, tell them you are in the market. Be careful here \u2013 don\u2019t specifically <\/em><\/strong>ask them for a job or be too aggressive \u2013 that\u2019s a big turn-off and seem like you are being too transactional. They key really is to build an initial relationship, and then you can set something up later like an informational call or other meeting later<\/p>\n Be genuine<\/u><\/strong>. The key here is not to just spit back facts or information to someone, that would be weird. With networking, you are trying to learn from people\u2019s experiences to help you in your career \u2013 maybe investment banking wasn\u2019t for me, maybe I should go down this path in medicine, maybe I should talk to this VP about \u201cx or y\u201d, etc.<\/p>\n Stay in touch \u2013 Out of Sight, Out of Mind. I would argue there\u2019s four ways to stay in touch:<\/p>\n And finally, make sure to thank people<\/strong> and let them know how it went. People like to know they\u2019ve made some small (or large) difference. Keep in touch and let them know how their advice helped. This acknowledgment is very important! Without this follow through, your relationship building could come to naught and drifts into indifference.<\/p>\n Om<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Dear Anonymous We all know networking is very important, the common phrase \u2013 \u201cIt\u2019s not what you know, but who you know.\u201d I would go one step further, it\u2019s also \u2013 \u201cWho knows you\u201d, that is, if someone is thinking about hiring someone, or a new opportunity, or a speaking engagement \u2013 will they think of you? They key to networking […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":95,"featured_media":196,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-193","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-career"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/aig.uvaalumni.org\/dearaapaan\/files\/2018\/02\/cup-2884023_1280.jpg\")
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