This episode evolved from a talk I gave in my fabulous facebook group, Connections, Coffee & Confidence Community, all about networking. It's something many group members had expressed a desire to learn more about and something I find myself getting more involved in after moving to a new province. However, I noticed there are some shifts in perspectives we need to make in order to network more effectively and I cover those in today's episode.
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Hey hey and welcome to Connections, Coffee and Confidence. Today’s episode is based off of a talk I gave in my facebook group Connections Coffee and Confidence Community. Like most private groups, I have qualifying questions people must answer before joining the group - it’s for women who own a business and want to network and learn about communications and if that's you, look us up - and many of my members indicate that they want to learn about networking, about making connections. As a side note, I was once told that I would quickly run out of material for a podcast. I find material everywhere and, I don’t think this person took into consideration the most basic ways of making connections and serving an audience - ask what they are interested in, where you can help. Ask the question and you’ll get the answers, it’s up to you to ask and act on the information you receive. So anywho, it felt like a good time to discuss networking as the world is shifting again - from closed up tight to slowly or rapidly opening, depending on where you are and your personal circumstances. Things are changing but what doesn’t change is the need to connect with others so that’s today’s episode.
INTRO
When I asked why people network, I got lots of lovely fuzzy answers like wanting community support, to learn from different people, to find mentors, and I love those ideas. I love how my group members are so open to learning from each other, to having each other’s backs and supporting them through their individual journeys.
However.
What I concluded from these answers is that we need a perspective shift. As I mentioned, my group is for women business owners. Women who run at least one business. And what does every business need to stay alive? Customers. Not one of my group members said they network to find customers or clients and yet I would say that’s one of my top reasons to network. Perhaps it’s because, at the time of recording, I’ve moved to a completely new province and need to establish myself as a business and an expert, but I would argue that we all need to do this on a regular basis. And whether we realise it or not, we are networking all the time.
Note that I said I need to establish myself as an expert. Well, that’s also a perspective shift we need. As women, we are eager to learn from each other and support each other but how are we learning when no one sees themselves as ‘the expert’ enough to step up and teach?
Did that idea land like a lead balloon? When I said that, did it feel uncomfortable or come as a surprise? Because let me tell you, it hit me pretty hard when I realized it. Our group is full of amazing women all over the world who run some pretty phenomenal businesses and not one of them saw networking as an opportunity to show their stuff. And I don’t think that’s special to our group, I’ve linked a great article from The Atlantic called The Confidence Gap in my show notes, it examines this phenomenon much better than I ever could and goes outside of today’s topic of networking - except to say that this is another area where we can use a perspective shift. We are just as expert, often more so, than the experts we see more regularly and flock to learn from.
From a professional and personal perspective, networking and creating community is so integral to our wellbeing, to our growth and sustainability. But how do we do it? How do we do it in a global pandemic? How do we network when we’re scared or unable to leave the house? Or don’t live where our prospective clients or even friends live? It shouldn’t surprise you that I see loads of opportunities for us.
One option is to use a formal networking organization. There are international clubs and groups such as the Lions Club, Rotary International, Women in Business, and more. Do you remember episode 3? It was my first interview on the podcast and It was with Karen Howley, an Immigration lawyer and an Irishwoman living in Alberta. Karen’s a prime example of someone who has used a formal networking organization to her great advantage and if you listen back - it’s linked in the show notes - she’s a member of Business Networking International or BNI as it’s more commonly known
These formal organizations are typically focussed on members getting to know each other and then referring business to each other. Sometimes they are all about providing acts of service for their community, sometimes it’s purely for business. But if you google networking organizations, you’ll be sure to find something close to you that fits your bill. And don’t forget to look locally as well. Sometimes you don’t need to look any further than your local chamber of commerce or whatever your region calls that type of organization. They can be amazing resources for a community’s movers and shakers.
There are also slightly less formal places to look for networking. For example, my own facebook group or I bet many of the groups you’ve joined in the last year or so. While there may be formal questions to answer to ensure you are a good fit for the group, once you’re in there probably isn’t any call for public speaking or attending and participating in Lives or whatever. You’re there to contribute as and when relevant, not on schedule.
So those places might be obvious to you, after all they often have networking in their title or in their description. But this is where the perspective shift needs to come in.
Many of us have signed up for an online course or done a challenge - free or paid, doesn’t matter - in the last while. And you’ve ended up in some sort of a facebook group as a result. Well, those places might not have networking in the title but they are tailor made for you to keep an eye out and look for opportunities to connect with other members. Same with groups where you participate due to your hobby or interest. Maybe you or your kids are involved in sports or 4-H or you take painting classes. I don’t know. What I do know is that while you’re in those places, you’re connecting with people you have something in common with. It’s up to you to strike up conversations and look for ways to forge relationships, to offer your services or connect the people you meet with others you know. You might be there for fun or because you have to be, but there’s no reason why you can’t intentionally make connections, you just need to be open to it.
While I’m talking about things like community sports, let’s not forget the old school methods of networking such as volunteering. I personally love this option because I tend to be rather shy in many situations but when volunteering, I have a job. And I’m good with doing a job. It means someone is in charge of showing me what I need to do and introducing me to others, and I have a valid reason to approach others and ask questions, strike up a conversation. I often find that the people who volunteer at events are the kind of people who are well known and usually loved in their communities, they’re interested in referring others to like-minded people. In other words, exactly the kind of people you would be lucky in so many ways to know. Plus, I spent many years as an events manager and it feels nice to be involved in events again without the stress and responsibility of running the show.
Something that’s quite important when it comes to choosing a way to network is to fit the activity within your personality and strengths. If you join a group that is involved in mentoring youth and you hate kids, well, you aren’t likely to be your best self when and if you show up. The most renowned groups tend to have some sort of service activity at their core, BNI’s motto is givers gain - meaning you get the most when you give the most, for example. So look at them and see where the group’s activity, your comfort level and your target market all collide. That’s your sweet spot. That’s where you’ll show up with a happy heart and show your wondrousness to everyone else. It doesn’t have to be all about business but you need to be happy to be involved.
Now I know I just so casually said a minute ago that it’s up to you to strike up a conversation and look for ways to forge a relationship. Sounds so easy when really, that can be difficult. Once upon a time, we could whip out a business card and hand it over, it would have a little tagline of some sort to explain what you do plus it would have a job title and company name, all the necessary information was there in something concrete for the person to tuck away and remember you by. Let me ask, do you have a business card? Mmmm. Irrespective, I recommend you have an elevator pitch, a way to briefly express what you do in a way that the other person understands and can somewhat remember. In fact, I did a whole episode on it, episode 14, and I’ll link to it in the show notes.
I love how my group members were so open to networking for personal growth but I really want to challenge them and you to be open to those opportunities to make connections and nurture relationships wherever they may present themselves. Let’s be open to all chances to grow our businesses as, without new clients or customers, we place our business’ success in jeopardy. And when we look at networking as being critical to our business success, it becomes a critical activity for us to undertake.
When I asked my group what stopped them from networking, I got a lot of crickets. I know people saw the question, you know how Facebook shows how many people see a post? Many saw the post but I only had two answers and they boiled down to time. On which I call nonsense.
Networking can be uncomfortable. Like, really uncomfortable. Hands sweating (never have I ever been so glad of an opportunity to not shake hands with people) and word fumbling and oh please tell me this isn’t just my experience? Well, what has made it easier for me has been a combination of things - practise, being one. Same with everything else, right? When you do something repeatedly, you get better. Malcolm Gladwell talks about needing 10,000 hours to become really good at something in his book Outliers. By no means am I suggesting you go network for that long, but more than once or twice a decade is good.
But I think the main thing that gets us motivated to network and connect is when we recognize and accept it as a critical part of our business because then we simply prioritize it. It becomes something we must do and like everything else we prioritize, we schedule it in and do it. That’s one reason why formal groups are so good, by the way, they have set times and you can schedule it in weeks or even months in advance. Pressure is off for you to organize it.
When you’re networking online, it’s super easy to lose track of time and purpose but I like Zoe McKeown’s trick. She’s the facebook community manager I interviewed in episode 33, and with a title like that, she’s my go to expert when it comes to managing my time online. She does 30 minutes a day, split between the morning and the afternoon to check in on conversations and people. Efficient and easy to manage, thirty minutes a day.
So when I think about networking, I see opportunities for us as business owners to grow our business, to grow our communities and our sphere of influence. I think it’s time for you to start looking at networking that way, too. You can use the formal or informal route, and I urge you to keep open to opportunities that pop up no matter where they come from. But it’s also up to you to prioritize networking as a vital aspect of your business growth; if we don’t get new clients, we limit our ability to grow our business. And don’t even start me on the amazing benefits for your reputation as a good company, a good person, and an expert in your field. Practise makes perfect and try to have some fun while you’re doing it, ok?
Now. As I mentioned in the intro, I ask my facebook audience, I regularly ask my email subscribers and now I’ll ask you - if there is something you’re interested in learning more about with regards to strategic communications or business management, please pop me an email at janice@janicefogarty.com. I’d love to help out. Until next week my friend.
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