My Top 5 Networking Goals
Given that she’s always “banging on” about #networking, it’s no surprise that Tania Seary’s 5 New Years Resolutions are always about growing – and nurturing – her professional network.
Every year I aim to:
- Find my fabulous five
- Dine (not eat)
- Keep watering the seeds of possibility
- Connect the dots, and
- Take more photos!
I guess this isn’t the typical list you would see for someone’s New Year’s resolutions … but I feel that it works, given that I’m always “banging on” (English for carrying on, talking, espousing) about the power of networking. In the past I’ve spoken about networking in a theoretical way, so for those who are interested in improving their networking skills and want to start NOW, I thought I would share my 5 networking goals with you and provide some examples to get you started.
Find my Fabulous 5
My first goal is to identify 5 new people who I would like to connect with who could really help “shift the dial” for my businesses. My challenge is that there are so many amazing people out there who could really help, so it’s not going to be easy to get it down to 5. I have to be strategic and even ruthless in my selection.
Now the tough part – once I’ve found someone fabulous, how do I find a reason for them to connect with me? This is where so many people get stuck. They freeze at the thought of putting themselves “out there” and fear rejection.
Here’s my advice. Take a deep breath, raise your head high and move forward in the confidence of knowing the most important rule of networking – and that is to Network From The Heart. Why from the heart? Because networking is about giving, not receiving. It has to be authentic. You need to have the other person’s interest as your priority … so, in my case, once I have my list I’ll immediately try to work out how I can help each of the 5!
Keep watering the seeds of possibility
The Fabulous 5 are not currently in my network; rather, they are game-changing people I would like to know. Equally important are my current connections who are the lifeblood of information about the profession. Of course, I’m following all these people online and can see what is top-of-mind for them, but to understand their concerns, strategies and aspirations, I really need to have a conversation.
This year, I have decided to become a bit more structured and conscientiously catch up with these people each quarter. I am going to schedule calls. There are probably up to a dozen people in this “inner circle” – they are a combination of CPOs, management consultants, media, and influencers who really have their finger on the pulse. They are the hubs of their own large networks.
Who are the hubs within YOUR network who can help keep you connected? Write down their names – potential future employers, smart people whose opinions you trust, people who would recommend you to others. Now, what can you do to help them?
Don’t eat, dine
I am not sure who made the famous quote “why eat when you can dine?”… but it’s one of my favourites. Even though I write so often about the importance of online networking, I am also a huge believer in the importance of meeting people face-to-face. It’s only through face-to-face contact that we really get to know people and begin to understand both their motivations and their aspirations. You can then work out how you and other members of your network can help them achieve their goals. That’s when the magic starts to happen.
I love food and eating … so for me, sharing a meal is a great way to get to know people. “Breaking bread” with your network can lead to all sorts of mouth-watering business opportunities.
My resolution is to host some small dinner parties at home to get to know my key business partners (and their partners!). It may not be practical, feasible, or even of interest for you to entertain at home, but there are plenty of other options such as catching up for coffee or inviting them to be your guest at an event where other people are hosting. Get creative! The dividend of knowing someone well will always pay off – a pleasant meal, a new learning, a business lead, the creation of a new friendship … the business opportunities are endless!
Connect the Dots
As well as keeping in touch with my network online, high on my agenda for this year is to attend as many face-to-face networking events as possible. For me, this includes Procurious’ Big Ideas Summits in London, Sydney, Chicago & Munich, The Faculty’s CPO Forum in Melbourne, IBM’s Think event in Las Vegas and ISM 2018 in Nashville.
It’s going to be a busy year, but I am so energised by the opportunity to meet and connect with thousands of procurement and supply chain professionals around the world and help “connect the dots” within the Procurious network.
Many people equate having a good network with having a large database of contacts, or attending high-profile conferences and events. But they falter at the next step – actually doing something to make the connection meaningful.
It’s impossible for anyone holding down a day job to attend all these events, so my advice is to be strategic. Choose your events wisely and have a strategy to achieve your ROI!
Take and post more photos!
I don’t know about you, but I love seeing photos of real people in my professional social media feeds! I am so tired of those generic stock photos that are branded on too many social media posts. This year I am going to be talking a lot about being human (look out for #behuman and #beatthebots hashtags) because I believe authenticity is a vital part of being a great leader. There is also a huge opportunity for us all to carve out a new future for ourselves in Industry 4.0 by leveraging our own very human unique personalities and capabilities that robots won’t possess (in our lifetime, anyway). Procurement can also “procure with purpose” to make a big difference in the communities in which we operate. So many possibilities!
We all have to work on promoting our profession to the world and make sure procurement & supply chain are well represented in the Googlesphere! Photos capturing real moments, with real people, like me here with some procurement professionals from Costa Rica I met at ISM 2017 shows what an interesting, diverse and optimistic future we have for our global profession. #BRAVO!
