Networking in the 21st Century
"It's not what you know, but who you know"
Have you heard this phrase by an adult before? It is said to kids all the time today to remind them of the importance of making ourselves marketable to others. Networking is a term that is used to describe the action of talking with other individuals about your career interests and goals. You may already know that person on a personal level or you may not, but regardless it has become a vital part of finding a job in todays job market. Making connections with people in such a manner, allows for your name to get in front of more hiring personnel at companies. If you were to be looking for someone to hire, and your friend/coworker/family member were to suggest someone that they know, wouldn't they have a higher likelihood of being hired when compared to an equally qualified person that you do not know... YES. |
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But all networking is not done with people that you do not know. We each have a vast network of people who currently know us. Therefore the first step of networking is talking to your current friends, your family and even the people that you used to be close with.
Consider the words of wisdom of David Burkus, in his 2018 TED talk as he speaks about how these connections can be fashioned to help you network with everyone in the world. |
What is an elevator pitch
An elevator pitch is a something that everyone should develop, those who are currently employed too. The idea stemmed from the concept of meeting someone in an elevator and trying to sell them an idea (or pitch) by the time that they got to their floor.
In today's networking world, an elevator pitch is not meant to be completed exclusively in an elevator and you are not trying to sell an idea, you are trying to sell yourself. In a short period of time, one should be able to describe to another person who they are, what skills they have and what they want to do. In essence an elevator is a much condensed resume. And just like resumes, you should have more than one, because you want it to be tailored to a couple of different individuals. |
"You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do."
– Henry Ford