Is Networking Important for my Career?

Networking has been a topic that comes up again and again in coaching as people ponder its importance to their career. As a coach I know there are numerous paths and ways to get to the position you desire so there is no one right way to manage your career. With that said, building relationships is essential to being successful in the business world. In fact, I would advise you not to get into the corporate world if you don’t want to build relationships. Even in places like engineering departments where there is a specific set of technical skills needed, the people who become leaders in the organization are the ones that are not only highly skilled technically but also know how to build relationships and communicate well.

Most people don’t like the idea of networking because it can feel fake or forced to create a relationship with someone based on their title or position. For most of my clients, being successful while also being true to their values is really important so the questions that come up are ‘How do I network in a way that feels honest and authentic to who I am?’ and ‘How do I build a network without feeling like I am using people?’

Here are some tips to build a network without compromising on your integrity:

• Be Authentic

• Learn from Others

• Spend Time Building Relationships

• If you need something from someone based on their position, be upfront

Be Authentic

It’s common for people to put on a persona in different settings based on where they are. While it makes sense to have different levels of trust and closeness with people based on the type of relationship, being true to who you are in all settings is important. As much as it’s possible in your work culture, bringing your whole self to work will serve you. People feel it when you aren’t honest so be who you are, including at work, and you will be able to build authentic relationships in the workplace. When you manage your business relationships in a way that is genuine it’s less draining because you aren’t pretending or being someone you are not.

Also, part of being authentic is genuinely caring about people and choosing to build relationships with people that you are truly interested in knowing. If you don’t feel a connection with someone, don’t pretend to like them just because they have a certain position. A general rule of thumb I follow is to ask myself ‘Would I want to connect with this person if they weren’t a colleague or in a certain position?’. If the answer is yes, then I work to build the relationship. This is helpful because that means I can continue the relationship with the person if they move to a new role or to another company.

Always be polite and respectful to everyone but there is no need to act like you want to cultivate a relationship with someone you may have nothing in common with.

Learn from Others

One of the most authentic ways to build a relationship with someone who is more senior in their career than you is to start a relationship with them asking to learn from them. This could include mentorship or sponsorship. Going into a relationship acknowledging the power and knowledge differential is honest. If someone more senior than you is willing to help you, make sure you go into each meeting with them with questions and a focus area. If they are taking the time to meet with you, make it worth their while by being clear on how they can help you every time you meet. When you feel a genuine connection with someone, even someone more senior, you can nurture the relationship and build it in the same way you would with peers and other colleagues. Everyone is human, no matter their title.

Spend Time Building Relationships

Having worked in the technology industry for many years, I have met so many brilliant people that think it's enough to just do great work. Unfortunately, that isn’t always true. If you happen to have a boss that is in a position to reward you for your hard work even though you are an introvert that can work if you want to stay in the same position but if you want to become a leader, you have to build relationships and trust with others in the organization. Building relationships is vital to career success so it’s important that you spend a portion of your time building relationships. There is no exact science to this, the importance of relationships will depend on your goals and your role but allocating time to this weekly will serve your career long term. The best way to ensure you make progress towards any goal is to regularly spend time working on it.

If you aren’t sure where to start, you can begin by attending a company happy hour or event that you are interested in. That’s a great way to start meeting people outside of work and getting to know them better. There are also opportunities to meet people that are outside of your own company such as industry conferences and events where you can take the time to get to know people. Choose a strategy that works for you based on your schedule and your interests.

Building relationships takes time and strong bonds take years to build so continually invest time in this. If you are authentic and build relationships with people you enjoy spending time with, it should be enjoyable to develop relationships with people you genuinely connect with.

If you need something from someone based on their position, be upfront

There are times in your career where you may need a favor from someone simply based on their position. If that is the case, don’t pretend you want to be friends with the person when all you want is a favor. Be polite and honest about your request and give someone the space to decide whether they want to help you or not. No one likes being blindsided or duped about what a relationship is about so be honest with your intentions when they aren’t about getting to know someone and creating genuine connection. Sometimes after someone does a favor for you, you develop a genuine connection with them but I have rarely seen it go well when someone pretends to care about another person only because they need a huge favor from them.

If you approach networking as an opportunity to build relationships with people you genuinely want to connect with, it can be a lot of fun as well as helpful for your career. Spend time developing relationships with people so you can not only feel a sense of belonging at work, you can also ensure that you have support in achieving your career goals.