As a business psychology consultancy, networking is vital to CMCBP. With our psychology expertise, we’ve got some interesting insights about networking and we thought we’d share them here with you.
Top Tips for Successful Networking
- Use emotional intelligence – understanding what you want to get from the networking session and by being clear on how others can help you makes it easier for you to communicate this to others. If this feels like a challenge, training in emotional intelligence – the ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions and those of others – or understanding social styles (ways of interacting and making decisions) can turn you into a networking master.
- Listen and engage – although talking about your own projects can help you make connections, it’s just as important to listen to others and hear about their experiences. Engaging in conversation helps people feel they’re being heard, but only if you react and respond to what they’re telling you. As a two-way process, networking isn’t just about what you can get from new contacts, it’s about sharing your contacts, knowledge and information with others too – something all good networkers do well.
- Be prepared – it’s easy to become anxious about attending a networking event, so do some research beforehand to ease your nerves. Be prepared to explain who you are, what you do and how you do it. Your introduction can be adjusted depending on which event you are at and for what reason.
- Connect on social media – connecting on LinkedIn is a perfect way to stay in contact with the people you’ve met. When sending the invite, attach a personal message so the person remembers where they met you. This will also create a record you can refer to in the future should you come across this person again.
- Social capital – this is the strength and diversity of your network. Think about who you need to connect with professionally to support your career and who you can rely on to support you. Make sure your network is diverse so you hear different views.
- Challenge your thinking – make sure your networks challenge your ideas and knowledge. In an article from Harvard Business Review, successful leaders are characterised as those who allow themselves to be challenged and persuaded. Do your networks challenge your thinking?
- Help others – networking is not just what you can get from your network, it’s reciprocal. In his bestselling book, ‘Psychology of Influence’, Robert Cialdini mentions six principles of influence with the first being reciprocity. He states that the best way to network is to meet people and help them out. Once you’ve helped someone, they will be more likely to return the favour when you need it. Remember, this has to be done authentically, so help people sincerely with no expectation of return. Another book from our reading list to help with this mindset is ‘The Go-Giver’ by Bob Burg and John David Mann. It’s a positive short book on the power of effective relationship building and you can find a link to the book at the end of this article along with a link to the rest of our reading list.
CMCBP’s Networking Experiences
The Student
From a student’s perspective, the idea of networking felt daunting and intimidating. Being part of CMCBP has opened a lot of doors to networking events that I attend with Clare.
The people at the events I attended encouraged me to open up about career aspirations and speak to well-respected professionals about potential career paths after finishing my psychology degree.
As well as attending events, an important part of my networking profile was creating a LinkedIn page. Connecting with academics at my university, as well as people I’ve met along the way, has started to build my online presence. I share current projects and topics I have been working on to share my insights and promote my personal brand.
The Psychology Practitioner
As a chartered psychologist and business owner, I make a few demands of my networking.
As a business owner, I need to be out and about to meet potential clients and build business relationships. I don’t like a ‘hard sell’ and would be upset to think that was anyone’s perspective of my networking style! I prefer to build relationships and get to know potential clients so I feel I can authentically help them with their organisational behaviour challenges.
As a chartered psychologist, I need to develop my knowledge and remain aware of trends that impact the way we work. I want to ensure I’m meeting my continuous professional development requirements and that I create opportunities for learning and creative thinking.
As I don’t work in a large organisation, my contacts are my peer group support. Networking provides me with opportunities to build my peer network to share learning, provide support and develop friendships.
For me, it’s important to be quite strategic about my networking. I want to be clear about the networks I’m part of and make sure I have the time to attend a variety of events and identify the needs they are meeting.
Our Recommended Networking Reading List
Here’s a summary of the books we’ve recommended in this article, plus a bonus book, to help you get the most from your networking:
- One to start with is Never Eat Alone by Keith Farrazzi and Karl Raz. This is one of the best books I have read on networking. The author does take his networking to high levels, so you don’t have to necessarily take all his advice, but there are a lot of good take aways to improve your networking tactics.
- The Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John David Mann
- Psychology of Influence by Robert Cialdini
Or click on this link to access our career coaching reading list.
For personal career coaching sessions, contact Clare on 07594 946166 or at [email protected].
