If you've been searching for a job recently - and over 15,000,000 people have - you've heard about job search networking. You've probably heard it is the quickest and most effective job search method. That's because with it you can reach 75%-90% of all available jobs. Jobs that otherwise would be hidden from you.
Yes, you may have heard about this great job search tool, but you may still not clearly understand:
· What a job search network really is
· Who comprises "your network" - your "connections"
· How it works and can benefit you as no other job search tool can
This article is designed to clarify the above; to help you get the most out of networking your "connections".
What a job search network really is
A job search network can be defined as a broad list of contacts that you should be using to your advantage as you seek a new job. It is the method of marketing who and what you are and have accomplished in the workplace.You'll never get a new job until you can get in front of someone who can make a decision to hire you and make you an offer. Networking is the best way to accomplish that.
Successful jnew job, ob search networking is the based on the "Six Degrees of Separation" concept. This concept was first introduced by Frigyes Karinthy in the late 1920s. It was later popularized in a play of the same name written by John Guare in 1990.
Also referred to as the "Human Web", the concept asserts the idea that everyone is at most only six steps away from any other person on earth. It works like a chain of "a friend of a friend of a friend", etc.
The relevance to a job search network is simply this: As you start to contact people they refer you to more. The people you know personally (your level one contacts) all know more people (your level two contacts), and they know more people (your level three contacts), and so on through six contact levels/degrees.
Based on the above illustration that could easily and quickly add up to 200-250 and more contacts who may have connections that can help you to find a new job.
Who comprises "your network" - your "connections"
Obviously you can't limit your connections to people on your Rolodex or just your business contacts and take full advantage of the concept of Six Degrees of Separation. But it's a good place to start.
So are your address book, email addresses, and business cards you've collected. Include current contacts and those you haven't spoken to recently - regardless of how long it's been since you spoke. All are potential jobs network contacts. You also need to include:
· Your family and their friends and acquaintances
· Neighbors, their family, friends and acquaintances
· Co-workers
· Colleagues in your industry
· People you've met through various social events
· People you've met at business events or industry gatherings
· Contacts you've made at trade shows, seminars, conventions, etc
· Former co-workers and bosses
· Members of Associations, Professional Organizations, Certifying Agencies, Alumni, Church or other affiliations
· Your personal business contacts - Accountant, Lawyer, Physicians, Bankers, Financial Advisors, Hairdresser
· Community leaders - Church, Charities, Clubs, Political Groups
· Classmates, Parents and Siblings of Friends, Professors, Alumni, College Placement Office, College Administrators
· Vendors, suppliers, etc
· Thought leaders and other persons of influence
Places to go to make new network contacts:
§ Conventions, Club meetings, Continuing education, Class reunions, Cocktail parties, Fundraisers, Political events, Entertainment events
How it works and what you should do to benefit the most
People in your job search network may be able to:
1. Give you job leads and introductions to Hiring Managers
2. Offer you advice and information about a particular company or industry
3. Introduce you to their level one contacts to help you expand your network
The key to being successful is to put the necessary energy and time into networking to make it work for you.
First: get organized (for example, develop a tracking form to keep track of your contacts, networking activities, and the results of those activities). Make networking an integral part of your job search campaign from day one.
Second: set goals for yourself; for instance to make a specific number of contacts per week and get a specific number of referrals per week.
Third: use your tracking form to remind you to stay in contact both with your contacts and the people they refer you to. This includes regular phone calls, email, thank you notes, informal holiday greetings, etc).
Fourth: Remember that networking is a two-way street. Be constantly looking for ways to reciprocate a contact's help.
Fifth: get out of the house and go places. Become involved with your community and continue to meet new people and create an every larger network. You won't meet many people between the refrigerator and the computer, so get out and see people face to face. You never know when one will become a valuable network contact.
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