Are You Networking…or Notworking?

Benefits Of Business Networking. Business networking can provide valuable opportunities for business growth and personal development, including:

·      Expanded opportunities - for new business prospects, partners, or collaborations. 

·      Knowledge sharing - of ideas, best practices, and market insights.

·      Increased visibility - raising your profile in your industry.

·      A support system - from a community of like-minded people who can offer support, advice, and encouragement.

·      Confidence building - resulting from regular engagement with people in your industry.

Potential Wastefulness of Networking (i.e., Notworking). Unfortunately, there are many businesspeople that equate simply being around other businesspeople with being productive. This idea of “just being around the hoop” often results in the following:

·      Time inefficiency - without a clear strategy, networking can be a waste of time.

·      Superficial connections - can lead to an unproductive, very wide but very shallow network.

·      Misaligned focus - where everyone you meet is trying to sell you, crowding out the opportunity for you to sell them.

·      Overreliance - crowding out more productive activities such as direct sales.

·      Financial costs - that may dwarf the benefits.

Recognize the Need to Strike a Balance. To maximize benefits and minimize wastefulness, try:

·      Setting clear goals of each networking activity

·      Being highly selective about the activities you attend

·      Prioritizing quality connections over quantity

·      Balancing networking with all other business activities

·      Measuring the ROI of your networking activities

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