The Importance of Networking

Networking is crucial to your professional growth.

However, it’s not just for young individuals who are starting to walk their new career path after graduation, it is also important for seasoned professionals who want to branch out and collaborate with like minded people. Social networking sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn are great ways to connect with people in your field and they are a key part of keeping up your professional circle. However, it is face-to-face networking that plays a vital role in actually building that online circle in the first place.

Here are just some of the reasons why face-to-face networking is one of the most important phases in career growth:

It exposes you to individuals in the business

Networking is not only for growing your friend lists online. It gives you a chance to speak to seasoned professionals in the business that you otherwise might not cross paths with. You also have an opportunity to bounce ideas back and forth and learn from others.

It is a great way to get your name out there

How is anyone going to know who you are or what you do if you don’t put yourself out there? Face-to-Face networking is honestly one of the best ways to let you to stand out from the rest and it lets you show off your awesome personality and great ideas.

Carolyn’s Talent Liz Taylor can attribute much of her success to networking. She believes that nobody is more important or less important than anyone else.  Some advice that Liz wants to share with others  “Be open to collaborate with everyone and find your “creative family! I go to networking events with the mindset of having something to offer~ rather than looking for something to ‘get’ from someone else.  Above all else…. HAVE FUN!!!!!  That is our purpose!!… to Be Creative… and to Have FUN!”

It doesn’t matter if you’re a young person looking at potential job prospects or a seasoned entrepreneur looking at hiring some help or gaining new insights on the business world. Networking in person is one of, if not THE best ways to achieve what you set out to do, meet new people.

There are many different networking events and conferences that you can sign up for, and there are a lot of great sites online that you can utilize to find out where the next event is near you.

Some events are targeted to specific sectors of business, and others cater to a niche audience such as, young professionals. Although the idea of networking events may seem daunting, they are often the reasons why people connect that otherwise might not have ever met.

Now that we’ve established the importance of face-to-face is networking, we want to know, what are some of the best connections that you’ve made at a networking event? And how has networking in person helped your career?

Original article from Robin Read Griffin.