by yourself. And once you get there, you don’t want to be there by yourself,” says Murphy. “It’s very hard to get famous in your own backyard. You have to have a strategy,” he adds. Murphy warns that there is no magic potion that will teach you how to network.
The following are suggestions for developing and organizing contacts to start you on your way to building deeper, more meaningful strategic alliances,
partnerships, and mentors:
Stand out from the crowd. Creating a visible identity requires understanding the 12 x 12 x 12 rule. “This takes into account how you look to another person from the first 12 feet away. Do you look the part? The first 12 inches away, [do you look] as good up close as you did [from afar]? Are you organized? Can you find your business cards easily? Do you have your calendar to schedule appointments? What are the first 12 words out of your mouth? Are you engaging them?” says Brian Hilliard, author of Networking Like a Pro! (Agito Consulting; $9.95) The 12 x 12 x 12 rule takes into account your demeanor, attire, body language, and how other people perceive you. Since people form an impression within the first 20 seconds of a meeting, all of these factors impact their ability to remember you.
Expand your knowledge base. Accepting new opportunities and challenges will not only make you more marketable, it will ultimately expand your connections. This may mean serving on an organization’s board, running for an association office, or taking a continuing education class and developing new skills. But this also means educating yourself as much as possible about information that is pertinent to your industry. “Not just the surface knowledge. You want to be able to speak like an expert about things in that industry or on a particular subject,” says Murphy. “You might want to start writing articles for association newsletters, magazines, and newspapers. When you start writing and doing the research you become more confident about your subject matter,” Murphy advises.
Make the right connections. When it comes to exchanging business cards, it is best to wait until your card is requested before you offer it. “There is no better way to measure your success as a networker than to look at the number of people who ask you for your card,” says Hilliard.
Be prepared to manage relationships. So now you’ve got a box full of business cards from people you’ve met at the various networking sessions, organizational meetings, or luncheons you’ve attended. Giovagnoli suggests creating a network that consists of a diverse mix of individuals at different position levels that you like, trust, and respect. These relationships should be organized in a multilevel group (primary, secondary, and tertiary) according to the frequency of contact, level of exchange, alignment with your goals and values, and type of opportunities developed. This will allow you to focus the right amount of energy on the right people at the right time. The inner circle (primary) would consist of