Monday, April 23, 2012

The Secret To Successful Networking Is A Four Letter Word


 

                 Talk.

This is the first of a three part series exploring the professional words we use. Over the next three weeks we will cover our words related to: networking, interviewing and just around the office. The words we choose have been proven to impact our personal brand and how quickly we move up or down the professional ladder. Here’s to keeping our words and our future on the up and up!

A Harvard University study shows that 15% of the reason a person gets a job, keeps a job, or advances in a job is related to technical skills and job knowledge… 85% has to do with people skills. Due to our current employment rate and downsized companies, working this 85% is never more important than when networking. Whether it’s official business or social, making conversations can make or break how we build a network of people to call on as we make our journey up the professional ladder.

As the old saying goes, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.” Likewise, what comes out of your mouth can never taken back.  Remember – working a room is work. It’s exhausting, and it can be overwhelming, but with a few conversation skills you can be sure that you’ll be communicating with 100% of your people skills.

Work Your Name: Enunciating your first and last name is the single most important aspect of networking, because if those you’re connecting with don’t know your name…they can’t contact you. When saying your name, say it slowly and clearly. In the world of self-introductions, Mindy easily becomes Cindy, and more difficult names can become nothing more than a mumble… especially in a sea of people working hard to make their names known and remembered.

Work to Remember Names: Ninety percent of the clients I ask say they are terrible at remembering names. But remembering names is the key to creating a strong network. After all, it’s hard to call on “What’s his name” or to engage with “Hey, YOU,” for an entire conversation. A quick tip to remembering names is to make sure you hear it and know it right away by adding it to the conversation, “Nice to meet you, Jim,” or “Tell me about what you do for XYZ bank, Jim.” And if you didn’t catch it the first time, ask again. “Please, tell me your name again,” and this time stop, look at the person in front of you, and truly listen!

Work to Know Others: Creating a solid network of people that you can call on for advancement or professional collaboration comes from getting to know others. Networking conversation works best when you exercise a 30% responding to questions about you and 70% actively try to learn about others. Ask open-ended questions such as “Tell me about how long you’ve been with Bank XYZ?” rather than “How long have you been with Bank XYZ?” Using “Tell me about . . .” actually requires your conversational partner to reply with more than one word. A conversation of one-word answers is, in a word, awkward.
Networking conversation should always be inclusive. A potential business associate should never try to enter your conversation with someone else only to feel the cold shoulder. Bring others in with a warm welcome like, “Mary, so great to see you.  We were just discussing Jim’s recent trip to Paris,” or “Hi, my name is Mindy and this is Jim. We were just discussing his recent trip to Paris. Have you been?”

Work to Help Others Connect: Remember that working a room is all about staying in motion. Sometimes,  a chatty Cathy corners us and won’t let us go. Prepare for these situations by crafting an exit strategy. You might say, “I really enjoyed meeting you, Cathy! I see my colleague Jennifer has just arrived and I promised to introduced her to our new client.”  Or you could introduce your new friend to someone who has something in common with her. “Cathy, I’d like to introduce you to Steve. Steve just moved to the area from your hometown.  I’m sure he would love to hear how your transition went.” Thus, you free yourself up to meet new people and help Cathy connect with another potential new friend.

Using your words wisely and truly engaging with people will set you apart from the rest of the room. Not only will you be remembered, but by asking intelligent questions of others, you will build a strong network of people you can call on when researching, fact-finding or pursuing a job or advancement. Remembering that 85% of job success comes from successful people skills, work a room with confidence and you’ll find yourself with a 100% return on every conversation.

Mindy Lockard is a nationally recognized etiquette and personal branding expert. Through her writing, speaking and as an on-air television segments, Mindy strives to uphold the values of tradition with a modern twist. Keep intouch with Mindy, The Gracious Girl, on TwitterFacebook and The Gracious Girl blog.

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