Article and Photo by Adrianne Harris, Broadly Speaking
A veggie garden changes through the seasons, with some fruits and vegetables being more abundant or available. Other times our garden lies fallow, resting and waiting for the next crop to be planted. We add compost, fertiliser, weed it and make sure there are no pests harming our garden. Sometimes we protect our garden from bats and birds at other times we are happy to give away the fruits of our labour and to share the bounty with others.
Your professional network is a bit like a vegetable garden, an interconnected web where all parts support each other to provide a fruitful harvest.
Just like when we fertilise our garden to help it grow, so to should we nurture our professional network to ensure it continues to grow healthily and into the future. Reciprocity, abundance and giving without exception are some of the hallmarks of a healthy garden and a healthy network.
So how do you do it without feeling like you are just piling a whole lot of manure on your garden!
- Make sure you know your network – who’s in it, what are their contact details, what notes have you made about your conversations or common ground?
- Make time to “touch base” with people you want to get to know better and those you want to keep in touch with. Make notes in your diary, database, notebook. Use tools to help you stay on track here. Make notes as to how you interact with people, so you mostly use email, social media, coffee catch ups, phone calls?
- Think about what you can share with them that might be of interest to them – remember networking is a two way street and you should give as much as you get from your relationship
- Before you make contact with someone, reflect on the nature of your relationship and what you want to achieve from the interaction, this keeps you to the point, stops you rambling, and allows the person to understand how they can help you.
Before the year gets away from you, make sure you have reviewed your network and have made a plan to nurture and grow your network this year.
Contact Broadly Speaking to discuss your networking strategy and to arrange a coaching session to help build and nurture your network.