Career Success – When Is The Best Time to Network?

Many of us only remember to start networking when we hate our current job or when we are between jobs. Unfortunately, this is the worst time to start networking. You can come across as…

• Negative – If you’re unhappy with your job. It’s inevitable you’ll complain about it while networking. No one likes to be around complainers.
• Desperate – If you’re looking for a job, you may appear to be in a rush to network. This will come across needy people. You’ll be too focused on finding a job and getting someone to do something for you vs. just getting to know people and letting them get to know you.
• Pushy – You appear to be on a hurried timeline. You may start “stalking” people (e.g. following up too often) so you can “network” to get what you need (a connection, a job opportunity, etc.)

Even if you consciously try not to be any of the above, you may still come across this way if you’re “networking” on a timeline. The key to networking is “to be interesting and interested.” You can’t just focus on what you need at the moment. It’s also a time to get to know the other person and see how you can help them.

The best time to network is when you’re happy at your current job! This may seem counterintuitive, but I think you agree with me conceptually. This is when you are …

• Your best self – You’re happy at work. You can share your excitement with others you meet. You’re most likely to be very relaxed and charming. Who doesn’t like to be around happy people!
• Interesting to others – Because you actually don’t need anything from anyone. You’re just making an effort because you thought they’re interesting too. This takes all the pressure off of a networking get together. It’s a time to just enjoy meeting new people.
• Open-minded – There’s no agenda in your head. You have the mind space to listen and really get to know other people as people. You won’t just talk about work but also hobbies, philosophy of life, etc.
• Most available – Because you don’t need to find another job, you have time to socialize. You’re also not in a rush, so if someone says they can only meet five weeks from now, you can say, “No problem. There’s no rush. I look forward to meeting you then.”

At the end of the day, people don’t just hear what you say. They can always feel how you feel. When you feel stressed to find a new job, the other person you’re networking with feels it from you even if you try to hide it. When you feel happy, you’ll also enjoy the networking and so will the new people you meet.

This all sounds logical but actually also hard to follow. It’s actually human nature.

• When we’re happy, we think of networking as “work.”
• When we’re happy, we have no incentive to do “extra work” like networking. We almost need the pain of not liking our job to make networking a priority.
• When we’re happy, we just want to enjoy ourselves.

The only way to make “networking” not “work” is to shift your perspective and to do it on a consistent, unhurried basis.

• Be genuinely interested in learning when you meet new people.
• Make it into a game – It’s a chance to reinvent yourself each time. They don’t know you. You can position yourself as anything and you can see if it’s believable. I don’t mean to lie to them. I mean if you’ve been a business analyst, but have aspirations to become a product manager, start talking like you’re one already and start meeting those people.
• Feel even better about yourself – Meeting new people is a chance to present your best self. As you share what you like and what you’re learning, you can appreciate your job and your own experience even more.

Makes job hunting later so much easier – When you do need to find a job later, you don’t necessarily need to meet new people for that. You’ve already done it when you were happy. Now you can just reach out to your Linkedin network and see who can help you. Because they already know you, they’re more likely to help you.