Building connections is one of the most important ways to help ensure your professional success. Learning how to create and maintain your network can help you find new business opportunities, improve your skills, or attract new clients. Having a solid network of peers, by leveraging the knowledge and experience of new connections, helps women become better leaders, make better decisions, increase profitability, and achieve better results through monthly problem-solving meetings, expert speaker workshops, a coast-to-coast and global network of peers and a professional facilitator.
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1. Be Active in Your Community & Your Advisory Board
Take part in events that your community or industry may host, attend conferences related to your profession. Attend events put on by GroYourBiz and your Advisory Board.
2. Be Outgoing
Whether you’re an introvert or an extrovert, you can find hobbies or events that interest you and encourage you to interact with new people. Expand outside of your comfort zone and make new connections.
3. Establish Multiple Levels of Contact
Have several ways to communicate with people you meet when networking, such as via email or phone, so you ensure your ability to connect. When meeting people for the first time, it’s always great to follow up with them with an email or call within a week.
4. Discover Commonalities
When meeting someone for the first time, finding shared interests or responsibilities (in either personally or professionally) can provide a helpful source of discussion as well as expand your network or business connections. Don’t be afraid to share what you love to do.
5. Provide Value
Whether you’re connecting on a personal or professional basis, reciprocity with value to them vs only receiving, is key to building relationships where both participants offer benefits to each other, helping to create balance. What is something you can offer?
6. Express Gratitude
When people feel appreciated, it can encourage them to maintain and strengthen the relationship. You can show your gratitude with a note, an email, or a small gift.
7. Publish Your Work
You can take advantage of industry journals or blogging platforms to share your work and connecting with other people in your field, rather than keeping your work to yourself. GroYourBiz is also aligned with Ugenie and we recommend all members to use this platform to publish your work.
8. Gro an Online Presence
Online platforms enable you to share and find resources to support one another and establish connections. When you meet people, exchange social media accounts or professional websites with them and support each other by liking and sharing posts.
9. Act as a Host
A great way to meet people and form connections is by planning and hosting your own events. Consider hosting a Taste of GroYourBiz to increase connections within your Advisory Board.
10. Maintain Important Contacts
Once you make the initial connection, it’s vital to continue working toward building the relationship. Periodically messaging or calling them can be an excellent way to maintain important contacts. There are many ways you can stay in contact – send a holiday card, email to reconnect, connect on social media. Spending effort can show that you value the relationship.
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