Effective networking is a skill that is important for all professionals to master. Everyone needs to devote time every week to maintaining and growing personal and professional networks. Top legal mind and respected Michigan attorney, Azzam Elder, is the founder of Elder Law Group and Halo-Bloom, LLC, an investment and business advisory services group. Successfully cultivating and maintaining his professional and personal networks has been crucial to his success in the law and business fields. Here are some of Azzam Elder’s best practices for effective networking.
Networks: Development and Maintenance Are Always Critical
The only time you can safely stop cultivating and maintaining your network is when you have departed this earth. Think of your network like a big shark that needs to keep swimming or it will die. You need to not only be constantly swimming in new waters to meet new folks, but you also need to be keeping in touch with established contacts as well. Quick emails with good content or short notes attached to good content via snail-mail are great ways to keep let contacts know you are thinking about them and want to share quality info with them for their benefit.
Ease into Network Development
Start out easy by getting back in touch with established contacts. Then, ramp up to the more challenging network development process. Becoming involved in professional organizations and charitable organizations are great ways to expand your network by meeting new people in friendly, no pressure environments.
Embrace Dedicated Networking Events and Meet-Ups
Take the anxiety out of dedicated networking events by taking away the pressure. Set reasonable goals in terms of time spent and new connections made. Azzam Elder suggests giving yourself a time limit and a goal to meet. For example, set a goal of meeting three new people. Focus on quality not quantity. Your goal is to make a friendly connection and follow up later with a coffee or lunch invitation so you can begin to build a real relationship with your new contact.
Networks: Development and Maintenance Are Always Critical
The only time you can safely stop cultivating and maintaining your network is when you have departed this earth. Think of your network like a big shark that needs to keep swimming or it will die. You need to not only be constantly swimming in new waters to meet new folks, but you also need to be keeping in touch with established contacts as well. Quick emails with good content or short notes attached to good content via snail-mail are great ways to keep let contacts know you are thinking about them and want to share quality info with them for their benefit.
Ease into Network Development
Start out easy by getting back in touch with established contacts. Then, ramp up to the more challenging network development process. Becoming involved in professional organizations and charitable organizations are great ways to expand your network by meeting new people in friendly, no pressure environments.
Embrace Dedicated Networking Events and Meet-Ups
Take the anxiety out of dedicated networking events by taking away the pressure. Set reasonable goals in terms of time spent and new connections made. Azzam Elder suggests giving yourself a time limit and a goal to meet. For example, set a goal of meeting three new people. Focus on quality not quantity. Your goal is to make a friendly connection and follow up later with a coffee or lunch invitation so you can begin to build a real relationship with your new contact.
