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Strange week last week – I noticed a recurring theme that is pretty irritating. A “How does networking benefit me?” attitude that really seems to miss the point of building a network.
I asked a few people if they were attending a luncheon for people interested in learning more about business. “I went last year and didn’t really get anything out of it.” Maybe the other people there got something out of the experience you shared? Or did you just sit by yourself, wondering why no one was talking to you?

I don’t know who said it first, but I’ve heard a few times “There are people who get stuff done and people who hang around people who get stuff done.” I don’t care which way I’m perceived by people who like to say that, but I *know* I get stuff done. And I’m happy to have people talk with me about what I do. Not everyone is always “getting stuff done.” But the fact that they’re hanging around means they’re eager to. Why not help them figure out how?

“I have too many friends.” “I know too many people.” Sounds preposterous. But people talk about thinning their social networks – to only be connected to people that they can do them a favor. But how do you know who those people are? Case in point, I was looking for a specific skill set a few weeks ago, and thought of someone that I thought might fit the bill. I tried to reach him through Twitter direct message, but he had “thinned his network” – meaning, I could no longer reach him directly. If he had been perfect for the job, I wouldn’t have given up. But since he was only a *potential* candidate, I didn’t bother trying to reach him other ways. Could he have gotten something valuable out of me? Maybe. Will he ever know? No.

On the other hand, I held a networking event this week and met some new people that I’m planning on talking to more. In fact, I’m meeting someone this evening to talk about her profession and how she can find a place to use her talents. What do I get? I don’t know. Maybe nothing.

In fact, I don’t know that I’ve ever gotten anything tangible from my network. Mostly, it’s me connecting other people to jobs. And a little knowledge sharing here and there. But what it has enabled me to do is improve my own competencies. By being in social/professional settings often, talking about what I do and relating it to what other people do, I think about it more often. I process and refine my work internally as I find new ways to describe it to different people. Yes, I can mea$ure how much that’s been worth.

Maybe a refresher on the definition of Network is in order. It’s a system of interconnected supports and conduits. Some people are getting it confused with a pedestal.