Fully understand where you are and maximize it. – Jared Kligerman
Welcome to the show, everybody! Today’s guest is Jared Kligerman, President of The Think Tank, a boutique integrated marketing agency based here in Toronto, Canada.
Today we talk about the importance of networking as a new manager, and the power of those networking relationships.
We also discuss
- Jared’s early leadership blunders lessons
- Networking tips for introverts
- Why and how you should be networking
- How to choose the right networking events
- Pruning your network, and a lot more.
Click that play button to listen, and don’t forget to rate us on iTunes!
Come without expectations
Some people go into networking with the objective of landing a job or a client. This is one of the reasons why networking “doesn’t work” – the expectation that you’re going to get something out of it.
What really did it for me was meeting a bunch of people at networking events, who, from the beginning of the conversation, I knew there wasn’t going to be any business opportunity there.
We hit it off around a bunch of different topics – some of them were around business, but a lot of them were about personal stuff or sports. Those were the people I’ve kept in touch with, who I call up on a regular basis.
My perception and my objective now when I go to networking events is, when I go, I try to meet 15 new people. Truthfully, I very rarely hit that goal, mostly because along the way I end up meeting people I really jive with and I end up having a fantastic conversation with.
Find someone you enjoy talking to
Don’t expect that everybody you meet will have a strong connection with you and will want to have a long-term relationship with you. That’s just not the case.
You’re not going to have a rapport with every person you talk to.
Once I start getting comfortable talking to three different people, I up it to four people, then five. Then I start saying, “Now I want to try and meet five people, and I’m going to see if I can get one of those to be someone who’s really worth connecting and staying in-touch with long-term.”
Now I’ve built a new layer of objective where it’s still not about the sales; it’s about meeting five people, and meeting one who’s really going to be helpful in some way, or just someone I want to talk to.
It’s OK to be Picky
Being a dad, I want to see my little one more often, and recognizing how much time and energy my wife puts into it, I also wanted to be an active part of it.
I’ve built my personal rule that I’m only out one night a week, sometimes two if I have a lot of heads-up notice. And usually that second one’s with my wife.
Because I’m only allowing myself to be out one night a week, I’ve had to really get picky about which events I’m going to. There’s a lot of networking events hosted on any given night, in any big city, and I know a lot of people who bounce around all of them. I’ve done it, and it’s exhausting, with very low returns.
Links and Resources
Connect with Jared: LinkedIn
Lead, Follow or Get Out of the Way: The Ultimate Guide to Leadership in the New World of Business by Greg Witz
One Powerful Mind: The Complete Approach to Emotional Management at Home and at Work by Paul Witz
Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
Work-Life Balance
Lists