Layoff Lesson 6 – Networking

Networking should never be awkward. Or painful. There are a lot of great books and probably even more awful books that discuss networking. Check out BiggerPockets Episode 401 with Jordan Harbinger for some of the best networking guidance I have ever heard.

What it isn’t

Happy birthdays and anniversaries on LinkedIn. Not that these are bad. They just are not good unless you already have a pre-existing relationship with that individual. I have a hard time thinking that the 10 financial advisers on LinkedIn that wish me a happy work anniversary (after I was laid off) have taken the time to legitimately network with me.

What it is

Naturally building relationships with intentionality. I will give a negative example. I worked with an IT director that was a super nice guy. He would meet managers for mentoring, he embraced the company’s internal leadership program and became a massive champion of this program, and he was always leading a book talk on leadership.

He took a job as an IT vice president at a different company and disappeared. Team members that he had been mentoring or offered to mentor could no longer get in touch with him. It was like he never existed. This guy did not understand networking.

Compare that to a director that was my first manager at Chesapeake. He had been laid off six months before me. When I reached out to him he was ready with advice, guidance, he hooked me up with several contacts, and he followed up with me over several weeks to make sure I was doing okay.

Take time each week to reach out to people from your past and your present. And check out Jordan Harbinger.