The Real Reasons for Networking


The Wall Street Journal
reports that 94 percent of successful job searches happen through networking. As John Challenger, CEO of Challenger, Gray & Christmas says, “Time and again people work very hard and are good at what they do, but they don’t know anybody. They put their heads down and spend no time developing social capital…. [As a result,] they have a hard time finding a job.”

Networking with people in and around your industry is the best way to:

 

  • Gain perspective on yourself and your career.
  • Learn about new or unpublished job opportunities.
  • Keep up to date with industry trends.
  • Meet and get to know your industry’s key players.
  • Learn about the problems in your industry, and the solutions people are developing.
  • Find out about the competition for the best job openings.
  • Learn about the new training you may need.
  • Discover ways to help others (who may someday be able to help you).

That’s the real reasons for networking.

Picture of Debra Benton

Debra Benton

D.A. (Debra) Benton has been helping great individuals and organizations get even better for over 20 years. Just as exceptional athletes rely on excellent coaching to hone their skills, Debra's clients rely on her advice to advance their careers. She focuses on what is truly important to convert what you and your organization want to be from a vision into a reality. TopCEOCoaches.com ranks her in the World's Top 10 CEO Coaches noting she is the top female. And as conference keynote speaker she is routinely rated in the top 2%. Her client list reads like a “Who's Who” of executives in companies ranging from Microsoft, McDonald's, Kraft, American Express, Merrill Lynch, United Airlines, and PricewaterhouseCoopers to the Washington Beltway and U.S.Border Patrol. *She is the author of ten award-winning and best-selling business books including The Virtual Executive and CEO Material. She has written for the Harvard Business Review, Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg Businessweek, and Fast Company. She has been featured in USA Today, Fortune, The New York Times, and Time; she has appeared on Today Show, Good Morning America, CNN, and CBS with Diane Sawyer. To learn more Debra advising leaders, coaching, facilitating a workshop, or speaking: www.debrabenton.com

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