Let’s Give Networking a New Name! Let’s Call it Weaving!
By Linda Rendleman, M.S.
Is anyone else as tired of the word “networking” as I am?
Everyone says they’re doing it. And if you are a business woman and you’re not doing it, you know you should be. And if you’ve done it but you don’t think it’s helped your business, you’re probably frustrated with it.
I have to confess that the word and the meaning of the word has never quite hit the mark for me. And here’s why.
When I say the word networking, for some reason I have a vision of that old I Love Lucy episode when Lucy tried to become a telephone operator. She is sitting at the switchboard, the phone starts ringing wildly, and as she tries to connect one caller to another, and then another, and then another with those connection wires switchboard operators used in the 50’s, the havoc begins. Lucy finally ends up all wrapped up with lots of wires, and frustrated callers, but with all the wrong connections. Can you see the scene? Unfruitful and certainly frustrating, time and energy is spent with no real gain.
So am I the only person who struggles with this over-used, under-defined and over-worked word?
Am I the only one that gets this visual of a web of lines, a tangled one at that, of contacts, lines knotted up around over and under, pulling back, going another direction, only to reach another dead end? Quite frankly, the visual I get when I say the word networking makes me tired! It just doesn’t seem efficient.
Then I started thinking about that spider out on the corner of my deck…He has a network. He has a web of lines but he has a system to keep all of those networks, those lines, his WEB formulated into an intricate and beautiful thing. And he’s diligent. He knows where he’s going as he weaves. His organized spinning, around and around, cutting back and forth and across, has a system to it. He builds it into a beautiful thing. A work of art…a system.
Now that’s networking. Maybe we should take our cue from that spider and use a better name for networking. Weaving. Systematically creating a beautiful web of friendships, contacts, help mates as we help one another reach our business and personal goals. Before we make contacts with others, we must create a plan that will help ourselves and our colleagues achieve our objectives.
Here’s 3 Tips to get you started on your Weaving:
1. Before attending a business event, set a goal for yourself. For example, tell yourself that you will meet 2 new contacts that can be meaningful for you and your business. Only you can decide who that will be or what form they will take... And remember, it’s not all about you. Find synergy with these people that allows both of you to gain from the connection.
2. Commit yourself to follow up personally six times with that person. It can be as brief as an email or as structured as a planned meeting. Studies show that six “touches” establishes a relationship.
3. With all of the social media these days, make sure to ask permission to include your 2 new contacts in your social media networking, and even in your private newsletter if you have one.
These few basic steps are important to building relationships by weaving a relationship that has a purpose and structure. The spider has a plan and so should we. Yes, weaving. Now that word makes me feel like I am creating something beautiful, like the spider’s beautiful web.
