How do you build a network of support with other leaders?

As a leader we are often expected to have solutions or be able to find those quickly. I like to make contact with other leaders in my industry to let them know what my experience and interests are so that we may better understand if we may support each other professionally. I enjoy giving and offering my resources. There are times I am seeking specific resources that I do not already have. Those are the times you already want your allies in place so that you are not out scrolling through profiles to establish a new cold connection. However, that very approach has been made to me and it has been flattering. This of course depends on the level of contact coming my way, their approach and request. Starting with "how may I help?" = clarity.

To build a network of support with other leaders, I would focus on: Clear Intentions: Define your goals for networking, whether it's learning, collaboration, or mentorship. Relevant Events: Attend industry seminars, conferences, and workshops to connect with like-minded leaders. Online Platforms: Utilize LinkedIn and industry forums to engage and share insights. Value Exchange: Offer your expertise and assistance to foster mutually beneficial relationships. Active Listening: Follow-Up: Send personalized follow-up messages after networking events. Diversity: Seek connections from diverse backgrounds and industries. Small Peer Groups: Cross-Industry: Be Patient: Building a strong network takes time—focus on quality over quantity.

I like to know what sort of leader a person is before I connect with them, and that is by doing my homework on their type of work, they way they communicate and how they perceive themselves. Then I reflect on my own leadership style to determine what I can contribute to their leadership growth and how they can contribute to my leadership growth. As I come from a culture where leadership is collective I focus on where the balance is between myself and others to bring out the best in our potentials.

I think its important to remember that relationships happen organically. So before you do reach out to leaders, go through your own list first of who you can trust with your goals and needs. Not everyone is going to be there to support you and have your best interest. Once you go through your organic list of who you can trust then reach out and ask them to introduce you to other leaders that will support your goals of who they can trust!

The problem with the term leader is that it is nondescript. What kind of leader are we talking about? Formal leaders, those with authority, or informal leaders, those with referent power and charisma? The latter is usually what people think of when they imagine ideal leaders. A better designation is Strategic Leader and Administrative Leader, wherein the former is the visionary, and the latter is the operator; neither is better than the other, and both are necessary. One has big ideas and delegates the other prioritizes, manages, and deploys tactics to make visions into attainable missions. Both kinds are necessary and either will have the knowledge to necessary for a network to help define goals and needs.

I love what Prof Saras Sarasvathy said when she talked about how successful entrepreneurs build a ‘crazy quilt’ of connections. Connections that don’t make sense right now, but when a new opportunity or possibility turns up, they click into a completely novel partnership and delivery system that’s ready to go and that one else has. Planned serendipity. Because creativity needs ‘inefficiency’ and slack resources to allow for learning and rapid improvement. So let’s make those crazy connections now to give you a boost later.

Most informed leaders like to engage with those they know, like and trust. If you are new to someone, and trying to establish contacts, it helps tremendously if your online profile is detailed to your background, involvements, accomplishments, and interests. There are 8 Billion people on earth now, not everyone is for everyone. Go where there is synergy or have a case for connecting, especially if this is online. I do well with 1:1, face to face engagement, so professional events offer a great exposure to those with similar experiences, skills, and interests all in a captive space. Don't be obscure, save your own time and that of others. Make your intentions clear upon contact, or offer a curiosity exchange over a few likely common points.

Potential connections refer to "influence," in which the primary leader, the one seeking or needing connections, draws others to him/her via charisma and attraction. However, strategic and administrative leaders have varying abilities to influence, which is either a trait, relying on human connection or skill, which requires mechanical knowledge to leverage human capital into action. Therefore, the influence is either charismatic (organic) or administrative (mechanical). In either case, communication and collaboration are required to create a shared vision. If you will, one is more transcendental or temporal, while the other works praxeologically or in the corporeal.

Networking has given me access to a huge range on connections that mean I can generally find the right person or business to help solve any issue I or any of my clients have - from mending a leaky tap to a full health and safety audit to a new mortgage! Within those connections I’ve then been fortunate enough to build a trusted network of business leaders who I can turn to for business support, advice, shared knowledge and experience and to give me honest feedback. I don’t want an echo chamber of people who agree with me but to be surrounded by those who bring different perspectives. It’s been one of the most valuable things to have resulted from business networking for me and my business vivoHR.

1. Identify and connect with like-minded leaders: Seek out leaders who share similar goals, values, and interests. Attend industry conferences, join professional organizations, and participate in networking events to meet potential contacts. 2. Be genuine and build relationships: Approach networking with a genuine desire to connect and help others. Focus on building meaningful relationships rather than just collecting business cards. Take the time to understand their needs and offer support whenever possible. 3. Offer value: Be proactive in offering your expertise, resources, or connections to others. By providing value to your network, you establish yourself as a valuable and reliable resource.

I am naturally curious and I do consider myself a connector. I connect people often without being asked to. The world just needs the right like minded people to align. I do my part to help make that happen by introducing others where I recognize potential synergy. In turn others have done this by introducing me to others they felt good about bridging connections to. This is just good human nature. We might all prefer to spend our time wisely. This could be by meeting or gathering with others of interest to us. In the early part of new relationships offer more than you seek. Exceptions should always be considered for emergencies or hard times, these happen! Be a good citizen, bring good people together to enrich your own peer base & theirs.

Creating relationships is the aim of all leadership activities. Donald Rumsfeld wrote that "all leadership is by consent," meaning that it requires that people desire to become part of and continually participate in the vision and mission of leaders at any level. He further indicated that the point of speaking is to be understood. It is the purpose of all leaders to communicate clearly and well to those who choose to follow the goals and desired end state of their vision and missions developed therein. Leaders must remember that their command and control capabilities are by consent, and therefore continually initiating and building human relations is required.

An example is to connect with someone in LinkedIn, but doing so with the intention to learn, build relationships, and further network. Connecting with people on LinkedIn can give you access to people who are geographically separated, or whom can otherwise be hard to connect with. Most people find it refreshing when someone connects on LinkedIn, not to sell you something, but to do what the network was built for…to network! An acquaintance recently shared one simple tactic that is meaningful and can really strengthen virtual relationships. Once a week send a thank you note to all new connections to thank them for connecting and wish them a good weekend. Try this and see what happens. Great things can come out of being personal and friendly.

My experience as a leader is there is already plenty of data coming at you - I try to be conscious of this and not load up an inbox of more random reading. One great way to keep in meaningful touch is to be genuinely interested in your peers and follow up regularly-to-randomly on personal things you have shared before. Ask for a coveted professional opinion on a tough issue of concern, or pass along respected professional tips. That is a great time to show you thought of another leader by offering a pass to a certain event or a valued complimentary item. Possibly gift another leader a tool that boosts their knowledge, skill, or efficiency in some way. These gestures deepen relationships particularly if they are personalized and appropriate.

Deepening a relationship means inviting those with whom you have initiated relationships to the table. If you do not listen to anyone, no one has a voice, meaning nothing can be known or changed. Therefore the leader must create or, at least, communicate the desire for dialog by creating opportunities and empowering those in their immediate sphere of influence to detect and correct errors. However, this is not mere production by a professional relationship wherein there is an exchanging of information about processes but also a revelatory process of getting to know, personally, one another.

The diversity of my network is a superpower of mine. As a lifelong learner I also enjoy discovery of others that are not exactly like me culturally, demographically, professionally, and geographically. And now there are 4 generations working together in the work place I make it my aim to create relationships with all generations - to share what I know, what I am challenged by, and to understand them better while learning from their experiences and perspectives. This is so important to me that I made it a point to move geographically a few times to really understand how differently we experience life based on our location and the local dynamics that prevail in such locales. These conscious efforts help me maintain an open mind to others.

In my experience diversifying your network is to invite leaders from across different cultures, as leadership is not only about an individual governance model. People from different cultures bring an understanding and experience of differing governance models that have resulted in an array of leaders. A governance model that puts community parallel to the CEO and community leaders as business leaders brings a strength to connecting relationships and building leaders within the organisation beyound just one person leading an organisation. This not only diversifies a network from within it also encourages the leaders to connect outwards and this allows for leaders to diversify networks through layers.

Be a connector! Throughout your network are people who are thinking amazing things, seeking insight, or asking for help in some ways. By connecting those in need with those who might be able to fulfill those needs shows a deep understanding and appreciation for the individuals in your network. It's more than the 500+ count number and it's about how well you can support the growth of your professional community.

You also need to come from place of compassion for others and yourself and appreciate what you bring to the table as a leader as well. By recognising and appreciating our own efforts we get better at respecting and appreciating the many creative and talented leaders in our space and the wider environment as a whole.

As a leader with the super power of connection, I absolutely love to connect other leaders. It is amazing when we create a community that supports, empowers, and encourages one another.

I invest in a business coach and am part of a peer coaching group she facilitates - the structured approach to once a month meeting as a group to review, reflect, focus on new challenges, get support and to plan is absolutely invaluable to me and my business. The shared knowledge, the championing of each other and the feeling of not doing it all alone is hugely powerful.

One of my biggest recent inspirations came when reading "Team of Rivals" about how President Lincoln chose his advisors. He did not look for people who agreed with him. Specifically, he sought out colleagues and peers who would question his every decision and challenge his premise in any debate. Finding people you can respectfully disagree with allows you to avoid tunnel vision and be a true and empathetic leader. Cognitive diversity allows for growth and innovation. Respecting that diversity drives open dialogue and professional development.

When we as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people would propose something in public health we would go and share with our leaders, many of whom were elders, from the different nation groups first and if they understood our concept and we had answered all their questions then approval would be given and we could share it up the non-Indigenous leadership ladder. But if anyone didn’t understand the concept or idea then you had to go back and work out another path around, through or over the mountain and people from the nation groups would come and help you. Which means that leadership in our culture is supported, guided, respected and trusted.

To know yourself. Understand how you react to situations. Your actions and words should be congruent always. This is particularly important when communicating a vision. Be self reflecting always.