A-B-C : Always Be Connecting!

No matter where you are in your professional career, I recommend to "Always Be Connecting". You never know how a new connection can help you learn and grow.  I recommend connecting with: 1) New people within the same department of your company 2) New people within a different department of your company 3) New people within your industry and 4) New people outside your industry.

For new people within your department - you can ask people to meet over coffee, lunch, in their office or in a conference room. You can ask for ten minutes, thirty minutes or an hour. There is no wrong way to reach out to someone - just push yourself to connect more with your fellow co-workers. Strengthening relationships within your department may be helpful in gaining new approaches, learning new best practices and you may find a new person to collaborate with or bounce ideas.

For new people outside your department - sending a brief email or asking a co-worker to connect you is all that is typically needed. Simply introducing yourself and requesting fifteen minutes to better understand a colleagues role and responsibilities is usually flattering for whoever you choose to reach out to. The worst case scenario is non-response to your email or reply back saying "sorry too busy". However, most colleagues are receptive. I find over 80% of colleagues I have reached out (no matter what their department or title is) are more than happy to meet. I find meeting people in other departments broaden my understanding of my company, help me think of innovative ideas internally, help me think of new ways to improve my department and often I cross paths in future projects with the people I meet.

For new people within my industry -   I find my vocabulary, ideas and problem solving become similar to most of my colleagues when I don't expand my circles. Although, I really like the perspectives of my fellow colleagues - every time I connect with someone outside my company - I usually come back with fresh ideas.

For new people outside your industry- I recommend focusing on reaching out to individuals who have similar roles as you- but in a complete different industry. Engineers reaching out to other engineers, programmers to programmers, customer service reps to customer service reps, CEOs to CEOs, Brand Managers to Brand Managers, Trainers to Trainers, Sales Leaders to Sales Leaders, etc. I once read in a Harvard Business review article a company that improved its solution for tracking inventory by utilizing ideas from miniature soccer robots. Some of the best ideas can come from other industries. 

https://hbr.org/2014/11/sometimes-the-best-ideas-come-from-outside-your-industry

I encourage all professionals to try and meet with a least one new person every week. If you can commit to this for one year - you will have fifty new connections - each one with their own unique value, connections, perspectives and ideas. If you push yourself to Always Be Connecting, you will always be stronger and more valuable in your current role and so will your future possibilities.

#networking #connecting #abc #alwaysbeconnecting