Best Networking Tip: Give 2X What You Get

Here’s the best networking tip I have ever heard: GIVE TWICE AS MUCH AS YOU GET. I put that in all caps, because according to career coach Connie Thanasoulis-Cerrachio, co-founder of SixFigureStart?, too many professionals use networking as a way to ask for something, rather than seeing it as a long-term, mutually beneficial relationship of give and take – “with emphasis on the give!” 

Connie warns that you don’t want to be seen as an “‘ask-hole,” always asking people for something, but tone deaf to how annoying that can seem. This is especially sage advice for new college graduates, who are in the early stages of developing their networks beyond their current social connections.

Those young workers need to be self-aware as they enter the workforce and communicate where they can add value to an organization. Connie also reminds millennials to adequately prepare for an interview by conducting extensive research about the company, its competitors and the sector.

For more seasoned professionals on the job hunt, be prepared to answer one of my favorite interview questions: “give me an example of a career failure and how it shaped who you are today.” With competition fierce among top-level executives, the answer to this question may help differentiate you from all of the others who provide boring, canned responses.