In-Person Meetings:
Pure Gold for Job Networking!

In our job networking it’s best to focus on building long-term professional relationships with everyone we meet.

And by far the best way to start and to nurture these solid, lasting relationships is through in-person meetings.

Meetings.

Not emails, chats over the internet or phone calls - although these often help us to arrange in-person meetings and are fair substitutes when face-to-face meetings aren’t possible.

I’m talking about meeting someone face-to-face, smiling, shaking hands, sitting down and really getting to know each other on a professional level.

That’s what job networking is all about, and it’s the perfect way to find out exactly how you can help each other to find a better job and build a great career.

The world is not made of online applications (although it is good to include these as part of your job search strategy). Nor is made of statistics.

The world is made of people and we all need to remain distinctly aware of this when we network and job search. This really demonstrates the importance of career networking.

In-person or face-to-face meetings make the world go round. The primary way that people of all cultures and all eras throughout history have built relationships is through one-on-one in-person meetings.

Technological tools and toys come and go, but the one thing that stays constant in this world is the effectiveness of building relationships through direct face-to-face contact.

Your Career Networking Goal: Attend In-Person Meetings

In your job search, any and all in-person contacts count!

It would be better to keep track of how many helpful new people you meet through networking than the number of applications you’ve sent out or the number of interviews you’ve received during your job search.

A simple goal for your job networking could be to simply meet as many new people as possible through in-person meetings and introduce yourself to them using your introductory statement.

You may want to achieve a certain number of meetings, such as 3 in-person meetings per week when you are full-time job searching.

Or you could develop a point system in which email contacts are worth 1 point, phone contacts 10 points and in-person contacts 100 points. In this case, your aim might be to collect at least 400 points per week.

Focus on the Relationship, Not Job Leads

Of course, you may feel very pressured financially or otherwise, and be strongly focused on finding a job or at least finding a better job as soon as you possibly can.

Nevertheless, you may find that things go more smoothly in your job networking if you simply focus on setting up these mutually-beneficial coffee or lunch meetings, and ensuring that there is a valuable exchange of information and support between you and the other person.

It will take the pressure off of both of you, and make your serious job searching a lot more fun. You don’t want the other person to feel pressured or obligated to get you a job – this only stifles the relationship and may scare them away.

So go slow. Rather than focusing on your ultimate job or career goal, focus on building rapport – building the relationship. The job leads will come as a natural consequence of successful in-person meetings combined with your follow up with these people and the people they refer you to.

Seek to Both Give and Receive Job Networking Help

Another key element to successful job networking is to realize that to network is to give as much as to receive. It's crucial that you offer something to the person you are networking with and not just expect people to give you their time and knowledge.

What can you offer them in return? First, you can give them your undivided attention. In other words, no cell phones please :-).

Perhaps you have knowledge to share with her , or contacts that can help her. You could also take detailed notes to let her know that you're taking her advice seriously and intend to act upon it as soon as you can.

Offering them your enthusiastic and whole-hearted appreciation is great too. It is also customary to buy them a coffee or take them to lunch in exchange for their offer of assistance.

Most often you will be richly rewarded for the few dollars you spend on a coffee or meal. Giving to the other person not only offers them a token of your appreciation – it also says that you care. That helps them to feel more safe and warms or further opens up the networking relationship.

How do I arrange in-person meetings?

You can arrange in-person meetings through warm contacts and cold calling, including cold cover letters.

You can also request them with people you meet while volunteering, providing community leadership or participating in group activities.

Of course, regular job interviews also count as in-person meetings and are great networking tools, even when we aren’t offered the related position.

When you meet with new networking contacts, prepare a list of questions for them. Many people approach it as an informational interview for best results :-).

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