As leading executive headhunters in Northern, CA, Pacific Staffing knows networking is essential for building your career. It helps you find out about different opportunities, acquire new clients and discover interested investors. But if you are a busy executive, it can be a challenge due to scheduling and time constraints. To maximize your efforts – without spreading yourself too thin – consider this common sense advice:

Choose Events Carefully 

Look at networking like the organization of an executive action plan. Your efforts should be focused. Don’t feel like you need to attend every event, conference and social hour. In fact, you shouldn’t – especially if you went in the past without yielding any positive results. Choose carefully where you spend your time and effort.

Identify Goals and Outcomes

When you attend an event, strategize ahead about what you want to gain from the experience. Are you looking for new leads, to learn about an industry hot topic, or to check out a competitor? Keep your networking objectives in mind as you circulate through an event.

Listen More Than Talk 

You don’t need to have a fancy pitch in order to be memorable. Instead, aim for sincerity. This includes spending more time listening and asking questions, and less time talking about yourself and your career. You’ll actually learn more through listening and make a better impression, as well. Even better, if you can, help out someone you connect with, whether that means facilitating an introduction, offering advice or making a recommendation.

Remember People’s Names 

There’s nothing more embarrassing than having met someone in the recent past and not being able to remember their name. Make an effort to overcome this hurdle by learning a technique that can help you recall names and faces, such as meet and repeat (where you try to use the person’s name throughout the conversation) or Dale Carnegie’s association trick.

Stay Connected to Contacts 

Once you make a connection, don’t let it fall by the wayside. Aim to touch base with important contacts at least every few months. Share an article that might be of interest to them, invite them for lunch or coffee, or simply pick up the phone and inquire about how business is going. By staying fresh in their minds, they’ll think of you first when they need someone with your expertise.

Whether you want to make a career change or acquire new business, networking needs to become a priority. And if you’re trying to network your way to a new executive position, contact Pacific Staffing. As leading executive headhunters in Northern, CA, we can help you uncover opportunities no one else knows about and guide you toward achieving your career goals. To learn more about how we can help you advance your career, please contact us today.