3 Steps to Surviving and Thriving in the Coming Recession - Step II: Dig Your Well Before You Need It
Step II: Dig Your Well Before You Need It
If you were laid off today, who would you call? I don’t mean your spouse or best friend. I mean who would you call to help you find a new job? Grab a piece of paper and a pen and make a list. Now, how long has it been since you had contact with each one of them?
Odds are if they are people that are genuinely in a place to help you find a job, then they are very busy and it’s been awhile since you’ve been in contact. Take a moment and put yourself in their shoes. If you called them for help in finding a job right now, would they jump at the chance to go to bat for you, or would they fall into the “reluctantly obligated” category?
The point of this little exercise is to intuit how well maintained you’ve kept the “well” of your network. Now is the time to invest in any deferred maintenance you’ve been putting off because you were so busy. So, let’s talk specific actions:
Get Connected
It doesn’t really matter how many people you know, if you don’t have up-to-date contact information for them, it’s going to be pretty difficulty to let them know that you need their help. The tools of social media are a powerful way to manage your contacts and make sure you stay in touch. And because everyone doesn’t use the same tools, the more active you are on various platforms, the wider you can cast your “net.” At minimum I recommend the following:
- LinkedIn: LinkedIn is the obvious social network for most professionals. Last week Dave McClure posted on the demise of resumes and gives tips for pimping out your LinkedIn profile.
- Plaxo: Provides auto updates to your Outlook Contact list when people change jobs, change phone numbers, or move. I explain how I use it as a central database here.
- Facebook: It’s not just for college students anymore. I’ve reconnected with a lot of people that I’d lost track of over the years with the “people you might know” feature. Back in the day we were just co-workers – now many of us are in a real position to help one another.
Here’s a little free tip. I’ve still not responded to a single request for a recommendation on LinkedIn. It’s not because I don’t think that someone is worthy, most of them are, but I’m busy. I intend to, but I know that it takes effort to write a good recommendation and it’s just not a priority for me. So, when did I write my first recommendation? When someone wrote an unsolicited recommendation for me. It’s the principle of reciprocity – you’ve got to make a deposit before you can make a withdrawal. So, pick people that you respect and whom you know respect you, and take the time to write a recommendation for them. Most likely, they’ll take the time to return the favor.
Stay Connected
It of course is not enough to just know someone and have their contact information – how often are you in contact? Speaking professionally, you should have at least three concentric circles in your network.
- The Core: The first is those with whom you have a solid personal relationship and working history. This circle should consume most of your time and effort.
- The Center Ring: These are generally people who you’ve met, had some significant interaction and would know you if you called them on the phone.
- Everybody Else: Self explanatory.
Especially for the Core and the Center Ring contacts, I recommend looking over this list every month and thinking about whom you should invite call or invite out for lunch. It will help you avoid that awkward “Hi, I know we haven’t talked in two years, but I need help finding a job” conversation.
Add Value
Adding value and the investment it requires is going to differ for each group.
For the Core, it’s usually more personal and time consuming. Some will come to you. I regularly serve as a sounding board to my fiends who have small businesses. I also review materials and participate in brainstorms with some of my former consulting colleagues.
With others, you’ll have to spend a little time thinking about the world from their perspective. What problems and issues are they likely to be running into right now where you can be of service and make a contribution? And then, over that lunch or drink, make sure they understand your area of expertise and let them know that you are available as a resource. Even if they never call you, they’ll appreciate it.
For me, adding value to the Center Ring mostly consists of passing along select articles on things that impact their industry, providing insights into my areas of expertise, and introducing people to new technology.
For everyone else, use social media. Make sure that there is value in your updates. I use Ping.fm to simultaneously post information on Twitter, Facebook, Plaxo, and LinkedIn when I find them valuable, timely, and relevant to my wider network. And this should go without saying, but when people comment on your posts or updates and other activities, respond. Say thanks. Appreciation in and of itself is a deposit.
Yes things are bad out there. Yes you just committed to working 20% harder at your job or business. And yes, this will take time and effort. I submit to you however that it is an investment that you can’t afford not to make.
Building and maintaining a network require time, patience, and consistent effort. So, get cracking. If you don’t like my approach, fine – tell me yours. I’m always up to learn something new!
Previous:
Step I: Double Down
Upcoming:
Step III: Maintain Perspective
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