IJEENI- Professional Networking Redefined- www.ijeeni.com

1. The One Missing Piece To Your Success The potential of networking in a society that can’t break out its shell. Page 1

2. Table Of Contents How I Found The One Missing Piece To My Success Breaking Down The Concept Of Professional Networking 5 Biggest Advantages Of Professional Networking The 4 Worst Networking Fears That Holds You Back + Proven Ways To Overcome Them The One Networking Advice That Changed My Life 3 4 6 8 11 Page 2

3. Chapter – 1 How I Found The One Missing Piece To My Success It was just another day, and like the hundreds and thousands of you out there, even I wanted to be successful. Throughout my life, I had believed that the power of positivity could make anything possible, but my experience had proved it otherwise. I had waited for success to knock at my doors all my life, and now I was planning to hunt it down. To say that I was frightened would be an understatement, but creating an account on the professional networking platform today was something on which the future of my passion was hanging upon. Little did I know that networking would change my life? As I sat in front of my decade-old laptop, all I could wish for was to earn a few extra dollars to keep my freelance business running. I was working from my tiny apartment and had no idea what holding a corporate job ever felt like. I was desperate to leave my mark in the world and more importantly, to make some money. And that’s what attending this networking event was all about. It was an opportunity to change my life. It was about launching my business, doing something that I was passionate about, and creating a source of income. But never in a million years did I think it would be the one missing piece to my success, that it would change my world and help me pursue my passion stronger than before. In the coming chapters, I would help you find and master the missing piece to your success. If you have dreams to achieve, business ideas to establish, or knowledge to share, the coming chapters are all written for you. Page 3

4. Chapter – 2 Breaking Down The Concept Of Professional Networking “61% of professionals agree that regular online and offline interactions with their professional network lead their way into a possible opportunity.” In recent years, networking has become a hot topic among professionals. As businesses strive to earn global recognition, networking becomes more international. The information required on the level becomes something that your close acquaintances or personal connections couldn’t provide any more. To put it simply, networking means the activity of building and maintaining relationships of trust with people whose interests and goals align with yours. On the other hand, professional networking stands for networking that is more focused on achieving professional goals. Like most of you, there was once a time when I regarded swapping business cards as networking when in fact, swapping business card is just the tip of the iceberg. Professional networking is all about building real relationships and trust and there is a whole lot of effort that goes into doing so. “Over 80% of professionals consider professional networking important in achieving their career goals.” So, why do we have to engage in professional networking? Is it because you need a job? There are a lot of reasons to start networking. While it was for job hunting in my case, it varies from one person to the other. But, regardless of the reason people professional network to reach their career goals, stay happy, and achieve success. Here are a few reasons why people consider professional networking: •To gain abundant of information. •To establish oneself as an authority. •To establish themselves as an expert in a particular field of business. •To gain trust and credibility. •To build new professional relationships, and to strengthen the existing ones. •Finally, let’s be honest. People network to have a good time. As stated earlier, maintaining relationships of trust is a very important part of professional networking. It is really something easy to say but hard to establish. When the idea of networking first popped up in my mind, the first thing that I searched for on the internet was what's in networking for me. Luckily, the search results were worth giving networking a try and now that I am writing a whole book on it you could probably wonder how marvellously beneficial it was in my case. Page 4

5. One more thing: make sure you visit (link to coming soon website) to discover a new professional networking platform that’s coming to town. Page 5

6. Chapter – 3 5 Biggest Advantages Of Professional Networking “Over 85% of jobs in the world are actually filled through professional networking.” According to my research, the formula of success turns out to be 20% what you know + 80% whom you know. Now, this one fact was what lead me to take the boldest step called networking in my life. However, there are a lot more reasons why professional networking could be your key to success. Here are five such advantages of professional networking that I find the most valuable. •It Opens The Door To A Sea Of Opportunities Reports state that people spent 80% of their time surfing through job boards when almost 80% of the jobs aren't published at all. We do live in a digital age with all kind of networking platforms available at our disposal. Professional networking enables you to connect with professionals despite the physical boundaries. This, in turn, means the ability to hear about all the opportunities in the world that aren't published online or in newspapers. Even if you are happy about your current job role, receiving an email from one of your professional contact askings if you are interested in a new job opportunity would make anyone feel on cloud nine. And, in case you are job hunting, then this might be exactly what you were wishing for. •It Is An Opportunity To Hear About New Ideas If you stay cooped up among the few personal connections that you, it means you are keeping yourself away from new ideas. If there is one thing that I have learned from my years of existence, it is the fact that ideas go out-of-date. Networking comes to your aid as it brings to you a fresh set of perspectives from your connections. As stated earlier, staying amidst the circle of a few industry contacts can hinder your access to the larger population of people where new ideas reside. As you interact and build relationships with new people, especially opinion leaders, you get to hear about different perspectives that could spark innovative ideas. This improves your business and helps you make important career moves. •It Helps You Become An Influencer Honestly speaking, becoming a top influencer is such a cool thing. After all, who in their right mind wouldn’t love to have that kind of credibility? Page 6

7. Presently, most of the business leaders and other professionals are working hard to establish their credibility and become a top influencer. However, social media is just a small part of networking, and in-person networking is the real deal. Surveys suggest that 68% of junior level professionals value networking face-to-face over online conversations. When you are part of an in-person conversation, remember to discuss your perspectives on the subject in order to entertain a more detailed and personal conversation. It also helps you slowly turn into an expert in your field, and give you recognition for what you do. •It Helps You Get Advice From Successful People If there is one benefit of networking that I love the most, it ought to be advice. Listening to advice from other people, especially those who are highly successful is something that I take great interest in. I also enjoy hearing about other people's stories and experiences of how they overcame a particularly hard situation. Since I started networking, I have got advice from people who work in similar fields, from business owners, and from colleagues. And, every time I have gotten advice, it helped me shape my career and personality irrespective of whether I took the suggestion seriously or not. •It Is A Great Way To Gather A Lot Of Friends One obvious benefit and reason why people network is friendship. Networking is a great way to find the greatest mentors and best friends. More than half the professionals spent the majority of their time working that hanging out with friends. Thus, networking and staying connected with your colleagues can help make your challenging workplace situations less stressful. Friendships have the power to make long days feel shorter and can push you towards your goals when you would have otherwise given up. There is a lot to talk about friendship and networking, but to put it short, everybody loves to have a lunch buddy every now and then. Having said all these, networking is often a talent that people are naturally born with (and clearly, I was not born so). They could easily mingle with people and make friends within a single meeting. However, if you are like me, you would probably be terrified at the idea of striking a conversation with complete strangers. There are certain things that hold you back from networking and practice can help you overcome those fears and perfect the art of networking. Now, if you have probably made your way till here, I ask that you proceed further as well. Because, in the next chapter, I would be revealing to you my four worst networking fears and how I overcame them. Page 7

8. Chapter – 4 The 4 Worst Networking Fears That Holds You Back + Proven Ways To Overcome Them I have lived with networking fears all my life until I decided to break out of the shell. It is always easy to find excuses, but taking action requires a whole lot of effort. Our ability to achieve success is often determined by the people in our network. Ever heard the story about a rotten apple spoiling the whole barrel? Even if you haven't, all I want to say is things become easier when you have the right relationships you could count upon. Yet, many people like the old me simply don't dedicate a tiny bit of their time and effort to start networking. Given below are the five networking fears that I always told myself to stay away from networking. And, along with them are the five methods that helped me overcome those fears to break into networking. •I Don’t Have Time Vs. I Will Find Time "41% of professionals revealed that they would want to network more frequently but lack the free time to do so." This was the top excuse that kept the old me from networking, and I feel like most of you face the same difficulty with time as well. Brian Andreas, the creator of StoryPeople.com said, “Everything changed the day I figured out there was exactly enough time for the important things in my life.” In reality, we are surrounded by networking opportunities, just tilt your head and you would find one there. Incorporate professional networking into your daily regimen, and stick to it. With the passage of time, networking would soon turn into a hobby. •I Am Afraid Of Meeting New People Vs. Meeting New People Is Fun “7 out of 10 millennials believe that going into the office to work isn’t necessary anymore!” Would you rather meet one new person every week, or never meet a new person your entire life? You are not alone if you opted for the latter choice. I am never an outgoing person and prefer to be as quiet as possible. But, if you keep your comfort aside, and you could easily master the art of working the room. Page 8

9. When meeting a new person, you could have your humble beginnings by asking follow-up questions. If you have colleagues who are gifted with the talent of conversing with people, stick with them and observe how they open conversations. Similarly, after every opportunity, you get to interact with new people, reflect on what you could have done to make it better, and put it to practice the next time. •I Easily Run Out Of Things To Say Vs. Every Conversation Naturally Comes To An End Keeping a conversation alive, and being able to talk on demand is indeed an important skill. The one solution to master this skill is by having short conversations with people. Remember that you always have the liberty to repeat engaging topics with different people. If someone says, “Tell me about your job,” respond with, “Thanks for asking”, and then continue to share about your career for three to five minutes. You can be witty here, but don’t be overly self-promoting. Just talk about the things that you care the most. When done with explaining, say, “I would love to hear about your project.” Remember that all conversations come to an end. After all, you can't keep talking for five hours straight. So once a conversation comes to an end, end it. Exchange your contact information, excuse yourself, and make your way outside. •I Don’t Know How To Stay In Touch Vs. Let’s Meet Up For Coffee If you are not an outgoing person, the chances are that you find it hard to stay connected with the people you have met once. Believe me when I say it’s tough, but it isn’t impossible. The solution to solving this problem is ending your conversation by letting the other person how glad you are to meet them. Exchange your business cards, and if you don’t at the very least remember their name. Go straight back home, and add your new contacts on the networking platforms. Also, send them a personal message which could go like: Hi (name), I was a pleasure to meet you at (event name) on (date). I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation on (topic), and I look forward to meeting you up for a coffee in the future. Don’t just end the whole thing here, but interact with them frequently and make plans to meet up. Furthermore, if you accidentally come across them around town be sure to say hello. If you are determined, practising these tips would quickly help you become a super connector. It would hard when you do it the first time, but eventually, it turns easier. Better yet, you will find a whole bunch of great relationships that will walk you towards success both in life and work. Page 9

10. Now that I have told you all the information that you need to get started with professional networking, there is still some secret advice that you ought to know but no one tells you. Now that we are inching closer to the ends of this book, I would use the next and the final chapter to share with you the one networking advice that changed my life. Page 10

11. Chapter – 5 The One Networking Advice That Changed My Life Unless you have been living under the rock, you would have all heard of how important networking for our careers. Irrespective of your profession, demographics, or industry, you need to spend time networking if you want to be successful. Though this makes for a piece of great advice, it misses the crucial fact of how exactly to network. In my entire life, half of the work that I got came from referrals. If you have never networked before, the best option to kick-start networking would be to tackle it the natural way. It might sound ridiculous, but it works. So my secret advice is to start networking with the people you meet every day. And how do you do it? Just be the best version of yourself. Be that diligent employee, a friendly person, and always be the first one to take on challenges. Nevertheless, take it slow and don’t start with volunteering for hundred responsibilities at once. In layman language, take your first project and get it done in a way that exceeds expectations. Once people start to notice your work, you will be assigned with other more important stuff. And, what's more, your colleagues may even come to you for advice. Finally, also remember that soft skills go further than technical skills. Thus, mastering skills such as teamwork, leadership, and communication can help you fit into the company culture and help you climb up the ladder to success. Now that you are all set up to start professional networking, why not start with the best networking platform in town. Make sure you visit (link to coming soon website) and grab your invitations before time runs out. Have a great time networking! Page 11