Job Search Networking: When Do I Spill the Beans?
When networking to get into the hidden job market, I think we’ve all worried how to answer the question “When do I tell people that I’m looking for a job?”
Some say you should wait until you’ve known someone a while or have done them a favor.
I think you can do it right away when you do it the right way. I hope this audio will help you feel comfortable letting people know you’re in job search.
Hate Job search Networking? 10 Tips to Help You Hate It Just a Little Less
1. Look at networking as a way to increase your knowledge about your industry and function. You’ll learn things that will differentiate you from the competition who aren’t bothering to create a network.
2. Network to create relationships. Network with people even if you don’t think there is a job available right now. This is the way you’ll find your next job. Plus it can bring you every job after that. You may never need to be in job search mode again.
3. Be willing to help other people. And make that clear by always asking “How can I be of assistance to you?”
4. Play to your strengths. Use the skills that make you successful in a job to help make you successful in networking. Do what you do best: if you’re detail oriented, do lots of research. If you’re marketing professional, create sound bites about what makes you a great candidate.
5. When people offer to help (and more than you might think will be very willing to lend assistance), let them. Protests like “Oh, no, I couldn’t ask you to do that” aren’t necessary nor flattering to either of you.
6. Be willing to ask specifically for what you want. I know that can be hard. However, if you don’t, the other person has to do the work to try to figure out how to help you.
7. Be willing to be yourself. You don’t have to embellish or fabricate; you’re great just the way you are, even if you haven’t had much confirmation of that recently.
8. Treat any networking encounter like a business meeting even if it’s a phone call, email exchange, on line or in person. Don’t forget to bring your personality and unique style.
9. Listen, listen, listen. ‘nuf said.
10. Thank them, write to them, keep them informed, stay in touch, remember them.
And an extra:
Create good career karma by connecting people to each other for their benefit even if there isn’t anything in it for you at the time.
Job Search Networking: Our Special Song
Hate small talk? Darn, because it’s essential to create networking relationships! I (the original reluctant networker who sucked at small talk) want to share with you an amazingly simple techniques you can use.
Not only will you start to build relationships quickly, no one will know that you may not be a natural born schmoozer! This technique is one of my favorite, guaranteed to make you seem like an old friend even if the two of you just met.
Essential Job Search Networking Skill — Sorry, Mom!
Probably your mom, like mine, told you not to talk to strangers.
But in certain situations when you’re networking, you may want to think about ignoring mom. Just for a moment. You may also want to ignore Linkedin’s scary (did the Linkedin mom write this?) rule: don’t connect with people you don’t know. Yikes, isn’t connecting with people I don’t yet know one of the huge advantages of this fabulous networking site?
Networking in all its flavors is the key to getting into the hidden job market.
Today’s social networking makes it possible and relatively easy for you to find the people you want to network with. It doesn’t matter that today you are total strangers. Take the opportunity to connect with them to begin building a relationship. As the two of you get to know each other, it is likely that both of you will benefit.
On many social networking sites, and Linkedin is a great example, you may already know someone who knows the person you’d like to meet. So you and they can feel more comfortable because of that mutual connection. Because you can see information about the person you want to meet, you will know other things you may share with them.
Building a relationship is really the place to start.
In the list below, you will notice I did not say to start out by sending a resume to someone who is connected to the hiring manager or recruiter for a position you’re interested in. While they may not say it, many people will simply feel used.
Social networking sheds light on the contacts you never knew you had as well as those you would like to create. Of course, you must take action. As long as we’re breaking mom’s rule, here are some ways to leverage your expanded community of “contacts” to assist in your job search.
• Search for old connections to reconnect and catch up
• Find people with whom you’ve only had a brief connection and strengthen that relationship
• Build business relationships with hiring managers as well as other people you should know in your industry/function/geographic area
• Identify and meet (on line and off line) recruiters, people in your target companies, prominent people in your industry or function
• Follow, learn from and connect with thought leaders
• Increase your web visibility and credibility which makes it easier for recruiters and hiring managers to find you
• Find out what your target companies are doing, their business issues, competitors, etc.
• Be better prepared for all your networking calls, calls for informational interviews, etc.
You can buy mom flowers to celebrate your new job!
I hate small talk! 7 Essentials for Job Search Networking
I will freely admit that in addition to being a reluctant job search networker, I also hated small talk. Slam bam whammy a double curse!
When I became determined (ok, desperate) to learn how to do networking in ways that felt comfortable for me, I started interviewing people who were master networkers. That research is how I learned all the networking secrets I love to share.
Since that strategy worked so well to learn how to network, I decided to take the same approach to learn how to do small talk. I didn’t expect to learn to like small talk, just to learn some ways to sound as though I liked it. As I learned some techniques that actually worked, I started to like small talk in spite of myself!
Let me share some of what I learned, just in case you hate small talk, too!
First I had to learn and then accept there is a purpose to small talk. It gives you and the other person a chance to find something that you have in common. That is the beginning of building a relationship. And you’ll want to be a master of creating a relationship quickly since they are the foundation of your job search networking success.
So here are some quick tips to make small talk easier for those of us who kinda hate it and/or don’t do it particularly well.
• Make your first remarks quite neutral and non-threatening. Remember, the purpose of opening remarks is to let people process the sub-text that says you like them.
• Say something relevant to the situation. You may build agreement right away. For example, you may say “Beautiful place for this event, isn’t it?” This would encourage your conversational partner to start agreeing with you from the first moment. This is good!
• Say something pleasant, complimentary or empathetic because your first sentence is 100% of their experience of you at that point. If your first comments are boastful, complaining, negative or sarcastic (no matter how witty or intelligent), that will be their impression of you, and it will be a difficult task to change that impression.
• You will find that acknowledging them for something they have done is a powerful way to melt the ice.
• Say something that is easy to agree with. This provides sub-text that says “we agree, we’re alike, we have something in common. We can now move on to more meaningful conversation.”
• Save your jokes, strong opinions, clever remarks for when you know the person better. The sub-text here says “look at me; appreciate me.”
• You want your sub-text to say “I see you and I appreciate you.” Keep that thought in your head and it is conveyed easily in your small talk.
I know these may seem to be in the “well, duh” category. But I’m always amazed at how they help me feel a little more like a smooth schmoozer. I hope they help you if you hate small talk, too!
Job Search Networking for Introverts & Extroverts: There’s hope for all of us!
Introverts may think they cannot do networking. Yes, they can. And in a way that works for them.
Extroverts may not recognize just how many networking skills they have—and how to best leverage them.
Introverts: Your Unique Strengths
• You are sensitive to what’s happening around you and can pick up and relate to other people’s needs and feelings, resulting in others sensing you are empathetic.
• You come across as thoughtful and focused because you take the time to think before you speak. You are often able to quickly develop rapport and trust.
• You are skilled at sensing how to respond to people most effectively.
• You don’t always feel as though you need to be talking, making you are an excellent listener.
If you’re introverted:
• Realize that you have great information, and other people want and can use what you know.
• Give yourself permission to network in ways that make you comfortable. Remember that some of the most effective networking is done in a venue in which introverts shine – one-on-one.
Extroverts: Your Unique Strengths
• You are at ease with small talk and can easily engage others in conversation.
• You think things through by talking, so people know what’s going on with you.
• Because you ask easily for what you would like from the other person, you tend to get more of what you want.
• You are an excellent brainstorming partner because don’t force yourself to think things through before speaking.
If you’re extroverted:
• Because you are self-confident and can easily talk to people, be on the lookout for those times when you will want to ask other people a question. Find out what they want to talk about and get a sense of how they are feeling.
• Remember to switch gears beyond the social aspects where you clearly shine to take advantage of making connections and leveraging the job search networking possibilities.
Job Search Networking: Two Essentials—and Neither is Your Resume
The hidden job market really isn’t all that hidden.
It’s actually right in front of you, and all you need to do is network your way in. You’ll be surprised at how willing people are to assist. You can accelerate getting into the hidden job market when you are prepared for networking.
So if you’re going to a networking meeting—coffee with someone, an association meeting or conference where you will meet people who can hire you, an informational interview phone call—please have these things in place first.
First create your search strategy.
I’m amazed at how many people ask to talk to me about their job search without having defined who they want to meet, companies they would like to work in, etc.
I was talking to one job seeker and told her that I was really unfamiliar with her job function. But I might know people in her target companies so could perhaps help by introducing her. I asked if she had a list of companies where she wanted to work. What was her strategy?
Her response was that she was hoping she could just network and not have to create a strategy. When you have a strategy defined, you know exactly what to ask for. One way to guarantee they won’t be able to help you is to say, “Well if you hear of anything I might be interested in, let me know.”
Creating a strategy takes some time and perhaps some introspection and honesty. It’s time well spent.
The second essential is your career brand.
This is how you become memorable. By having your brand statement, you help people talk about you! You stand out and capture their attention.
Sadly and surprisingly, most job seekers today cannot tell a recruiter, hiring manager or networking connection what is compelling about them—what makes them the candidate to hire. In today’s economic climate, it may feel as though experience and skills are just commodities. What can put you in the lead, make you memorable to your networking contacts and irresistible to the hiring manager is all built around your brand.
If you are struggling to create your brand, please get my free report available on my blog.
It shows you how to have others help you uncover your brand–easier and you get some networking in at the same time! Please try it.
Job search networking: Why you must meet people outside your function!
It goes without saying that as a job seeker you must create a networking opportunities with those at the right level and in the right position to hire you. At the same time, you can significantly accelerate your search by networking with people who might not initially seem to fit that criteria.
Consider networking with people who are outside your function and at least one level above you.
Here are some of the advantages of this strategy:
- You will learn the language of a different function and how to translate all the great things you did and can do for a hiring company into terms that will resonate with senior management. The language of most executives is financial, yet it may not be easy to translate what you’ve done into financial terms. You may not have previously been able to identify the financial impact of things like improving employee satisfaction, developing new training programs, bringing projects in on time, etc., or even things like doing layoffs without any employee suing the company.
- You will get to hear some of the issues of a company from a senior perspective. You might not hear about these issues from people at lower levels. And best of all? You have information other job seekers don’t have!
- When you’re networking with these executives or interviewing with them, you’ll be able to explain how what you can do to help the company solve their issues. It’s a great way to position yourself as someone unique. I’ve seen these conversations lead to the creation of a position just for that person. It can happen.
These conversations are great ways to make connections and build relationships of credibility. These people will be more likely to open their network to you and introduce you to more great networking partners. You’ll be networking with the in-crowd!
You will have some great networking conversations while you’re learning how to translate what you do into a language that will make you stand out from other candidates.
This strategy pays off even if you are already working.
When I worked at the software development company, I didn’t know any better and spend a lot of time asking a lot of questions of the executives. Every time they had a new issue, I would propose some solutions. I got several promotions (and raises—remember raises?) to implement those solutions.
Expanding your networking strategy to include people you might not otherwise connect with and watch the number of opportunities that come to you expand as well.
A Backward Secret to Job Search Networking Into The Hidden Job Market
Job seekers often tell me “I’m worried if I am too specific when I’m asking for assistance, I’ll miss out on hearing about all available opportunities.”
I can certainly relate to people who are concerned that if they are too specific when they ask for assistance in their job search, they will miss out on hearing about other things that might be of interest to them. They tell me, “if I’m vague, then people will just tell me about a lot of things. If I’m specific, they will just tell me about that specific thing.”
Interestingly, a specific request actually just opens the door to so much more. It’s as if you need that specific request to get people thinking about you. Then they may be able to introduce you to the exact person you want to meet or tell you about the exact job you want, though that’s not always the result. If they don’t have that information, however, because you were specific they are able to think of other things that you might be interested in hearing about.
For example, one job seeker usually asked people to let her know if they heard of any recruiting manager positions she might be interested in. She’s a fabulous recruiter, but that request wasn’t getting her any leads to openings or other people to network with. We worked on creating a job search networking strategy wherein she listed the industries she wanted to explore.
Then she started telling people what industries and even the specific companies where she wanted to meet people. All of a sudden she was getting introduced to the right people! It’s as if that specific request just primed the pump to get them thinking. A vague request doesn’t seem to have that impact. And the worst request of all is “let me know if you hear about something…..”
Think about how you might respond to these requests. The first request is “let me know if you hear about something that might be a fit for me.” That request usually gets you a polite “you bet.” But it just won’t get you much more. Even worse, it makes you sound like nearly every other job seeker. What’s the benefit of that?
The second request is “I’ve targeted company XYA as a place I would love to work. Who do you know who works there?” This request can get you a variety of answers, all of them likely to be more useful than “you bet.”
Perhaps the person does know someone there, and would introduce you. Perhaps they know someone at a competitor to company XYA. Or maybe they know of an opportunity at a similar company.
Because you were specific, you made it easier for them to start thinking about specifics for you. Just try it and see what happens.
Launch your job search networking into the hidden job market with this song (even if you can’t sing)
You may find it easier to develop an overall strategy after using this list that lets you get started right now. A body in motion tends to stay in motion—it’s a beautiful thing.
I originally drafted this to be sung to the 12 days of Xmas (with apologies to…well, just about everyone). The good news it works for any other holiday of your choice.
So here we go. Sing along…
12 days of (insert holiday here) networking for job seekers
On the first day of networking I decided to: Make 1 call to someone who never heard of me
