You know that networking is in your best interest and that it can open up many doors, be them professional, social, or personal. Unless you possess the right networking skills, you’ll have difficulty making personal or professional connections, as well as using them to advance your career. Networking involves interacting with people (who might even be strangers, or acquaintances) from common professional and social circles to build commonly beneficial ties. To get better at networking, though, you’ll need to develop the right networking skills.
Here are top networking skills you must have:
The act involves paying uttermost attention to what the speaker is saying, following up with clarifying questions where relevant and necessary, and making sure you got the essence of the conversation.
Imagine, for example, you’re at a networking event having a conversation with a job recruiter. If you keep scanning the room, looking down at your phone, and just giving the recruiter the occasional nod to make them. As if you’re listening, they’re not very likely to talk to you about prospective job positions. And on the off-chance they don’t feel offended by you pretending to be listening and do speak about job opportunities, you probably won’t be paying attention!
Communication is, if you ask us, the most important networking skill. You can be funny, insightful, skillful, and intelligent, and it would all be in vain if you can’t effectively communicate with people.
when you’re networking, be mindful of the ways you convey, interact with others, and even tackle issues and discussions that may come up during the conversation. This includes your tone of voice, the language you use, and even your urgency to speak over others. Those are all elements that can make or break your networking.
Non-verbal communication includes every message you transmit that doesn’t include words and it accounts for up to 93% of any verbal message. This means your facial expressions, your body language and stance, and even your position towards your co-speaker.
Who is more likely to strike up a conversation at a networking event? Someone with hunched shoulders and eyes locked on their phone screen, or a social butterfly that radiates confidence and positivity? Yeap, we vote for number 2 as well.
Interpersonal skills and communication skills are often used interchangeably, but there are subtle differences between the two. In a nutshell, interpersonal skills encompass your ability to get along and understand other people. This may oftentimes mean being open to subtle hints, or “reading” the situation in a certain social setting.
Say, for example, that you’re at a party and an interesting-looking someone is smiling directly at you. This is 99% a sign that they are open to talking, but they might be too shy to start the conversation.
Research shows that humor is the key to success at work, because it makes people enjoy interacting with you, puts them at ease, and helps them build trust, among other things. In addition to referring to the quality of being amusing, humor is also a mood and state of mind.
This means that humor is much more than just making people laugh—it is, in large part, about being positive and transmitting that to those around you. As such, humor is an inseparable part of networking skills.
Respect—one of the most fundamental networking skills. Did it ever happen when you were younger to get scolded for talking over someone or chewing your food with your mouth open? Well, it’s even worse if you’re a disrespectful adult at a networking event.
Imagine, for example, getting lucky enough to talk to a recruiter from one of your target law firms and you make a bad expression by constantly interrupting them or asking them to repeat themselves because you weren’t paying attention.
If you’re going to go to a place full of strangers or acquaintances with the goal of creating professional and social ties, then you definitely need confidence!
As a skill, confidence defines how sure you are about what you say, what you do (or plan on doing), and your decisions.
Now, if you’re not naturally confident, practice your confidence by doing some of the following:
Friendliness is another essential networking skill on our list. The quality involves being kind, helpful, or affectionate—without necessarily being close to the other person. Gestures such as smiling, waving, or introducing yourself to people are typical shows of friendliness and will bring people around you like moths to a flame.
Friendliness encourages others to be less guarded or reactive with you. That said, you shouldn’t overdo it either. Sometimes, overly kind or helpful people come off as suspicious or annoying—which is a no-no when you’re networking.
Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to understand, use, and manage both your and other people’s emotions.When it comes to networking, having emotional intelligence greatly matters because (just like anything else that involves people), the process is also emotional.
Imagine, for example, having a 10-minute conversation with a recruiter. They might not verbally say anything, but you can tell by their willingness to give you their card, or their proposition to follow up with an email, that you made an impression.
Positivity is more than just a character trait: it’s an attitude and a mindset. If you go networking with a positive mindset, you won’t be discouraged in case a conversation with a potential future professional contact doesn’t go as planned, or if the team-building event with your new colleagues doesn’t go exactly how you were hoping.
Moreover, a positive attitude usually comes paired with optimism. Networking-wise, this makes it easier for people to approach you and maybe even build constructive relations.
It can happen that the spotlight falls on you amid a group of people while networking. What then? Public speaking could come to the rescue. Public speaking skills can make you feel comfortable when you’re addressing a group of people—especially strangers at a networking event. So, when you’re not addressing such a “tough” audience, practice your public speaking skills when you chat with your friends.
