ELI Group's Blog

Assess the Health of Your Network

We all know the importance of a strong network.  It is an amazing source of new information, creative ideas, and even access to professional opportunities.  However strong networks don’t build themselves — it takes conscious time and energy to make sure that our network is fully in place before we need to call on it.  Since we’re already in the second quarter of 2011, now represents the perfect time to check and assess the health and strength of your network.

When thinking about your professional network, it is easy to become overwhelmed and uncertain about whether or not you have the “right” people included in your circle of colleagues.  To ensure that you have your bases fully covered, consider the three following categories:

1. Current peers / colleagues:  Whether you use LinkedIn or some other way to track and maintain your network, be sure to include the people you engage with at your current organization.  While you may see them on a day-to-day basis, you want to ensure that you’re connecting with them around issues beyond just the task at hand.  Get to know a little more about their interests, hobbies, and professional aspirations.
2. Former colleagues:  Reach out to people from your past (college classmates, prior bosses, previous co-workers).  It’s interesting to see the range and diversity of career paths that people have taken. You may be surprised by the way people have moved through their careers.  We all tend to lose track of some people, so use discussions with former colleagues as opportunities to get current contact information for the people you know in common who have fallen out-of-touch.
3. People in other organizations / industries:   Because some of the most meaningful networking connections come from the places we least expect it, be sure that you’re connecting with people outside of your own professional field.  Learn more about the professional background of your friends and neighbors.  By having a broad and diverse set of skills represented in your network you’ll be able to make some interesting connections. 

Most importantly, it’s crucial to see networking as simply a way to stay connected with people you genuinely enjoy and trust.  Take the time to consider the important question:  “How can I help this person?”  Once you have that mindset in place, you’ll be pleased to discover how your healthy network will then be helpful to you in return.