Here is an analogy I share with my networking groups: Building your network is like planting a garden.
In order to get big, beautiful flowers or delicious produce from your garden, you must not only plant seeds (in the earth as well as in the minds of your prospective contact), you must also nurture your growing plant, as you would your new relationship.
In every garden, some seeds will be more bountiful than others. And the same goes for your network. If the conditions are right and you treat the new growth with care, you will get much pleasure from your efforts.
You wouldn’t wait for your plants to die to water them, would you? Then why would you wait for a career crisis to nurture and grow your own personal network?
Your network is like a growing crop. Scrambling to build up contacts at a desperate time is like trying to bring a dying plant back to life. It’s always easier to reach out to an established circle of supportive contacts. Certainly, having a healthy network in place is vital to continuously growing your career.
But this reasoning can extend to virtually every aspect of life. By nurturing your network daily–forging relationships, sharing information and connecting with people who all have a common objective and a generous spirit–your life goals can more effectively be reached. And like adding new plants to your garden, it is important to continually reach out to new people to gain fresh perspective, new information and ideas that can be shared and used.
What do you do to keep your garden of contacts flourishing? Please share your comments below. (And think about giving Speed Networking a try! Visit http://www.consultnetworx.com/speednetworx/and subscribe to our FREE newsletter and stay informed of upcoming Speednetworx events.)