Determining the Importance of Professional Networking

Professional Networking
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Professional Networking
Importance of Professional Networking
Professional networking refers to the relationships established in a professional setting to foster mutual career development and exchange professional help when necessary (Baumann & Utz, 2021). There are several avenues where one can build professional relationships including social events, work premises, networking joints, and even online via social networks. Professional networking has a host of benefits, both financial and professionally. Indeed, professional networking is a great way of realizing career growth as one interacts with individuals and groups that have vast experiences in a particular field. Professional networking also increases one’s exposure to other career ventures simply by interacting with individuals or groups that are well connected.
Professional networking goes beyond social interaction. Individuals in a professional network share meaningful ideas about problems that may arise in a particular domain area. In so doing, one acquires meaningful information and knowledge that is essential in career development. Professional networking implies that one has to interact with lots of strangers and build relationships before establishing a relationship. In the process of interacting with strangers, a person acquires adequate social skills and confidence that are crucial in creating new relationships. Online social networking platforms and a few professional networking platforms such as LinkedIn are an alternative for individuals unable to get out of their comfort zone and interact face to face with new people (Baumann & Utz, 2021). Networking with the right kind of professionals can open doors to a dream job because as one expands their network, the likelihood of having a person connected to that dream job increases, and landing on a dream job becomes a matter of time.
Strategies for Effective Professional Networking
Developing professional relationships might emulate the development of interpersonal relationships, with some minor differences because of the complexities in a professional setting and the need to keep the relationship professional. Not only does building an effective professional relationship take a lot of commitment but it also requires a well-varnished strategy (Goolsby & Knestrick, 2017). In addition, there is a need for a person seeking to enhance their professional networking skills to polish their interpersonal skills and all the other aspects that contribute to effective interpersonal relationships. This is because interpersonal relationships can be regarded as the basis of professional relationships. There are a whole lot of strategies that one can deploy in pursuit of effective professional networking. Without disputing the effectiveness of the other strategies of professional networking, this paper proposes some of the most effective strategies in building strong professional relationships including seeking guidance from expertise, slotting time for networking in personal schedule, and capitalizing on people’s skills.
Some people are considered or consider themselves experts in networking. In what can be termed as expertise stra...