Networking is believed to be associated with numerous opportunities including landing your dream job, making connections and establishing relationships among others.
Through this, an individual especially those in the business or career world, make effort to interact with others while exchanging information in addition to developing professional or social contacts.
This form of interaction is crucial since it is believed that almost 85 percent of jobs are filled via networking, according to research.
Dr Andrew E. Ivang from the Department of Clinical Biology – Huye campus, University of Rwanda believes that when it comes to having a strong career, networking with friends and colleagues is essential.
According to him, research repeatedly shows that the single best predictor of whether a candidate will get a job, is if he or she already knows someone who works at the target company. And this depends on how good that person is when it comes to networking.
Since networking is a continuous process of building relationships, the earlier one starts doing it the better.
First of all, Ivang says it’s essential to come up with goals, with this, one will be in position to network with purpose. He adds that setting goals will help you focus and you will feel a sense of accomplishment when you are done.
When networking, he says doing research is important and this can involve checking social media-conference hashtags on Twitter, all of these are a good place to start.
To improve on your networking skills, Mathias Nkeeto, an educator says it is essential to practice good communication habits. These can include simple things like maintaining eye contact when you are speaking to someone, using simple and straightforward language, as well as asking questions and invite opinions.
Also, while communicating, he says it’s vital to pay attention to the body language of the person with whom you are speaking to, to ensure they understand and confirm whether they agree or disagree.
Regularly attending networking events is said to be important too. Here, Nkeeto cites that one of the best ways one can improve their networking skills is to regularly attend them and focus on building a genuine human connection with the people you meet.
"When interacting, make a move and start asking questions that show you are genuinely interested in getting to know the person you are speaking to and listen closely to the answer while maintaining eye contact,” he says.
To ensure all is going well while communicating, Nkeeto says it’s ideal to respond with relevant questions to show you were listening. Also, focus on the quality of the relationships you are having rather than the quantity, this is essential, he says.
Another important aspect to improve on networking skills according to Diana Nawatti, a counsellor and educator, is to practice the skill of listening more than speaking.
She notes that one should learn to listen carefully to what others say. This shows how fully one is engaged with what the other is saying. After they are done talking, it’s also important to formulate your response before responding.
Nawatti further points out that after making the right connections, taking time to explore how you might help each other out is essential.
Ivang on the other hand says in this era where everything is becoming digital, there is need to use the opportunity to network, and that this can be achieved through making good use of social media.
He explains that social media is a powerful tool when used well, and that social networking is deeply reinforced by an in-person connection.
Also, he says engaging with people online is important for workers of all ages, but particularly if you want to make contact with younger prospects or companies working in the digital space.