Effective Networking While in School

No matter what type of personality that you have, you need to develop personable skills that will enable you to go further than you had ever hoped.

The reason behind developing your personality skills is so that you will network effectively in business environments. As you prepare to graduate school with your MBA, the last thing that you want to do is spend a lot of time looking for a job. Or even worse, conducting a job search through the newspaper. Not that there is anything inherently wrong with it, however, there are simply more effective ways to look for work before you finish school.

If you are not comfortable meeting new people and keeping a relevant, interesting conversation going, do yourself a favor and visit your local bookstore or office supply store. They no doubt have an audio CD section where you can pick and choose your topic of interest. You will be looking for "books-on-tape" that explain how to meet people in a business environment. Although, no matter how much information is given on the compact disc, it is still up to you to make the uncomfortable first move by introducing yourself. As you do this over and over you will get better and better at it until meeting people becomes almost second nature. If you are inherently shy, you will be shocked to see yourself doing things that you never thought possible and soon, others will see the change as well. Taking these simple first steps is the beginning to developing a magnetic personality that people want to be around.

Second, as you are at the office supply store, have some business cards made up. This way, you have a means of trading contact information with someone once you meet. If you find yourself in a situation where you are not currently working as a professional, do not be afraid to put down "future business leader" or "professional student" as a title. It makes a great conversation piece while also letting people know that you are in the market for opportunity. If the proverbial cards are played right, you may just meet people. So, just where are the best places for meeting people?

As you continue working on your degree, form a relationship with a representative from the career services office of your school. The folks that work in this area of your school are completely privy to the happenings of the industry that you are interested in finding work. Ask about guest speakers coming to campus, job fairs and trade shows. Trade shows are one of the favored spots to meet contacts in a given industry because you can spend 8 hours a day at the show and spend time meeting people. It is called getting your foot in the door!

Do not be afraid to put yourself out there amongst professionals out of fear that you are not good enough or some other lame reason along those lines. In order to convince people that you are a competent person for work, you need to show a little self-confidence.

by Michael Chasen

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