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From a career standpoint, networking involves developing a list of personal contacts who can help you achieve goals and to whom you offer something of value in exchange

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From a career standpoint, networking involves developing a list of personal contacts who can help you achieve goals and to whom you offer something of value in exchange. Networking is a career-long process, but the time to begin is now. Quite often the people who have been in your network the longest become your most valuable contacts. To begin networking, or systematize the networking you are now doing, implement the following steps: Step 1: Write down the type of assistance you are seeking for the next several months. Perhaps you need leads for a job, advice about getting ahead in your industry, or help with a difficult computer problem. Step 2: List all the people who might be able to provide you the assistance you need. Among them might be fellow students, former employers, neighbors, and faculty members. Prepare a contact card or database entry for each person on your list as if they were sales prospects. Include relevant details, such as name, position, major, e-mail address, phone numbers, postal address, and favorite pastimes. (Setting up a table with a word processor would work quite well for listing entries, or you can use a spreadsheet.) Step 3: Identify an action step for making contact with the potential network members. Quite often the initial contact will be by e-mail. Gently mention that you would enjoy a telephone conversation or face-to-face meeting if it fit the contact’s interest and schedule. You might also be able to think of creative ways to make the initial contact in person, such as attending professional meetings or talking to a neighbor while he or she is washing a car or doing yard work. Step 4: Identify how you might be able to help each person in your contact list, or how you can reciprocate. For example, if a marketing person gives you an idea for a job lead, you can become part of his or her company’s guerilla marketing team (you say nice things about the company’s product to friends and in public or use the product in public). Sometimes the best approach is to ask the person who becomes part of your network what you can do to reciprocate. Step 5: Maintain a log of all the contacts you make and what took place, such as an agreed-upon face-to-face meeting or specific assistance received. Indicate how you responded to the assistance, such as “I visited my contact’s company Web site, went to the career section, and included her name as a person who is familiar with my work.” Write down carefully your plans for reciprocity. Make a checklist as to whether you remembered to thank the person for any courtesy he or she extended to you. Step 6: Update your log weekly, even if the activity requires only a few minutes of your attention. A network of helpers is a dynamic list, with people entering and exiting your network frequently. Each week, ask yourself, “Whom can I add to my network this week?”