#49 Nix Your Networking Fears

<p>When I say the word networking, what is your reaction?</p> <p>Do you instantly feel nervous? Confused? Overwhelmed? </p> <p>If you are presented with an opportunity to go to a networking event, do you start thinking up excuses to get out of it?</p> <p>If the answer is yes, you are in good company. Most of the emerging HR practitioners I talk to have a fear of networking and I was one of them. Despite being extroverted, I am a shy person and I do not like approaching people I don’t know and making small talk with them. I would only attend networking events if I knew other people were going and I could talk to them. As soon as I was left on my own I would head to the washroom or go home. Attending networking events was just not my scene. </p> <p>But, I also knew that it was essential to a successful HR career and in fact, it is still essential to my career as a professor and consultant. So, I knew early on in my career I had to figure out how to get over my fear and embrace this important activity and overcome my fear. </p> <p>If you can relate to my experience this episode is for you. Today I am going to share why I think people (like me) have a fear of networking and share a couple of tips to help you move past this fear so that you can take advantage of all the benefits networking can offer to your HR career. </p> <p>Here are the four reasons I believe people fear networking:</p> <ol><li style="font-weight:400;">They don’t understand the point of networking.</li> <li style="font-weight:400;">They don’t know where to start or what to do.</li> <li style="font-weight:400;">They don’t know who to network with.</li> <li style="font-weight:400;">They fear the rejection that might come with it.</li> </ol><p>In this episode, I share two core tips to help you overcome your fear of networking:</p> <ol><li>Reframing what networking is.</li> <li>Knowing who to network with.</li> </ol><p>Here are some helpful links and resources to help you on your networking journey:</p> <ul><li><a href='https://unicorngroup.ca/episode-8