The Cadence of Networking.
Hi There,
As I settle into 2022, I find myself still dating things ‘21. Other than that, I’ve acclimated quickly, and feel optimistic about my Cadence as it relates to energy and time.
When it became clear that my Word of the Year would be Cadence, my older, wiser self of the future was at top of mind. How can motivated professionals make decisions in the present that will benefit both the current self and the future self? As I marinated on this conundrum, insights were revealed about how I want life’s rhythm to feel and look NOW, and what success would look like in the future. Once I created that vision of success, I asked myself some of my standard coaching discovery questions and recognized that I’ve inadvertently fallen into a healthy and effortless Cadence in my networking practices. What an immense change!
The main challenge with networking is that despite its importance, it never seems to achieve the status of urgent. There was such an abundance of networking events on offer each day in NYC that it was not a big deal to no-show unless I was presenting or had a specific relationship with the organizer.
Well, the logistical challenges of traveling all over NYC to network have disappeared, replaced by the urgency of tending to our health and safety during pandemic times. Now there’s more time and Space than ever to network— remotely!
Ironically, my initial response to the shutdown in March 2020 was to reach out to many cherished colleagues for a check-in. After an initial conversation, I asked if they wanted to plan an additional check-in. This evolved into connecting with my network at predetermined intervals of time.
The “custom” recurring meeting option on my Google calendar made it a piece of cake to invite Megan for a call on the 4th Friday of the month, and Lenka every other Tuesday, with two easy calendar entries! My C-IQ EU Collective meetings, also every other Tuesday, are even more “high-tech”. I downloaded meeting information once and it automatically populates the appropriate time slots for an entire year!
No matter the Cadence of these check-ins, the result has been consistent contact with my network and a holistic appreciation of cherished colleagues’ goals, needs, strides and challenges. I feel more equipped to help!
The other truism that Cadence has revealed is that it’s powerful to subtract from, not only add to, our lives.
Keep an eye on your inbox next Tuesday for a counterintuitive move I’ve decided to make when it comes to networking.
Cheers!
-Deborah
Deborah Goldstein
DRIVEN Professionals / Forbes / Linkedin
info@drivenpros.com | LinkedIn
DRIVEN Professionals, 35 Adrienne Lane, Garrison, NY 10524