By CPA Jamlick Kogi, MMSK
Are You Engaging Your Network Strategically?
Today, three things are indisputable: avocados are fruits; Whitney is considered a unisex name, though commonly used for females; and greetings are proven ways to initiate a conversation and build a network. Talking of greetings, I would be remiss if I did not greet all of you, my dear readers, with the now popular salutation, ‘hi cousins!’
As Robert Kiyosaki, author of Rich Dad Poor Dad, opined, rich people look for and build networks; everyone else looks for work. The saying emphasises that networks can enhance your material and social wealth. According to the Professional Networking Institute, 95% of people think face-to-face meetings are essential for maintaining long-term business connections, yet only 25% network. Whether fear, busy schedules or any other excuse stops you from networking, let’s explore fundamentals that will elevate your networking and relationship-building skills.
Beginning from the basics
Networking is the process of making connections and building relations. From where I sit, a sure way to begin your networking journey is to clarify your networking objective. Whether you want to network to exchange ideas, information, grow your professional network, or even to DATE-which I coin and retrofit as ‘Dilly-dallying Anywhere to Experiment’- if the relationship would work and amount to a ‘till death do you part relationship, or risk becoming a ‘one term’ encounter.
The power of getting the name right and remembering it
While many may recall the infamous ‘you should know people’ saying by a former Deputy Chief Justice of Kenya, you should literally know people by asking their name when you meet them. It is important to get the name right without making assumptions. I take no offence if you call me Jamleck instead of Jamlick.
Some people have even called me ‘Koigi’ in lieu of ‘Kogi.’ I lightly corrected them that my second name is ‘Kogi’ and the last letter ‘I’ is pronounced like the ‘A’ in ‘able’ and reserved for important things like iPhone and iPad. But I digress. Some people may take offence when you don’t get their name right. A famous media personality in Kenya takes offence when you call her Carol instead of Caroline.
A ‘you look familiar’ is a dull excuse for forgetting someone when you meet them for the second or third time, and it indirectly urges them to remind you who they are and where you met. It is important to remember a person’s name. Call them by the name they prefer, and ask how it is pronounced if you are not sure.
Categorise your contact
Let’s be realistic here, you cannot know everybody. Apply the Pareto principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, when building your network. In business, 80% of sales may come from 20% of your customers. You wear 20% of the clothes in your wardrobe, 80% of the time. Similarly, you speak to about 20% of your contacts, 80% of the time. With this reality, you can come up with a list of 100 contacts in an Excel sheet and categorise them in a way you remember and relate to. Define them as family, friends, professionals, business, politician, clergy, among any other classification that may be applicable to you.
You can add columns to even indicate where you met. Additionally, you can indicate the hobbies of the people who make it in your 100-contact database or add something special they mentioned to you when you first or last met. This could be their upcoming birthday, the number of children, or even the day of their anniversary.
Finding common ground
Paying attention to the special interests of the people in your network and what they like provides an opportunity to find common ground for further conversations or to plan future meetups. For example, if you are passionate about a similar sport, you can initiate a conversation and ask someone in your contact list to meet for a game. If they love coffee, you can propose meeting over a cup to discuss business ideas. If they are prayerful, you can propose meeting to share a verse from the Bible or the Quran.
Keep- in- touch strategies (K.I.T.S)
‘Out of sight, out of mind.’ The world works with the familiar. You must be strategic with the way you engage your networks to avoid being perceived as ‘needy’ or ‘desperate.’ You should set yourself apart from every Tabitha, Dorothy and Harriet or from every Tom, Dick and Harry; for gender balance’s sake, who only reach out to people when they have a particular need.
Does being added to a WhatsApp group by a classmate who last spoke to you more than 5 years ago, or when you last met, to contribute to their social cause sound familiar? It is a case of your infamous Kenyan politicians who reappear after five years to seek re-election. Do you take it kindly when people reach out to you only when they need help?
Make it a habit to call people in your 100-contact database at least once a month. Genuinely find out how they are doing. Congratulate and celebrate their achievements. Cheer them on. Get to know them deeper, if they let you, to connect beyond the superficial, ‘hi, good to see you, talk soon, bye.’
Give before you receive
When building sustainable networks, start by providing value before you request a favour or ask for help. Refer people in your network to opportunities. It could be a good article on trade, a job opportunity, or putting a good word in for them as the go-to consultants for whatever under the sun they are good at. If you are not sure how to be of value, ask how you can be of help. When your time of need comes, people in your network will not hesitate to reciprocate.
Make time to meet people.
I would be remiss if I did not emphasise that your career, family, and business are important and deserve priority when allocating your time. However, make time for your friends. Attend weddings, birthdays, and graduations of your colleagues and friends. Make time for hospital visits and attend funerals of their close family members. Your presence has a greater impact than just sending them money.
When all is said and done
The art of initiating conversations, building networks and sustaining meaningful relations is two-way traffic. Talk with those who are willing to talk with you. Make time for those who make time for you. Believe that good people still exist out there, and they can be part of your network. Keep in touch so that you get to know people and they get to know you.
There is power in referrals. You can expand your 100-contact database by asking people in your networks to recommend you whenever you need to get in touch with someone they know. Respect the boundaries and preferences of the people you interact with.
You can take this to your bank and cash it, or buy crypto with good utility for speculation. Your personality and values determine the people you attract. Be good to people, and they will be good to you. The conversation about networking cannot be wished away. Hata nilitenga a full chapter on ‘Basics of networking’ in my second book, A Better Tomorrow. Let’s keep the conversation going about building a network that elevates your personal brand and others’ as well, shall we?
CPA Jamlick is an alumnus of the African Liberty Writing Fellowship and the author of; The X-Matrix: 7 P’s of Success, A Better Tomorrow, and Take That Shot. He currently serves as Assistant Manager, Business Development and Revenue Diversification, at ICPAK. According to his mother, he was born talking.
