I have learned something over the past few years that I think has been an incredibly important part of my growth both professionally and personally. It wasn’t something natural and it definitely wasn’t anything specifically taught in my school. It was the power of networking.

 

Networking seems to have this bad reputation, especially in Canada where we pride ourselves on “not bugging people”. I think it gets a bad rep because so many people see networking as selling something. I get it and if you use LinkedIn enough you absolutely have gotten those random connection requests from someone that has the key to YOUR success. Personally, I have had three special chances to get my Executive MBA in the past month alone!

 

With social media providing an easily scalable way to reach a lot of people, it has become a natural way of “networking”. I have learned that using social media only works to fill in small gaps. What really, truly works and the true power of networking is building that personal connection. A thousand LinkedIn Sales Navigator messages are worth one face-to-face coffee meeting. Building your network through personal connection will make your network that much better.

 

Let me explain with a little story.

 

My latest video used research from a Toronto-based Asset Manager named ReSolve Asset Management. They deal almost entirely with large institutional clients so I wasn’t very likely to have any business reasons to come across them in person. How I did meet them was through social media. I had seen some of their interactions which got me to reading some of their public research. That led to a local networking meetup which they had organized for a group of finance people in Toronto. From there I met Mike, Rod and Adam who are the driving forces behind the company.

 

Last year I went to the InsideETFs Canada conference in Montreal and was on the same flight as Mike. We had a good chat and he, for some unknown reason, introduced me to a bunch of people he knew in the ETF industry. Mike is one of those super-connectors and he knew EVERYONE. He invited me out to dinner with another advisor from the US and the three of us spent over two hours talking about the business. He introduced me to Joseph and Pierre who were there doing interviews with all the conference speakers. They were kind enough to even do a mock interview with me to help me get more comfortable being in front of a camera. It was a pretty big trip and suddenly my network had grown quite a bit.

 

Watching a super-connector like Mike was eye-opening. We all want to grow our business and that is one of the goals of networking but not once did I ever see him use this face-to-face time as an opportunity to sell. For Mike, it was all about the personal connection. There is an important lesson in there and watching a real pro network hammered home the point.

 

Networking isn’t about selling; it’s about building personal connections with people that you like and want to do business with. Networking is about building friendships in business.

 

My group of friends has been through thick and thin since our university days. Those adventures had both successes and failures and occasionally we get upset with each other but even now, 20 years later we still get together fairly regularly and build new levels to our friendship. Whether it’s supporting a friend with an ill parent or laughing when you realize your kid did the same dumb thing as everyone else’s kid, those little personal moments strengthen the bond of friendship we share.

 

If you work to build your network like you built your group of friends, by supporting and collaborating and being there when your network needs you, you will find great success. Like a great group of friends, the best network is the one where you give much more than you ever receive.

 

Think back to my story about Mike. He didn’t have to introduce me to anyone at that conference. He definitely didn’t have to invite me out to dinner. He did and it was almost entirely to my benefit. I think Mike knows that, in the end, his network will also greatly benefit him. By supporting others in your network without any expectation of personal gain, your network will be stronger and more supportive of you.

 

That is why I think you should build your network like you built your group of friends. With personal interactions and unwavering support not through hard sales pushes and impersonal communication tools. It will take time but in the end you will learn to find the fun in networking, just like I did.