by Thiru Murugan
Build Your Network Before You Need Them:
[Via Web Strategy by Jeremiah]
Jeremiah brings up some very important points. A network is not useful if you need it before it really exists. It needs to already be present.

Here’s a few things I’ve learned, and hope you intake, invest, and pass on:

1) You’re always looking for the next opportunity, simply shutting down what else is in the market is fool hearted. It doesn’ mean you need to jump ship before 1 month, or 1 year, but it means you should be talking to recruiters, companies, and hiring managers to see what next skills are needed now, and in the future. This will actually help your current employer, as you continue to skill up, take on new projects, as they invest in you. Remember, even if you work for someone else, you are a company of one.

2) Those who ignore the party/conversation/network when they are content and decide to drop in when they need the network may not succeed. It’s pretty easy to spot those that are just joining the network purely to take & not to give. Therefore, be part of the party/conversation/network before you need anything from anyone. Start now, and continue to build relationships by giving now: share knowledge, help others, and become a trusted node and connector, not just an outlying ‘dot’ of a comet that swings in every 4 years or so.

That is how things work if we need a network while looking for a job. An online social network is similar. It is much better to begin creating it now than to wait until a better time.

A small seed now can naturally grow quite rapidly. It is harder to grow if it is under a lot of other pressures.

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