With A Little Help From My Friends (Part 2)


In a previous post “With a Little Help From My Friends (Part 1)”, I mentioned Whitney Johnson’s networking initiative where if you were interested, she would randomly pair you up with someone in her network and you could network with that person via Skype.  The purpose of the initiative was for two people to help each other.  For example, maybe you can help that person by opening up your network and introducing that person to someone in your network.

I volunteered to participate in Ms. Johnson’s networking initiative, because as a job seeker I want to meet new people. 

What does "networking" mean to me?  You become quite practiced in striking up a conversation with people you don't know.  I try to connect with people on a personal level.   I like to learn something about the person and identify common ground.  Maybe I’ll ask a question or maybe I can talk about something from my experience that coincides with the conversational flow.  After the conversation I’ll look for opportunities to engage with that person.  Maybe I can share something with them like an event, an article or even one of my posts.

When Ms. Johnson introduced me to someone in her network, I was excited to learn that I’ll be Skyping with someone from another country!  (I’m from Canada.)  

We had our Skype conversation earlier this week.  We had a great conversation!  

What I appreciated most about the Skype conversation was that the other person was PRESENT.  I felt heard.  The other person was very patient and waited until I finished my thought.  This person was an attentive listener.  

I on the other hand, if you’re talking to me face-to-face, can become excited and sometimes interrupt.  I was very good and did not interrupt once during the conversation!  I was very attentive and focused on everything that this person had to say.

During the conversation I mentioned that I was in transition.  We talked about why we work.  Immediately I said that I would like to work so that I could once again draw an income.  My Skype partner then reminded me of some of the other reasons why we work:  to feel engaged, to feel that we belong in an organization and to feel a sense of purpose in the work that we’re carrying out. 

I had no expectations of what this conversation would bring, but I can honestly say that this conversation helped me out.   When you have been in transition for awhile, you begin to think that finding a job is quite elusive and you forget some of the deeper reasons for why you want to work!

I can’t speak to whether the other person felt that I helped, but they did appreciate my perspective on things.    

Thank you, Whitney Johnson, for organizing this terrific networking initiative! 

I found it very helpful!  


Originally Published on LinkedIn:  June 3, 2016
Image Credit: iStock

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Launch

Image
I invite you to the launch of my new blog web site on the Blogger platform! I call my blog “The Positive Pathfinder.” You can find my blog here (URL = thepositivepathfinder.blogspot.com).  I wanted to expand my social media presence. I wanted to learn something new. And I wanted to set up a portfolio of my posts where I could direct potential employers to. After pondering 72 names over 2 days, I decided on calling my blog “The Positive Pathfinder.” First I’m a positive guy.  Also, I’m at a stage in life where I feel like I’m in flux. Don’t quite know what I’ll be doing, but I know I want to pursue some interests of mine, like setting up a blog web site (done) and taking an improv class (done and in progress). I am positive that I am not the only one who feels like they are in flux and so I am excited to continue to share my thoughts and experiences with you and to draw inspiration from your thoughts and experiences as well. We can learn and inspire each
Read more

Compound Interest (And Not the Financial Kind)

Image
I watched a movie on video yesterday called “Hello, My Name Is Doris” with Sally Field.  I would describe this movie as a dramedy where instead of boy meets girl and boy falls in love with girl, the movie turns things around where girl (Sally Field) meets boy (Max Greenfield) and girl falls in love with boy.  I liked this movie!  You can read a movie review from Variety  here .   One of the elements in the movie was Facebook where girl attempts to connect with boy on a personal level by going on Facebook and finding out about his interests.  The girl finds out that one of his interests is a particular electronica band.  By happenstance, the band would be playing at a local club, and she goes to the club in hopes of meeting the boy.  This reminds me about networking.  During face-to-face networking we try to find common ground.  We ask questions to find out what a person does, where they work or went to school.   We show interest in the other person by asking questions.  Mayb
Read more

Voice

Image
The other day a pensioner called at work. I happened to have picked up the phone.  He was very passionate, and I gathered that he wasn’t happy with the amount that he was receiving in old age pension. I asked if he called his MP’s constituency office. No, he hadn’t, because it wouldn’t help.    I sensed that this person didn’t feel that he had a voice when it came to his pension. Nowadays you hear headlines where robots are taking over jobs in the workplace. I think some employers would concur with the notion that employees should be seen rather than be heard. And like a robot they have no voice. For most of my working life, I went along with the notion that employees should be seen rather than be heard. In January 2013 I lost my job.     I found my job search to be a challenging time.  Out of resignation, really, I decided to write a LinkedIn post at a friend’s suggestion.   A light switch turned on when I wrote my very first po
Read more