I attended a training last week about job search. Among our activities was writing how we got to know our company and how we applied eventually. Some of the choices were walk-in, wanted ads, and networking. I wrote networking on my index card and surprisingly I was among the majority who had the same answer.
When our instructor flipped the next page of the Powerpoint it displayed the statistics of job search methods. The figure showed that more than 60 percent of successful job search was due to referrals from friends, colleagues, classmates, schoolmates, neighbors and some relatives. The rest of the methods shared the remainder of the pie chart.
That session made me realize that no matter how busy we are, our network just had to be constantly visited or updated. From then on, I felt the need to open the communication lines whatever the medium may be. I need to act fast before I become a no-one among my network and become the weakest or at least visible among the links.
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I am a spider that has been in hibernation. All of a sudden awakened from my comfortable spot in the middle of the web. The hunger and urge to check on what has happened around just kicked in. I need to see if the web needs repair, or if there are trapped insects for a meal.
Such fitting analogy. The spider and its web have elements that reflect a network. The webs are my connections and I’m pondering now if there was any damage done due to my inactivity. Have I been too busy that led me to forget to check in on friends? Have they eventually took me out of their “favorites” list? Hopefully, it isn’t too late.
The insects in the silky trap may be considered updates from friends, technological development in my field of study or even trends. It may even be job opportunities that my network has offered for me.
Isn’t it now a good time to spin the web.
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Credit: Spiderweb photo by Jon Sullivan
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