Why Networking Matters

When you started your business, you probably did a lot of networking. I hope you haven't stopped. Building a business takes time, and it grows faster with referrals. But that's not the only reason to network. People you meet through networking can turn out to be good resources for your business. When you need specialized professional services, for example, someone in your network can probably refer you to that specialist.

Patrick Carney had a wonderful metaphor for describing what works in business relationships:

Southern California is home to many huge, tall, lush eucalyptus trees that topple over fairly easily in the high winds that occur almost every year.  When they’re uprooted and blown over, you can see that their root system is broad and wide but not very deep at all. Imagine your network in terms of those eucalyptus trees – for it to be strong it must not only be broad, but also deep

So keep networking to deepen those roots, so those relationships will be there for you when you need them.

Comments

[K]

Your network is gold.
Just recently I got myself into a jam
that took quite a few of us an entire week
to get me out of.
Not back to 100%
but without my network, I'd still be at zero.