Tips for Building Strong Carrier Relationships

I landed back in Los Angeles after a 4-day legal convention in Vegas and realized something: People are great at networking in the moment, but struggle to follow-up and keep relationships after an event like a major convention. To make sure all of the connections you made are sustained long-term, here's a step-by-step guide to effectively follow up post-convention: 📝 Personalized Note Writing: Always begin with a personalized note. Thank your new contacts for their time and highlight specific topics or moments you shared. A handwritten note can make a deep impression in today's digital world, signaling thoughtfulness and genuine interest. 📲 Organize Contact Details: Compile a database of the addresses, emails, and other contact details you've gathered. Tools like Microsoft Excel or CRM platforms like Salesforce or HubSpot can be great for this. This not only helps with immediate follow-up but aids in long-term relationship management. 🤳🏻 Engage on Social Media:   Connect with your new contacts on platforms like LinkedIn, YouTube, IG, Facebook and TikTok. Engage with their posts to foster online rapport, but ensure your interactions are meaningful. 📩 Newsletters:   If you have a newsletter, consider adding your new contacts to the mailing list (with their consent). This keeps them updated on your activities, insights, and the latest happenings in the legal field. 🔄 Share Your Work: If you've written books, articles, or other publications, share them. It not only positions you as an expert but provides value to your contacts. ✅ Regular Check-ins:   Set reminders to touch base periodically. You could share relevant articles, wish them on holidays, or update them about significant milestones in your career. 👏🏼 Tips and Insights: Offer helpful tips or insights from the convention or from your experience. It’s a non-invasive way to remind them of the value you bring to the table. 🤝 Long-Term Relationship Building Relationships are not about transactions but genuine connections. Ensure your interactions are not always business-focused. Learn about their interests, congratulate them on personal achievements, and be there during challenging times. 📚 Recommend Books: If you've come across insightful books (including ones you've written), recommend them. It's a subtle way to showcase your expertise and share knowledge. 🎉 Events and Reunions: Consider organizing or attending reunion events for convention attendees. It's a way to rekindle connections and stay updated on each other’s progress. Remember: post-convention networking is an art. It requires genuine interest, persistence, and patience. By investing time and effort into nurturing these relationships, you'll not only grow your network but also enrich your professional journey. Remember, it's not about how many contacts you have, but the depth and quality of those connections. #networking #lawyer #success #relationshipbuilding

Here's one of my favorite pieces of career advice: take actions that create more options. Having options means having greater autonomy. Something I wish I learned sooner is that sometimes you have plant seeds way in advance of when those seeds will actually bloom into options. I often discuss this principle with junior lawyers, when the question "When do I need to start focusing on business development?" comes up. My answer: Sooner than you might think, perhaps not for the reasons you think, and likely not in the way that you think. When: now Why: creating options How: building relationships internally, especially if you're at a midsize to large firm As a junior lawyer at a midsize to large law firm, you won't be originating work. But that doesn't mean you can't make a positive contribution for your firm—and create more options for yourself. Some of the long-term opportunities that may arise when you build strong relationships with colleagues, across offices and practice groups, include: - Getting brought in by your colleagues to help pitch and win new matters. - Generating referral work from lawyers you currently work with who move on to other firms. - Generating client work directly from those who move in-house. - Inheriting clients from other lawyers when they retire, move in-house, or otherwise transition out of the firm. These things won't happen overnight. But they won't happen at all if you don't start building strong relationships now. Here are some tangible steps you can take to position yourself for future success: 1. Rethink your value proposition. You're an important member of the team, not a worker bee. Even as a first-year lawyer, you can make a valuable contribution. 2. Make yourself visible. Be an active networker within your firm, especially with those in other offices and practice groups. Showcase your communication and leadership skills through internal presentations, writing for internal and external publications and participating in firm committees. 3. Take ownership. From client work product to internal firm initiatives, adopt an ownership mindset for every task you take on. If you hope to make partner at your firm some day, it’s never too early to start acting like one. Even if you're not interested in making partner, this mindset will serve you well in any endeavor you pursue. 4. Be proactive. Look for opportunities to contribute. Bring ideas to the table. Show enthusiasm. 5. Be a sponge. Pay attention to the habits and practices of the high achievers in your firm. The path to success has been marked by trailblazers who came before you. Follow their lead. If you're a junior lawyer, taking these steps will go a long way toward helping you succeed in both the practice and business of law, and create more options for you—from advancement in your firm to capitalizing on other career opportunities—in the future.

Angling for that next promotion? Most of the high achievers I coach over-index on solo strategies to get ahead: taking all the classes, accepting every assignment, working crazy hours to prove their dedication. That stuff can be helpful, but what they typically deprioritize (or avoid like the plague) is the interpersonal piece of the puzzle: building relationships and communication channels for mutual support and growth. Here are some often-neglected interpersonal approaches to lay the foundation for your next role: -Proactively seek feedback: Request input from your superiors and incorporate feedback to enhance your performance. Most people don’t know how to give effective feedback, so be specific about what you’re seeking and make it easy for them to give it to you. -Keep people in the loop: Clearly articulate your ideas, share progress updates, and communicate your achievements. While you may feel your accomplishments should speak for themselves, most people are too busy to be paying much attention. Expect to have to champion your results to get them on others’ radar. -Build a strong network: Cultivate relationships across the board, be it peer-to-peer, superiors, and industry influencers, to expand your opportunities. This isn’t sleazy schmoozing; seek to show up authentically, add value, and prepare to invest in these relationships for the sake of the relationships themselves. Any professional growth that might result is just the cherry on top. -Invite a mentor: Find someone who can provide guidance and support and advocate for your professional growth - then explicitly invite them to mentor you. Trying to go it alone is an overused and limiting strategy for many high achieving ICs, and a lot of folks point to a “mentor” who doesn’t even know they’ve been designated as such. TLDR: By seeking feedback, communicating effectively, building a strong network, and seeking mentorship, you’ll build a strong foundation for growth ahead (and probably make some great new friends along the way.) #leadership #growth #learning #development #relationships #peopleskills #coaching

How does networking turn into a job opportunity? We've all heard it before - networking is crucial for career growth and finding new job opportunities. But how do you tap into your network authentically without coming across as simply using connections? Truthfully build relationships that are built on mutual understanding and value exchange. Networking was never a one-way street and should be done with long-term intentions. Here are a few things I did that allowed me to turn relationships into career opportunities: 1. Provide Value First - Before asking for ANYTHING, see how you can help. This can be done through sharing industry insights, personal contacts, or sharing your expertise on a subject matter pro bono. 2. Express Authentic Interest - It's obvious when you're faking it! Learn their goals, interests, and pain points and ask thoughtful questions to have real conversations about more than just work. 3. Stay Top-of-Mind - Share updates on projects you're working on, milestones you've hit, or just check in periodically. This allows you to stay present in conversation. 4. Pay it Forward - Make intros between connections who could benefit each other, without the expectancy of something in return. Adopt the habit of giving just to give! These tips have allowed me to turn my network into my career superpower, supporting personal and professional goals. Drop some of your tips for building genuine relationships in the comments. #Networking #BlackLinkedIn

I went from a newbie PMM to a Director in 3 years. This is the most important thing I did that helped me get there 👇 I built my career team. Specifically, I had four kinds of people in my career team: 1️⃣ Thought partners - These are peers I can bounce ideas with. Early in my career, I was fortunate enough to meet awesome peers like Brian Lee, who not only was my confidant but also challenged my thinking in all the right ways. 2️⃣ Sponsors - It’s nice to have many people who are your peers, but you need people in positions of power too. Sponsors are generally senior to you and have the power to give you more opportunities. These could be the head of sales, the head of product, your boss, or more. I focused on building genuine relationships and adding value to sponsors, which helped me get exposure to bigger/better projects and opportunities. 3️⃣ Mentors - Mentors are people who are more senior to you and can give you advice and inspire you. Most of my mentors are outside of the companies I worked for, and they helped me think through sticky situations and provided insights since they have walked the walk. Thank you, Alex Henthorn-Iwane, for being awesome! 4️⃣ Coaches - Coaches are dedicated professionals who help you reach your goals in a structured fashion. I benefited significantly from coaches and learned how to advocate for myself, how to earn trust and be a better leader - which fundamentally changed my mindset and got me to where I needed to go faster. In summary, our career success is positively correlated with the amount of people who want to help us succeed. That’s why, to reach your goals faster, you need a team. ❓ Who has been helpful to you in your career in 2023, and what additional relationships will you build and add to your career team in 2024? #productmarketing #careergrowth #leadership #marketing #careercoach

Here are 9 networking tips I've learned that helped me build my network: Successful networking is doing what others won't think of (or are simply too lazy to do) 1) Don't be afraid to reach out In fact the younger you are when you reach out, the better! This is why I'm such a big fan of high school students cold emailing who they look up to - it works 2) Don't forget to follow up Just because you didn't get a response doesn't mean no I've personally had incredible conversations after following up 10+ times 3) Tap college networks Many miss this and think there has to be an official dinner or conference A simple note to someone who went to your school has a higher probability of getting a response, regardless of the request 4) Don't do what's normal One of the largest networks I've developed was from staying in touch with people who rejected me during an interview process Literally nobody does this and gets pissed off instead I've created hundreds of relationships this way, and the fact that you stayed in touch after rejection makes them so much stronger 5) Keep track Start keeping track of all of your relationships in a centralized place I wish I understood this much earlier 6) Show gratitude Every conversation leaves a mark - say thank you and remember what people taught you This is especially important when it comes to people who introduced you to someone Tell them how it went, and don't wait for them to check in with you 7) Find ways to stay in touch without an ask I recommend Google alerts, but you can also send a quick email after seeing that they closed on a deal or got promoted...these do get noticed 8) Don't miss opportunities I got accepted to University of Cambridge during college for a graduate programme (let's see who gets that spelling) but ended up not going Some of the top students in the entire world got accepted and went on to have wildly successful careers, so I found a bunch of them through LinkedIn post graduation and we stay in touch to this day 9) Use conferences strategically I don't like small talk and I really hate wasting time The thought of talking to someone for ten minutes about the hot summers in AZ isn't interesting to me During most conferences, I try to spend a lot more time observing and jotting down notes of what people said rather than talking to them....in a week or two I'll follow up with them with amazing notes This has worked wonders for me over the years I hope this helps you guys, happy networking 🙏🏼 Follow Aleksey Chernobelskiy for more on investments (and some tips once in a while)

Are you looking to grow professionally through networking? Here are some expert tips to help guide your efforts: 1. Start by defining your objectives. Determine your goals before expanding your network. Having clear objectives will guide your networking efforts. 2. Focus on clarity when communicating with others. Avoid trying to impress with jargon or titles. Instead, focus on being understood quickly and easily. 3. Prioritize building relationships over collecting business cards. Add value to your network by asking how you can support others. This fosters trust and mutual support. 4. Help your network connect with each other. Introduce contacts who can benefit from each other's services or expertise. This adds value to your network and strengthens relationships. 5. Attend events that genuinely interest you, rather than just following the crowd. This allows you to be yourself and engage more authentically. Especially if you have a limited budget. 6. Networking is not just an event; it's a mindset. Be interested in others, ask powerful questions, and listen deeply. This approach helps build trust and lasting connections. 7. Schedule regular touch-base calls or meetings with contacts. This keeps relationships fresh and helps you support each other's work and career development. 8. Instead of focusing on what people do, get to know their motivations and passions. This deeper understanding can lead to more meaningful connections and longer lasting relationships. 9. Have a plan when attending networking events. Know who you want to meet and what you hope to gain from the event. This preparation can increase your chances of success. Pre-event planning. 10. Be attuned to the body language and vocal delivery of others. This awareness can help you interpret their intent and respond appropriately. 11. After networking, follow up with new contacts. Keep your promises and maintain the momentum of your relationships. Deliver some complimentary tips, ideas or recommendations. Remember, networking is a skill that requires time, effort, and patience. Building a strong professional network is an ongoing process that can open doors to new opportunities and enrich your professional and personal life.

My best advice for building a network: Network before you need to! What is the #1 cause for ineffective networking? Desperation. And where does desperation come from? Needing a job. Don’t make the mistake of waiting until you need a job or desperately want to leave your current job to start building a network. Those with the most seamless career transitions are always the ones with the strongest networks. Having a strong network can be the difference between getting hired into a new role with zero gap and endlessly applying for six months with no luck. Here are ways to build your network starting NOW: 1. Engage with other companies and employees on LinkedIn and/or social media. One way to get noticed by companies that you like is to engage with their content on LinkedIn or other social sites. Follow companies that you’re interested in or may want to work for in the future. Keep up to date with their progress, growth and initiatives. This goes for employees of the company as well. If companies or people see you consistently engaging with their content, it’s easier to facilitate a conversation with them, so you don’t have to shoot out those cringy, cold messages later. It also gives you great conversational ammunition for later when you may decide to reach out and strike up a conversation with someone at your dream company. They’ll be extra impressed if you’re educated about what is happening at their company. 2. Engage with employees inside your CURRENT company. Building a useful network is not just about using the “grass is greener on the other side” approach. Yes, it makes sense to start building relationships at companies that you may want to work for in the future, but don’t neglect the easiest connections you already have—the ones around you NOW! Ask for LinkedIn recommendations. Go to lunch with a manager or colleague. It’s so easy to just do your work and go home (or log off in a remote role). Building a relationship with people who could potentially help you later is worth the effort. 3. Orchestrate frequent informational interviews. Seek out informational interviews with professionals you admire or individuals working in your target companies or industries. These interviews are not about job openings but about gaining insight into their career paths and industries. Approach these conversations with a genuine interest in learning and networking, not just job-seeking. Remember, building a professional network is an ongoing process. Regularly check in with your contacts, offer support when needed, and be proactive in helping others when you can. By doing so, you'll have a strong and supportive network in place when you need it most, whether it's for job opportunities, career advice, or professional growth.

To recent grads / young professionals... When you're early in your career, one of your superpowers is the ability to be a learning machine and build relationships with mentors. You can reach out to almost anyone you'd like to contact and ask people for their time to learn from them. To do this well, you need to be intentional, thoughtful, prepared, and great at following up and following through. - Intentional. You have a list of people you want to learn from and build relationships with. If you reach out directly, that's fine, but the stakes are higher for a thoughtful message. It's easy to think that people are too busy and they won't respond to you -- but that's wrong. It's still a numbers game, most won't, but you can get to more people than you imagine if you're thoughtful and politely persistent in your outreach. You miss 100% of the shots you don't take. - Thoughtful. This is simple... don't send a general advice email. You want to be distinct. The good news is anyone can stand out, it just requires doing a little more work to be thoughtful and clear. Share specifics why you'd like to learn from the person, and how that overlaps with what you're passionate about. And of course, make it concise. - Prepared. Once you get a call or meeting... awesome! Be prepared with thoughtful questions, your story, and what you're curious/passionate about. If not, the person you're meeting with will notice the lack of preparedness. And while people won't say this to you directly -- not being prepared is lazy. Being prepared shows you care and that you're serious about the person's time and about your personal learning/development, which people will respect. - Follow up and follow through. Because you took notes, you have information to follow up and follow through on. If you say you're going to do X, do it! When you make a commitment, even if it seems small or insignificant, follow up on it. "Do what you say you'll do" is one of the best mantras to live out early in your career. And always send a thank you. Even if it's email -- send a thoughtful, concise thanks. A written note is above and beyond because it requires extra work and is distinct. Up to you how creative you want to be here. In summary, you have the choice to do way more than you might think you're capable of when it comes to learning from others and building relationships. If you're intentional, prepared, thoughtful, and you follow up/follow through -- you will gain extraordinary learnings and spark serendipity. The best part is that anyone can do this stuff -- if they want to. Take small steps, be resilient when you hear "no" or nothing, and know that people WILL believe in you and support you.