Fallen out with old acquaintances and need to reconnect without sounding selfish?
Do you have trouble initiating email conversations to professional contacts you met once and never kept in touch?
Last month, Emily posted a blog on Positive networking, where she described about how to “not sound selfish” or just be nice to someone and chat without a motive during a networking event. Along those lines and as an example of positive networking, what better way to be unselfish and still re connect or initiate a conversation; than the holidays?
During the holidays, we all wish our near and dear ones. We exchange gifts with family, send greetings to family and friends, even some colleagues. Growing up, my father would make my brother and I handwrite season’s greeting cards which would be mailed to all our family, friends and his colleagues. I never understood why we had to wish people whom we saw or met maybe once, or maybe never in our lives. Today, I understand that my father was networking without being selfish then, but finding ways to remain connected with those who may be able to help later in the future.
It is one of those contacts, that helped me get an internship in the pharmaceutical during my undergraduate studies and another that provided me with career guidance to pursue research and get a PhD.
Although I am pursuing a different career than my father, he left me with a good practice that I find helps me network positively and follow up or reconnect easily. I graduated almost 6 months ago and I have been busy with my new job. I reconnected with my mentor, other professors and my colleagues over the holidays by dropping in a simple email. It was effortless and not time consuming and in my experience a great conversation starter!
So what are you waiting for, dig out the contacts of old acquaintances or connections that you never followed through and wish them a Happy New Year!
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Posted on behalf of the author Dr. Sudha Savant, PhD.
