Networking is one of the most important things someone committed to creating a better professional future must be aware of. Often, networking means having to attend various events, and the reality is with time devoted to your work along with time being devoted to family and friends, there often isn’t enough time to devote to networking events.
But what if you could network without leaving your home? Imagine being able to juggle family time and develop yourself professionally. This is a fantastic option and is available to you! The goal with networking from home is you have to seek out contacts, not have contacts seek you out. The best way to go about this is finding the right types of contacts.
Here are three different ways for you to develop your own personal network while never having to leave your home:
- Online Courses – These courses are great because you’ll find a group of people who have desires similar to yours to improve in a certain area. Another great networking contact: the course instructor. Being in touch with an expert in the field can provide immense resources that you otherwise would miss through traditional networking.
- Forums – Internet forums are fantastic ways to build your professional network. These forums allow you to post questions, answers and comment on general trends. By participating within these forums you’ll end up making contacts across the country and the best part is you never know who is lurking on those forums and taking notice of your contributions.
- Social Media –Twitter and Instagram are incredibly valuable for networking with nearly everyone. Make sure that you’re posting with the right hashtags and stick to a particular area of expertise. Using social media effectively gets you noticed by many different people at many different levels within your profession.
Networking doesn’t need to be something that costs you time away from your loved ones. Spending time at home but using your tablet, cellphone or laptop can bring you closer to many different people in many different places.
