Today’s college students are navigating a cooling job market and rampant layoffs. All while feeling anxious about the uncertainty of their upcoming career search.
Yet, the most pressing question college students face is the same one that college students have faced for the last fifty years.
“How do I stand out amongst my peers seeking the same job?”
Many professors, parents, and career counselors will give you the same answer – build your professional network. But most do not teach you how to do it.
This blog outlines why a professional network is important, how it can make you stand out, and the best ways to do it.
Why Is Building a Professional Network Important?
Having surveyed college graduates that are 1 to 3 years into their career, the number one skill they wished they learned in college, but didn’t, was how to launch and grow a professional network. And the research shows how important having a professional network is in securing a job.
Only 30% of open job roles are posted on online job sites like Indeed, Career Builder, and LinkedIn Jobs. That means that 70% of potential internships and full-time jobs are hidden. Yet, one of the most popular forms of finding a job is spending countless hours sending resumes to companies online. And more often than not, job seekers never hear from those companies.
A college student that takes the initiative to launch and grow a professional network leverages the most underutilized practice to unlock hidden job opportunities. The statistics show that a job candidate referred by a contact in their network is 15 times more likely to receive a job offer.
How to Build a Professional Network to Stand Out?
There are two ways to position yourself in the job market. These approaches we term 1) Passive Networking (One of Many) and Actionable Networking (One With Many).
Passive Networking: One of Many
Passive Networking is the more prevalent concept taught in career development. Job seekers are given tactics to enhance their resume, strengthen their interview skills, and develop their personal pitch. The goal is to prepare for career fairs, social mixers, and introductions to companies. This is the typical process that colleges use to prepare students. This leads to:
- Attending career fairs alongside thousands of their peers
- Applying to online job postings against thousands of others
- Visiting pre-planned networking events where there are a few professionals trying to connect with dozens of job seekers
While Passive Networking is valuable, few gain a significant advantage. You are just One of Many doing the same thing. This results in a highly competitive environment, little differentiation, and no significant relationships to lean on during the job search.
Actionable Networking: One With Many
A rarely used, but more effective strategy is Actionable Networking. This approach refers to an individual creating and nurturing relationships based on a mutual exchange of value. These relationships are built by oneself and not provided to them by parents, campus resources, or professors. The outcome is One With Many contacts, who will likely assist an individual during their job search.
When an individual builds a professional network on their own, they find advocates in their job search. This sets themselves apart from their peers. And with it, you can stand out.
Actionable Networking is the key to unlocking the hidden job market.
Actionable Networking: Rethink Your Job Searching Strategy
Industry professionals are overwhelmingly open to meeting with emerging professionals. They are willing to give advice, share knowledge, and refer hidden opportunities. Actionable Networking starts by taking the initiative to find and reach out to industry professionals you have never met.
As the saying goes, Rome was not built in a day. Yet, it has stood the test of time. So too, in Actionable Networking, you will not build a network in a day. It takes time. You need to:
- Research industries, companies, and contacts that interest a college student
- Outreach to contacts with personalized invitations to meet
- Meet with contacts to learn about them and get advice
- Elevate these new relationships by providing ongoing value
The ROME Methodology catapults you to build and nurture a professional network that will provide value and opportunities for decades to come.
Want to Start Actionable Networking?
The biggest hurdle to overcome is getting started. It’s difficult to add energy to something else, especially doing it on your own. Our Actionable Networking Workshop is designed with this in mind.
The Actionable Networking Workshop is a live, virtual experience that guides college students and recent graduates through the step-by-step process of launching and growing a professional network. Our cohort-based model brings participants together in a group setting that creates collaboration and teamwork. Group and one-on-one coaching throughout helps participants gain confidence by celebrating small wins along the way, as well as holding them accountable to the outlined benchmarks at every step.
Be the One With Many rather than being One of Many. Start Actionable Networking now!
