www.fastcompany.com: “There’s a guy who reached out to me earlier this week, and asked to do a Zoom call with me,” one of my coaching clients told me. They’re in a professional group together, so my client said yes. Within the first 10 minutes, the colleague asked him for a major favor. “I was taken aback,” my client said. “I don’t want to be a jerk, so I usually say I’ll help, but feel pretty used afterwards.”
6 comments:
Networking is one of the only ways to get a job right now. Like, you may be qualified for any number of positions but if you don't know the right people, especially in theatre, then you're not going to get your foot in the right door and get the job you want. I don't know how I've been so lucky to have professionals and colleagues who would say such kind things about me and refer me to other companies to work and it's just because I wanted to do a good job for them. But like, all of the concepts they talked about in the article about like delaying favors, having clear communication to make your intentions known and "thinking creatively to help" all sound good for the professionals that you barely know. But I can't imagine an instance I would have where I introduce myself to someone I don't know to get a job. Like, wouldn't you want the person helping you get the job to know you a little bit more before you go off and ask them to recommend you for jobs?
Ensuring people do not feel used when networking is something Isimultaniously hadn’t yet had considered before. It’s one of those things that is always in the back of your mind. Something you learn to navigate with experience, I guess. As the article points out, I have always been on the firm belief that intentions should be made clear from the first interaction forward. Never “sneak a favor”. Clear intentions not only enforce the idea of easy readability, but they draw focus to what is seemingly important. That being said, networking is all about adding value. So, as the article also points out, one must think creatively about how to ask and/or provide help upon request. I do think the article falls short on the subject of boundaries– touching upon them but not fully elaborating the idea. From experience, I’d suggest drawing boundaries if you’re the person providing help as oftentimes the lines are blurred later in the relationship.
I think this is really important. This is a practice I have been pretty conscious of for a considerable amount of time. I think that a lot of people expect you to want something. Especially, at networking events, such as USITT it is easy to get caught up in the phenomena that the more connections you have the better off you are. Rather, I'd argue the value and strength of that connection matters more over the quantity. I recently was offered a position that I am not sure I am ready for. I was upfront about my experience and said I would do what i could. But this part of the article "Well, I don’t belong here... I’m going to take and I’m going to learn, but every time, I’m going to also add that resource back in" really resonated with me. Even if I don't have the exact qualifications of the job, I have my own skillsets and need to not doubt myself. A team can benefit from each other. Overall, i think this article really reminded me of some things today and I appreciated it.
This article is extremely relevant not just in life but specifically in the theatre industry. Most of the time, finding a job in the entertainment industry is about the people you know and the connections you make through experiences. Therefore, this article gave insight into what to avoid when attempting to network in these situations. As someone who is just starting out in the professional entertainment industry, I found this article helpful in identifying how I want to present my skills or ideas to others. One of the tips in this article that stood out to me was “think creatively about how you can help”. This is something I always keep in mind because anyone can complete a basic task, but what makes you the right person for that job is what unique perspective you are going to bring to it, always keeping in mind opportunities for improvements or making something more efficient.
Honestly, the mistakes mentioned in this article are why I’ve always not been a fan of networking myself. The line being someone feeling used and creating mutually beneficial networks is a lot thinner than most think, so seeing these tips really helped me figure out how to better network and create opportunities. All of these tips really tie back into one central point; most people don’t have any bad intentions or intend to use someone when trying to network, but rather their attempts at networking come across that way because of poor communication and haste. This article tries to remedy that mindset by instead presenting ideas of how to network that take a while to reap any benefits. While this doesn’t seem efficient in such a fast moving society, it is quite important to remember that time is very powerful in cementing our connections with people. Building relationships and networks over time creates really solid connections that can be used many times instead of quickly using connections that unintentionally burn your own bridges.
I’ve always considered myself lucky in the way that things have always come to me rather than me going after them. But as we begin to start getting our foot in the door of the industry, I realised I lack a lot more experience compared to others. This has definitely made me scared but at the same time realise that a lot of the time it’s about actively reaching out and networking. I am absolutely terrified of the idea of asking someone else for a favour, no matter what it is or how big it might be. The suggestions from this article are definitely useful and something that I will keep in mind throughout my career. Right now, I think the most important thing for me to do will be to get out of my comfort zone and build on my own skills so that I have the resources to “give back” when I meet a new team of people.
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