We have all heard that networking is essential to success in our careers, but what does effective networking actually look like?
When I started my career, I heard it as: go talk to the people further ahead of you. They hold the keys to the rooms you're not in yet.
I did that. I went to professional events, set up 1:1s with my boss's peers, and made sure the people with influence saw my work. It definitely opened some doors.
But investing in relationships with my peers has unlocked whole new floors.
I saw it most clearly when I stepped from Director into an Executive Director role. The people on that floor with me were people I had come up with. We had been developers together. Then managers. Then senior managers. Then directors.
By the time we got there, we already had years of shorthand. We had shared points of reference to look back on. We had tried approaches that worked and approaches that didn't. We knew how to communicate with each other. Above all, we trusted each other, and we were more effective because of it.
My peers have held doors open for me too. Early in my career, one colleague and I worked together in three different jobs. Five years later, she called and asked me to come work with her. This March, I reached out to reconnect. She told me on the spot that she had a role open, and that I'd be helping her by filling it.
Theatre worked the same way. The people I volunteered alongside in my 20s hired me as their stage manager in my 30s.
Keep knocking on the doors ahead of you. But more importantly, find your people and pull each other up as you climb. You'll go further together than any of you would alone.
