by Rod Colón, Founder of Empowering Today’s Professionals and
host of Own Your Career Radio Show – Mondays at 9:00 PM (EST)

Using a network of trusted relationships to advance your career and business may sound a bit selfish to the uninitiated. But for those who “get it�?, those trusted friends will be more than happy to support you in your career and business efforts. Why? Most likely, it’s because you’ve already supported them in some area of need that they’ve expressed to you. By being “first out of the gate�?, you’ve established yourself as someone with credibility and sincerity.

By maintaining the relationship over time, you’ve established yourself as someone with a solid dimension of trust and reliability. Most likely, people in your network who have been treated with this level of respect will actually look for ways to help and support you in your time of need.

Building a “warm, trusted network�? is key to career and business success. In the 21st century, leveraging the power of your connections and relationships (and the integrity of your entire network) to advance your career and business goals is paramount.

Your Relationship Check-Up Exercise:

It’s one thing to assert that your relationships are intact and healthy.  It’s another thing to prove it. This is an exercise that’s small in scope but large in impact. It requires some mental toughness and a positive mental attitude in case the results are not as expected.

• 1. Log in to your LinkedIn account

• 2. Pull up the Contacts page to see all of your Level 1 connections

• 3. Select five individuals at random from your Level 1 contact list

• 4. Place a phone call to them

• 5. If necessary, remind them of your LinkedIn “Level 1�? relationship

• 6. Develop a script that incorporates the following points:

a) Who you are and how did you meet
b) The importance of staying in touch and networking
c) How are they doing?
d) How can you be of service to them?
e) Confirm contact information
f) Confirm frequency and mode of staying in touch (meeting/phone/email)

• 7. Rate the response from each individual (1 to 5, 5 is the highest rating; base your ratings on the relative “level of enthusiasm�? – as you judge it to be – for reconnecting; was it a hearty welcome or a lukewarm grunt?)

• 8. Based on the ratings you gather from your 5 “test subjects�?, answer the follow-ing questions:

a) What percentage of your five contacts responded enthusiastically?

b) What percentage responded favorably (but not enthusiastically)?

c) What percentage responded less than favorably? (e.g., they didn’t recognize you, they sounded disinterested, or they actually had some negative comment for you)

Rod Colón – www.RodColon.com
Motivational Speaker, Master Networker, Career Strategist,

Radio Show Host, Corporate Trainer and Author

Own Your Career Radio Show – Mondays at 9:00 PM (ET)

Rod Colón Consulting, LLC
732-367-5580

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