What is networking?

Networking is the action or process of interacting with other people to exchange information and develop professional or social contacts.

Networking is used by professionals to expand their circles of acquaintances, to find out about job opportunities in their field, and to increase their awareness of news and trends in their field of work.

Networking can take place in many different forms through gatherings, meetings, professional organizations, social media, and blogs.

Why is networking important?

Networking is specifically helpful for young adults who just start their career development journey. Consider the following benefits when networking:

  1. You will learn about the experience of many professionals, many of whom is in your interested field. They can give you advice, recommendations and suggestions on how to advance your career. Even if you don’t know your interested career yet, networking can help you discover which field is appealing to you and what is not.
  2. Expanding your contacts can open doors to many new opportunities for business, career, and personal growth. Later on, when you are ready to find an internship or co-op opportunity, it’s always helpful to reconnect with these contacts.
  3. The more you network, the more confidence you will gain from socializing with different people. You are effectively stepping outside of your comfort zone and building social skills. You will eventually find lasting relationships with some people that you network with.
  4. Networking starts from the smallest things such as introducing yourself to your college roommate, or joining a student organization. As you move onto later steps on your career development, you will have different methods and ways to network with different types of people.