Take a close look at highly successful people and you will notice that they have a very good network of people. Sure knowledge and experience are very important. However, the power of the network has the ability to move you along quicker. At times, knowledge and experience is secondary to the power of the network. The best way to explain this is through some examples.
A Powerful Network is Needed to Advance
I refereed high school football for over 15 years in Connecticut. For this example, I will not name the football board I was associated with. I was a decent official. Other officials that officiated both high school and college football told me I had the ability to make it as a college official. Unfortunately I was not in good standings with the person that ran the college board of officials. However, I wanted to give college officiating a try.
So I asked about becoming a college official. He told me that I wasn’t good enough. He indicated that I wasn’t good enough in certain situations. I asked for
examples, which he did provide me. So, I watched game films of both myself and other college officials that officiated the same position I worked. I came to realize I was definitely just as good or possibly even better. I even brought up his examples to other officials and asked for their feedback. They said I did just as good as others. He just didn’t like me. I saw other officials that were just as knowledgeable and as experienced as me. However, he liked them and helped them to the college ranks.
Connecting with Other Disciplines within a Company
Here is another example. I worked for a smaller company that reported to a larger company within the Corporation. I reported directly to the President when I was VP of Operations. Well, they combined three companies into one and eliminated the need for two Presidents. Therefore, we became a remote facility with a site lead, which changed several times over the years. I applied for the site lead position even though I was never asked from my superiors. I discovered the person picked for this position always had connections. They were well connected within the power of the network in the main facility hundreds of miles away.
I didn’t see much of a need to visit the main facility to lead Operations. However, the other leaders, such as finance and technology made it a point to frequently travel to main facility. When I asked them them, I was told they did this to insure they knew the right people should there be changes. They would visit people well connected in the organization yet not involved in the work our facility was doing. Interestingly, when it came time for a new site lead, I was always overlooked for one of those individuals that were connected. The power of the network paid off. Yet people at our facility couldn’t understand why I wasn’t selected. I walked the floor more than the others. They would come to me with their issues.
Conclusion
I have learned that if you want to either maintain or increase your value, build yourself a powerful network. It will definitely help you.
You need to understand the power of the network, especially when it comes to social media. Here is a great article to read.
As I work to improve visibility of this blog site, I realize I need a powerful network to make that happen. I have found out so much from others on how to make this blog site successful. It’s more than just the stories. I too am presently learning the power of the network.
