We hear an awful lot of people say they’ve been networking for a long time, but it’s just not paying off. Maybe that’s happening with you. If your networking isn’t working, here are a few questions to consider.

It is important to begin with the end in mind, as Steven Covey says in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Develop a plan for marketing yourself. Effective networking isn’t random. Decide who you want to reach and how to get to those people. Figure out how you can appeal to and help them.  

We once met with a woman who had no job after spending over a year networking like crazy. She had a good resume that showed her as an accomplished executive, she was very personable, and she was working hard. Her calendar was chock full of networking group meetings, coffees, lunches, and other meetings to further her job search. She couldn’t understand why it seemed she was no closer to getting a job after so many months of feverish activity.

As we questioned her to locate the breakdowns in her efforts, we discovered that she wasn’t talking to people in her industry. She was just networking with anyone she met at job search groups.

Even so, that woman could have been much more effective if she had helped the people she met with to be helpful. A good handbill or even a simple list of the companies she might want to work for would have helped people steer her in the right direction. Articulating clearly the kinds and types of people she wanted to talk to and the level of problems she could solve would have helped those in her network to access their mental databases. Even people outside your industry can often be very helpful in connecting you with the right people, especially in this highly-networked generation. 

It’s not enough to say that you have X years of experience as a marketing manager or a CFO. You need to precisely define the impact you make. What do you want them to know about you? 

We’ve asked a lot of highly-successful people to answer the “Tell me about yourself” question, and find that an awful lot of them say less than useful things. They tell us about their wives and children, what university they attended—even if that was 30 years ago—and bland histories about positions held and the companies that employed them. 

Instead, have a well-rehearsed 2-minute profile with three parts:

1)  Here’s what I do well, 

2)  Here’s an illustration or story that shows how good I am. The story should have some drama to it, with challenges and/or breakdowns and how you overcame them.

3)  This is what I want to do next. If you’re not sure what's next for you, at least share two or three things you're exploring.  

Without these three pieces of information, it’s very difficult for people to help you. Be concise. Speak powerfully. Get to the point. 

Think 2-way street networking.

Don’t be just a taker.  Always be thinking about what you can do for the people with whom you network. Is there critical information you can share? Events you can let others know about? Or maybe there is nothing you can do for them at the moment, but you can offer to help them in the future. After all, many people are painfully aware of how insecure their positions are.  

If your networking isn’t working well, go back tobasics and be sure you’re doing it right.