Listen: How to build your network (Squiggly Careers / Amazing If…)

Career super-gurus and friends of YCN, Helen Tupper and Sarah Ellis, have amassed a bona fide treasure trove of work wisdom with their two-hundred-plus episode podcast series ‘Squiggly Careers.’ In this episode, they walk through tools and tactics for creating a network as an introvert, effectively using the internet, and recognising your networking USP.

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Read: How to win friends and influence people, by Dale Carnegie

The mother of all networking how-tos. Carnegie’s mega-selling modern classic has helped millions of people make connections, positively influence those around them, and become the kind of person that others desperately want in their network.

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Listen: Networking for People who Hate Networking (WorkLife with Adam Grant)

With guests galore, organisational psychologist and bestselling author, Adam Grant, steps out the importance of ditching the business cards, trusting your most authentic self, and looking for networking opportunities in the unlikeliest of places in this episode of WorkLife.

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Read: 3 Strategies for Networking in a Post-Pandemic World

A quick, easy and insightful read on the three types of networking emerging as the pandemic begins to wane - *touch wood* - complete with key points and practical advice for each.

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Watch: Three Videos from HBR

Harvard Business Review have a fantastic range of professional networking advice available on their site. As a starting point, we recommend these three: Make Networking Less Awkward, Three New Networks for the Digital Age and How to Expand your Professional Network, but please explore their Youtube page (and take a read of this amazingly titled article on Networking When You Hate Talking To Strangers) for more!

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Read: What is Networking and Why is it So Important (BetterUp)

If you need a quick morale boost before a networking event, look no further than this great article from workplace gurus BetterUp. Not only will you find refreshers on the key tenets of networking, but you'll also learn about the unseen and unsung benefits to confidence, mental health and creativity that come with it.

Try: Take a tactical approach to telling your story with the Root > Stem > Branch tool.

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Watch: How to ‘hack’ networking (TEDx)

Associate professor of leadership and author of Friend of a Friend, David Burkus, delivers this brilliantly practical presentation on the immediate power of close friends helping each other to build far reaching, professional networks.

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Read: Learn to love networking (HBR)

A punchy, purposeful, four-point article from HBR on abandoning what makes networking feel ‘sleazy,’ finding a higher purpose, and finding a personal networking tactic that works for you.

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Listen: How to work your ‘weak’ ties (Squiggly Careers / Amazing If…)

Another great listen from the wonderful Squiggly Careers, this time on creating curious communities, reconnecting with older work colleagues, and the compunding power of saying 'yes,' to new relationships - as scary as they might seem.

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Experiment: Five-Minute Favours

A super-simple daily habit to create bonds both in and out of the office. The best part? It only takes five-minutes! Try it today and learn the power of a five-minute favour.