Building Relationships for Career Growth

I had a very interesting conversation recently with someone relatively experienced in the corporate world. In our discussion, I found it interesting that she thought in the main her work was relevant, and seemed oblivious to the value of networks and relationships. We spoke briefly about this, but it got me thinking about the related concepts of work, career, excellence and relationships.

Below I put together the kinds of things I highlight in conversation on this issue. Even though I have numbered them, they are not sequential and also not discrete, but should be read as a package. I welcome feedback on other aspects of them that I have not covered, but I trust you will find the issues raised provoke thoughts.

1. Whilst relationships do give you a leg-up in the workplace, firstly it is what you have done that gives you credibility. You have to work very hard to ensure you get into a phase of excellence so that you become somebody credible, especially to those who matter.
2. What you have done may give you credibility, but knowledge of it will create presence for you. It is not your boss’ job to make this knowledge, but your own. The tools you use to do that constitute for me the real art in personal brand development.
3. Spreading the knowledge about your work should be done with utmost humility. It is best done by others on your behalf. But, you may ask, how can I get others to do this my behalf when they have nothing to gain? The trick is for them to have something to gain from doing so or to feel they have to do so.
4. You need to establish the kind of relationships such that people will voluntarily spread the word about what you have done, thus enhancing your credibility, and / or encourage you in seeking to achieve your goals.
5. These relationships should be founded not on what you get, but on what you are able to give. If you give a lot, you will get a lot in return. It may not come to you directly, but, if people have received something from you, they always have a psychological need to give something back to you. They may not always even realise they are doing so.
6. The paradox in this process is that you are trying to get you individual brand to show, but must at the same time seek to ‘belong. As one leadership professor I encountered once wrote, “To accentuate individuality, heighten belonging”.
7. Your most important relationships may not be in your functional line of work. Spend time understanding the stakeholders who are really significant and / or are listened to by those who are significant. This also includes those who are likely to be impacted by the success of your work. It may work better if you invest in these relationships. Remember, you are not in this process for just some social interaction. It is a really rational process about your career development, being enhanced by using those age-old things every human being has: emotion, need for support and affirmation.
8. Most people spend too much of their time trying to get time with the most senior executive in their company. I find this to be such a drag of an effort for two reasons: firstly, senior executives are smart enough to see when they are being used just to advance a person’s agenda; secondly and more importantly, they do not have the time to be spending on things which do not have the apparent value for them at the time. So, rather than focus on getting to the senior executive’s calendar, spend the time on linking the work you do with what is on the senior executive’s agenda. And get those close to the senior executives to speak about this work. Over time they will want to have time in YOUR calendar.
9. You have to be genuine in your interactions with people. Human beings have this uncanny way of reading insincerity, and it can destroy all good efforts on your part.
10. Be comfortable with getting things wrong in the process. Since the process is not scientific, things will not just happen, and some efforts will not succeed. You will also not realise if you are making progress immediately, but over time you will get the signals.

However, all of the above is meaningless unless you invest time, quality time, into the process. And you will do this because you know the potential outcome.

Go ahead. Make meaningful relationships that will help boost your career. As I once wrote, do not be an island.  Even the most famous researcher is not recognised unless his / her work touches or engages others.