A Simple But Very Important Reminder

Last Friday I was talking with an Assistant Director who had just returned from attending a NACAC affiliate conference.

One of the things we ended up talking about was the concept of networking. As I shared with him, I believe there’s a difference between networking and building great relationships. It’s important to understand the difference.

Networking is meeting new people at a conference, an event or another social outing, or on the road during travel season. Your conversation is surface level and you mostly talk about work.

Building great relationships involves investing in people in an intentional way. You don’t just chat when you bump into each other, and you don’t just reach out when you need something. Instead, you intentionally follow-up and make time to learn more about the other person – their goals, wants, hopes, and interests.

A lot of people network. I encourage you to build more great relationships because they will pay a lifetime of dividends both professionally and personally.

If you’re reading this and you’re concerned that investing more time in others may come across as too forward or weird, I get it. That concern or worry however is what holds a lot of people back from becoming the best version of themselves, building a stronger support system, and having more opportunities.

Building great relationships takes time, you can’t rush it.

Intentionally is paramount to building great relationships. So is being curious and being a great listener.

Building great relationships also requires mutual investment where both people consistently contribute their time, attention, and support.

There are no shortcuts to building great relationships, so enjoy the process with your colleagues, peers, prospective students and families, and others in your life.

As I said earlier, that investment will pay a lifetime of dividends.

DID YOU KNOW:

Leadership, student recruitment, personal growth, failure, self awareness, and managing stress are just some of the topics that I’ve covered on my Mission Admissions podcast. All 89 episodes are FREE and can also be found on Apple and Spotify.