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Take Advantage of Opportunities
There are so many great opportunities in the business community for networking and professional development – take advantage of them. Many of these events are free and others are often offered at a low cost. Take some time and research events in your area and then go attend.

Create a Networking Plan
Networking is no different than any other area of our life, if we don’t plan for it, it won’t happen. Make a monthly plan that includes at least one networking event and put it in your calendar. I have a plan that includes: events I will attend, number of emails I will send, number of calls I will make and number of meetings I will schedule. My plan allows me to continually focus on growing my business and my business relationships.

Developing Excellent Practices
Seven Keys to Excellent Networking

Create an elevator speech. Prepare one or two sentences describing your business. Being prepared when someone asks you what you do it’s easier than making something up on the fly.
Start with people you know. Begin networking with people you already know. If you are looking to grow your business or need to move on in your career, start by asking people you know for contacts and ideas.
Be concerned with others. Networking is not just about you or what you can get out of it – it’s about what you can give to others. The more concerned you are with the success of others – the more successful you will be.
Be genuine. People can spot a phony. In order to be an effective networker you must be genuine in your approach to others.
Give. Be willing to give and help others. Giving referrals or help to another makes them remember you.
Build relationships. Networking is about building relationships. The key to doing business with another person is developing a relationship of trust and mutual respect. Time spent building business relationships is time well spent.
Be patient. Networking takes time. You will not go to one event and achieve results. It requires a consistent effort and it takes work.
Follow through. When someone gives you a lead or you meet a new person make sure you follow up right away. Follow up is the key to successful networking.

Questions to Ponder:
How am I doing with networking? How could I develop my networking skills this month?