Whenever you attend a networking event, what are you usually thinking? Most people (myself included) think “who can I meet that can help me and my business”?
But what if we’ve been doing networking all wrong? What if our goals in networking have been completely backward?
Philippians 2:3 says, “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” But the very essence of networking – seeking out and meeting people who can help you or serve you – seems contrary to doing “nothing from selfish ambition…” and indeed it is. It is the height of selfish ambition to meet someone and evaluate them only on the basis of the value they can provide to you.
Instead of networking with the goal of “what can I get,” what if we upend the model and ask “what can I give”? The very next verse in Philippians says that “Each of you should look not only to his own interest, but also the interests of others.” So for networking, this means seeking out people who you can help in very practical terms instead of just looking for those who can serve you. This is Networking by the Book.