Professional Networking

Think of networking as sharing: time, information, resources, opportunities. It can be as simple as just talking to everyone you know.

Success is not just about what you know, it's who you know...and how you keep it all organized. The idea is to create a prize-winning database of individuals who know your name and take your calls.

It's rare for any of us to thrive on our own. The most successful women have identified and developed a solid support system to aide their personal and professional success.

Sometimes you need an expert with specific information, life experience, and advice that will help you move forward. That's when you need a mentor. Find out where to start your search.

A mentor is not going to land you a cushy job. She may provide you with contacts to help, but her responsibilities are more personal and concrete.

You can learn a lot from women you don't know personally. Study their paths and research their backgrounds to find clues to their success.

They more you're able to meet like-minded people, the better your chances of finding the lead you're looking for. Here's how you can you seek out and make the most of formal networking events.

Here are some tips on the best way to work the room at networking events including how to join a group conversation in progress and how to ask for potential contacts or leads.

There's no better way to convey that someone is important to you than remembering his or her name. Here are a few time-tested tricks that can help.

Passing out your business cards as if they're flyers will ensure that they will be thrown away as if they're flyers. Here is some advice on how to give and recieve business cards.

So you made some great new contacts at last night's networking party. Follow up, already! If you want to receive calls or emails, then you have to send some.

It's often the little things that count such as cards, gifts, a phone call, an interesting article clipped from the paper. Here are some hints on ways to keep yourself top of mind with the people you are trying to connect with.

Why do internal referrals work? Companies want to maintain good relations with current employees. Find someone inside your ideal company to email the HR department on your behalf with a strong referral.

They're not called "cold" for nothing—the thought of calling a stranger sends chills down the spine of many people, women especially. Here are some tips on how to warm up to cold calling.

Plenty of corporate offices, and human resources departments in particular, are guarded like crazy from unknown callers. Here are some ideas on how to get through to the people you want to connect with.

There are a wide variety of resources available to boost your career. Industry organizations and networking groups are the untapped goldmine of the job search universe.