Finding Consulting Opportunities Through Networking

As an individual on the hunt for a new career, you might not have the most positive opinion of networking. We were all taught that networking is the key to finding a new job. Placement firms, peers, family members and even your own diligent research all probably told you the same thing: you need to network in order to find a replacement for the job or career that you have lost. So you went out and tried to work your connections and pound the pavement because you wanted to do the right thing. Unfortunately, new economic realities and ideas about hiring have made your networking efforts obsolete. The problem with this approach is that people network as a means of replacing job “A” with job “B.” I think networking is incredibly important, but only if you decide to change the way you think about it. Instead of using the process as a way to find a new job to replace your old one, I think you should consider networking as a way to find consulting opportunities.

The Sad State of Traditional Networking

Let's take a look at an individual who has been out of work for six months or more. As I've mentioned previously, companies are looking at those who have been unemployed for six-plus months as un hirable, so there's one strike against that person. This person is also competing for work during a time when overall unemployment is low and there simply aren't that many jobs available. There's another couple of strikes.

If this individual works hard at networking, people are not going to be able to help because it is impossible to find a direct replacement for the $150,000-a-year job that was lost. Companies just aren't hiring like that anymore. After a while, this person's networking connections start to dry up, and calls stop being returned. This doesn't mean that people aren't willing to help – it's human nature to want to help – they simply cannot help given the expectations of the job seeker.

The problem with this type of networking isn't the networking, it's the goal of the networking. If a person has lost a job that pays $150,000 per year, finding a direct replacement might be impossible. However, if the same individual uses networking to find consulting opportunities instead, he or she will probably have a positive experience. This is largely because companies and organizations are looking at consultants more and more to boost their bottom lines. Think about it – instead of hiring an individual on a full-time basis, they can get the same results by hiring that person as a consultant for 20% of the cost or less.

What this means for the job-seeker is that a search for five consulting opportunities that pay $30,000 each is probably a better idea than attempting to find another cushy $150,000-a-year job. This is where you can find the sweet spot of networking.

Here are some statistics to illustrate my point:

• Networking costs nothing

• In a recent survey of 10,000 consultants, more than two thirds of them said that most of the money they make comes from networking and referrals

• 61% of the consultants in the survey have been consulting for less than five years

• Nearly one third of all consulting prospects pay more than $15,000 for consulting on an annual basis

• 17% of consulting prospects pay between $30,000 and $100,000 annually for consulting
   

The takeaway from this is that networking is a highly profitable endeavor when the goal is to find consulting opportunities. Networking can be done for little or no cost, and it can yield clients who are willing to pay handsomely for the services that you can provide. Finding five good consulting opportunities, in many cases, is the equivalent of finding a single job that pays $150,000 annually.

Start Networking in a Different Way

If you're interested in learning more about consulting and the networking opportunities that can lead to consulting jobs, I think you've come to the right place. We have a community of successful consultants here at Ex3 Matters who are always available to help their peers with networking, referrals and more. We also provide a number of other valuable resources for professionals like you who are ready to find that satisfying new career.

Networking may have left a bad taste in your mouth, but that's only because the landscape has shifted since you were taught that networking will get you your next job. Don't be discouraged, though. By shifting your perspective to one that views consulting opportunities as your goal, you will find that networking is one of the most powerful job-search tools in your arsenal.

Are you interested in learning more about consulting as a career? I encourage you to dig deeper into the Ex3 Matters website. Here, you can download our free consulting guides, plus you can obtain your copy of my free eBook, “Experience Matters.”