How to network

First of all, don’t forget that you are always networking. When you are talking to your family, to friends, to a teacher, to the person standing in line for the toilet, it is all networking. Because who knows where those people will end up. Maybe the person in line for the toilet will become the CEO of a big company. This person will not hire you if you told him or her to pee faster. So lesson 1: Be nice to everyone.

As said above, being nice is important. But even when you are the nicest person on earth, you will not get far when you don’t know someone’s name after having a chat for an hour. And let's be honest, we have all been in this situation. So lesson 2: when someone tells his or her name, really remember it.

Furthermore, after you made an impression, a person will google you. So make sure that this person sees some nice pictures of you! Therefore, keep your social media up to date. So show your best pictures on your Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, and Tinder. You don’t want recruiters to see a picture of you ‘vouwing a bak’ while googling you. So lesson 3: do not use social media while being drunk. If you want an example of drunk people using social media, then check out Meie’s alter ego Instagram account below and you will immediately see why this is a bad idea.

Lastly, the most important thing, the holy grail of networking, is, of course, LinkedIn. If you have no LinkedIn account, you should immediately stop reading and sign up.

Now that you have an account, you should not be shy. Connect as much as you can. ‘Schaamteloos netwerken’ (shameless networking) it is called. An example of ‘schaamteloos netwerken’ would be to put a QR code of your LinkedIn page in this article. So, here we go: 

Please connect with me! The ultimate goal of LinkedIn is reaching 500+ connections. To reach this, you have to make new contacts. Luckily, the Symposium Committee is again there to help you. On Monday, 25 April, the Intermate symposium will take place. This is of course the perfect moment to come in contact with companies and even some well-known, famous speakers. So save the date and become a network legend!