In order for your networking to be truly powerful, you need to have a clear purpose in mind. Maybe you’re just building a list of contacts so that when you need something, you can tap into this list. You may also choose to augment your list when you have a new goal that requires new contacts. But with a specific purpose in mind, you’ll have a more focused network and see much better results.

What’s Your Passion?

Start by identifying your passion. This passion is the driving force behind your networking. If it’s a strong passion, your enthusiasm and positivity will draw others to you and provide the inner motivation you need to keep going out there and meeting people.

If there isn’t one passion that comes to mind immediately, try making a list of things you’re passionate about or interested in. What are the things you’re thinking about in your free time? What are the goals that keep you awake at night? Make a list and then ask yourself, ‘If I had to choose only one, which would it be?’

It’s entirely possible to network for multiple passions. You can build a powerful network that connects them all. But for most, it’s good to focus on just one passion or goal at a time.

Turning Passions into Goals

Write down a few goals related to your passion. If you’re passionate about your music, your goal may be to play a live show once a month. If you have an online business, a good goal might be to identify potential partners who can help you build that business. If it’s fitness you’re passionate about, your goal may be to organize a weekly group hike. 

Narrow your list of goals down to the one that’s the most central in your mind right now. It could be one that’s time sensitive, such as getting a new job, or one that will make the biggest difference in your life right now. Your goals will change over time. As goals are reached, you will create new ones and your network will help you achieve many.

Goals That Work

The best goals are those that are specific and measurable. A measurable goal is one that you can accurately tell if you’ve reached or not. In the above music example, the goal was ‘to play a live show once a month,’ not ‘to play live more often.’ The reason the first example is better is that ‘more often’ is not measurable. How do you know if you’re playing often? By deciding on once a month, you have a way to clearly see whether you’re reaching your goal or not.

The same goes for goals that are too vague. If you said, ‘to get into better shape’ instead of ‘to organize a weekly group hike,’ there is no way to know whether the goal has been reached. Only highly specific and concisely-worded goals are reachable.

Using Your Goals to Network

While you’re meeting people and gathering contacts, it’s important to have your goal in the back of your mind, even if you’re not making it the focus of your conversations. Your passion and goal will lead you to the kinds of networking functions and contacts that you need. Once you’ve made contacts and developed a rapport with them, you can look for ways that you can help each other.