I think many people understand the power of networking, and in today’s economic environment the need to embrace this activity has become even more relevant. The networking playing field has changed significantly, over the last few years, with the addition of online social networking avenues to generate business.

Now I am not saying that I am a networking “Zen Master”, but I have definitely done my share of networking here in London.

My networking day starts as soon as I get in the office:

• I check my Twitter account online (to see what stalkers/spammers I have to block from following me!)
• I login to Tweetdeck.
• I check my MSN network for new activity.
• I login to Facebook to see any new activity in my network. (I also check the Corporate Facebook Page)
• I login to LinkedIn to check for updates to my groups and respond to any network add requests.
• I login to Meetup to see what events are coming up.

And here is the kicker! - I haven’t even opened up Outlook yet to check my calendar or read my emails!

Does this sound familiar?

Networking can become overwhelming and all encompassing - remember at the end of the day you actually have a job to do! My recommendation is to be strategic in your networking activities, from both an online and offline perspective.

Here a few tips:

• Be realistic! You can’t be everywhere! Look at all the networking activities available each week and see which ones hold the most value for building business.
• Dedicate a certain amount of time every day for social (online) networking and actually book this as an appointment into your calendar.
• Establish some goals for your networking activities - it is better to have 3 amazing conversations and make great connections - than to have 25 superficial “encounters”. Take the time to listen - you might be surprised what you can learn!

Remember people like to do business with people they know and trust and networking is the best way to create and maintain that rapport.

If I can just manage to follow my own advice - I might actually avoid my own “Network Crash”!