From 18 to 18 Million - How Big Does Your Network Need To Be - Workology

From 18 to 18 Million - How Big Does Your Network Need To Be How Big Does Your Network Need To Be? In 2008 my team leader, who was new to the company, asked me about my network. Well, I told her, I have connections in most of our US manufacturing plants, and quite a few people at our corporate centers. When she asked me who they were, I could list  about 18 people that I would connect with on some regular cadence. Thats when she surprised me. OK thats great she said. But what about your network of people outside of Kimberly-Clark? Professionals who do what you do but have different experiences that you could pull from and learn from? I had none. Well, maybe a few who left and I maintained contact with, but they dont really count. So I started to explore the online world. I was already reading HR Blogs and commenting here and there, but I didnt see it as a network at all. I had a LinkedIn profile and at least two dozen connections. Staggering, right? Then I dove in. I started a workplace safety blog, Safer By Choice, and then added a Twitter account and eventually Facebook but that was purely for personal and family reasons. Then I discovered HREvolution and decided to blog less about safety and more about HR. The HR Introvert was born. Today, my Facebook feed is predominantly from my connections in HR that arose 100% from these starting points. And, according to LinkedIn, my network is now in excess of 18 million professionals although within the last week it seems they have stopped informing me of the size of this network. How Big Does Your Network Need To Be? Eighteen million? Really? Well, of course that is some calculation that includes all the 2nd and 3rd level connections and is only relevant in terms of how I might get introduced to one of those people. We all get that. At this point I can say that I have no doubt that gaining those connections outside of my own company has been immensely important in my ongoing development. By interacting with these people online and at various events I have benefited greatly. Their generous sharing of their knowledge through blogs, postings, comments and the occasional real life contact has brought me to a new appreciation of how much we all benefit from dialogue both virtual and actual. Earlier this week, Chris Ponder wrote here about network management about curating your network. About managing the value in what you take the time to look at. About not caring what others think about your decisions to include or exclude them from your view. I realize that I dont do this by un-friending or even using ignore features I do this just by passing by what I dont value. Although, to be honest, during the last election I put several people on ignore because they were no longer sharing ideas, they were pushing ideology. Thats not what I want in my network. Today, I wouldnt have a list of 18, but easily 118. People that I would not hesitate to email or call with a question or just to get a fresh perspective. And the best part about it is the breadth of those connections. There isnt redundancy in that list. They are each and every one unique in what they bring not only to their employers, but to the HR community at large. I dont need 18 million, but I am grateful that I had someone nudge me out into the world outside of my employer.