5 Tips for Effective Networking and Building Authentic Relationships

3 min readDec 26, 2022

Networking has become the new buzzword. Everyone uses it a lot without a good idea of how to. Today more people realize the true value of networking, especially after the mass layoffs. 2023 will only highlight why everyone needs to start building meaningful relationships with more people. It’s definitely not easy, and very easy to either start the foundation of a relationship but eventually that falls through, or start off on the wrong foot. In conversation with Ajay Lakhotia, founder of StockGro, we discussed building lasting authentic relationships. Here are 5 tips for you to get started right away-

1. Figure out what you want to do quickly

Yes, you can change your path as often as you want. But pick a direction you would want to dedicate a better part of your life as early as possible. This just sets you at an advantage to have a lot more time exploring the things you like. Once that’s set, study hard, but make sure to use your brain to understand something almost no one else is into. If you study only what is being taught, you can slip into the rat race and might just get stuck there. With a solid idea of what you want to do in life, choose one thing you want to excel at. And then spend a lot of time honing that particular skill.

2. Build one essential skill

You can’t talk about football forever when trying to network. Eventually, you will have to talk shop. Most people would be happy to shed light on tier areas of expertise. But to have a continued relationship, the conversations must enrich both parties. So build one skill you think you’re the best at and create value for yourself. It’s a revamped version of the age-old courtesy of not visiting someone empty-handed.

3. Understand how to leverage where you are

People go to top-notch B-schools or work in high-energy startups but are often focused on the wrong thing. If you are in such a situation, you are essentially spending your days with future leaders of different industries. Find little pockets of opportunities where you can talk to these people and get started. Grades can only give you an advantage in school. But once that’s done, whether you scored 70% or 90% hardly matters if you are good at what you do!

4. Be honest about your intentions

People can very easily smoke you out if you try to fake it. Especially in this digital age, your truth will come out eventually, so it’s just better to start off with that. When you are approaching someone, know that they already have a sense that it is going to be a transactional conversation. No point in pretending that you are only going in to ‘make friends’. Be honest with the reasons for your hoping to build a relationship; maybe you look up to what they have achieved, are in a position that you are greatly interested in, or share a similar career path.

5. Offer to add value

This is where your one essential skill comes to play. Since this is a transaction at the end of the day, make it as fair as possible. Offer what you are good at upfront and just let it stay there. They might not even take you up on it, or more of an expert than you in the same domain. However, when you offer to help, you come off as someone who’s not just looking to gain something but also leaves their own little contribution.

If all of this gets too overwhelming, remember that- everyone likes givers! And then build from that 🙌

Listen to the entire podcast here.