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Why managers fail - Pt6

This series does not cover the ‘reasons for failure’ in any particular order, but if it did, this particular malady would be very near the top of the list.

Poor networking is the underlying cause of many, many failures. In any business, whether it is just you in a start-up, or whether you are part of a corporate machine, the art of networking underpins your success as a manager. The old cliché about ‘who you know’ and not what you know, is alive and well.

Your network is the system that will:

  • Alert you to a potential problem – before it becomes a problem
  • Identify great opportunities that you would not otherwise be aware of.
  • Provide you with resources & advice when you need it.
  • Provide you with an ‘out’ if you get stuck in a dead-end.
  • Give you a sense of connectedness when the madness and pressure are worst.
  • MOST IMPORTASNTLY be the vehicle that will allow you to help other people, and so help you build your credits in the bank of reciprocity…

More about this last observation at some other time, but suffice to say that networking is not about what you can get, but about what you can give. (Think about that J)

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