The Christmas season is upon us!
Well, it seems the Christmas season began the day after Halloween this year.
It’s a time for getting together with family and friends, parties and of course, networking?
The Christmas season is a great time for networking. There are office parties, Christmas parties, and dinners where you can get together with family and friends that you may only see a few times a year.
How can you make networking work for you during the holidays?
Office Parties
If you work part-time or full-time, you will probably be invited to your office’s holiday party. This is a fabulous opportunity to network with other people at your company, who you may not otherwise have an opportunity to speak to on a daily basis. This is a great time to get face time with decision makers at your company. Your part-time position just may turn into a full-time job offer at the end of the year.
Christmas Parties
Parties are a fun way to get everyone together during the holidays. During the course of Christmas season, you may go to two or ten Christmas parties thrown by friends or family or your significant other’s friends or family. After being introduced to someone new, strike up a conversation. Be certain to exchange business cards. You may just be able to exchange some business advice in the new year.
Christmas Dinner
If your family is anything like the Griswold’s, you will have a lot of family to visit with at Christmas. Christmas dinner is an opportunity to really spend time with your family. You are getting ready to start your career or perhaps you have already begun. Your family will have a lot of questions about this new step in your life.
Of course, like any family, some questions will be more tactful than others.
This is not the time to be bashful about your career goals.
Tell your family where you would like to work and the type of work you would like to do. Out of your entire family, there will likely be someone who knows someone that could help you on your career path. You just have to ask.
A Word of Caution
While the holidays can be a great time for networking, don’t get too caught up with networking and forget the true meaning of the season.
