Networking Pays Off – Sometimes in Truffles
June 5, 2008 by Jennifer Gniadecki
Filed under Jobs
I’ve heard people say things pay off in spades before, but today is the first day something has paid off for me in truffles.
A friend of mine perceived her experience with a service provider I personally recommended as less-than-positive.
I felt awful about it and offered to do the same service for her, free of charge, when she needed it next. About three months later, she calls me in a panic and says she needs the service immediately and it needs to be reviewed by Whole Foods Markets so it has to be good and she doesn’t know who else to turn to.
Wow. I felt special :)
So I whipped it up, e-mailed it over and she passed it along.
Whole Foods loved it! They sent it out and all was well.
Now, as some of you know I do freelance writing work, because not only can I not shut up verbally, I don’t stop writing, either. A new company I’ve been working with has been exceptional recently and I decided I wanted to send them truffles. I e-mailed my contact and asked her for a price on four boxes of truffles plus shipping. She replied to my e-mail to say that the truffles were on her!
I was perfectly prepared to pay, but didn’t have to, because she considered her truffles barter for a job well done.
All because we connected and when a referral I gave from my network didn’t thrill her, I followed through and made it right. Now my editors are going to think I’m an angel from heaven, because who doesn’t think the person delivering high-quality chocolate is an angel?
The joy of networking pays off so many ways, sometimes it even pays in chocolate.
Image Source: KAC
You make a really good point here. You just never know who you meet and what may come out of it.
I know this may sound cold or calculated to some, but it really isn’t – it’s reality. I taught my kids (now young adults) to embrace every encounter in terms of volunteer work or part-time jobs because every customer they served, every spectator at the Little League game they umpired, could be a potential contact. You never know: that person you came across on the weekend could be the hiring manager of the next job you apply to.
The chances are slim, but I think if you treat all your acquaintances well, it only comes back in a good way eventually.
It’s a shame we all heard “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions” when we were young. Oh, you didn’t? I heard it constantly.
But intention is the only thing that separates good networking from sleazy people using.
It’s funny how the phrases of our collective youth have truly messed up how we view networking, but that’s another post (I’m going to write … right now…)
Thanks for the awesome comment!