Building a network is an essential part of entering the workforce and expanding your career options. It takes time to build a network, but it’s absolutely worth the effort. Having a good network in place helps you to get better jobs and to progress in your career.

Learn About Opportunities

You can do a lot on your own when searching for jobs and new opportunities. However, you can’t find everything by yourself. The best opportunities are often spread through word of mouth. When you have a network, you can learn about these opportunities from them. People in your network might include past coworkers, faculty you met while in school, others in your field, and more. 

If you keep in touch with these people, they can let you know when they find jobs that fit what you’ve been looking for. They might even know of jobs that you hadn’t considered or heard about previously. You can greatly increase your options of finding the best job if you have others looking as well.

Ask for References

When you apply for a new job, your potential employer might ask for some references. References are critical to getting employees comfortable with the idea of hiring you. Your references know you well and can give employers a better idea of who you are as a person and what type of worker you will be. You can certainly ask past employers to be references for you, but it’s also a good idea to have more than that. 

A network can provide you with plenty of good references. Your network should be made up of people who have known you at various points in your career so you can provide your future employer with a variety of viewpoints. Plus, you can always count on your network to give you glowing recommendations.

Advance Your Skill Set

If you want a better job, then you need to make sure you have the skills and qualifications for it. Typically, you would have to get these on your own but a network can assist you. The people in your network can let you know of opportunities to advance your skillset. They can also connect you to potential mentors in your field. Working with these people can boost you up and help you qualify for better jobs.

You can’t do everything on your own. Having a network can provide you with plenty of support to develop in your field and find the right jobs. Taking the time to expand your network is a worthwhile endeavor.

Did you enjoy this article? Here’s more to read: Great Reasons to Make a Career Change