All Students

20/20 – Day 16: 20 networking nuggets

You need other people.  Nobody succeeds alone.

Engagement is crucial in everything we do.  On your own, in a dark room, it wouldn’t take long before you came to a stop because you needed skills that you didn’t have.  From learning how to do it yourself, to finding someone who will do it for you, other people need you and you need other people.

How do you make contact with these people and begin a relationship?  It’s not that difficult.  Below, I list 20 top tips toward mastering networking.

  1. Don’t judge, remain open.  Opinions only seek to close off opportunities.
  2. You won’t know unless you try.  Don’t be afraid to make the first move.  Waiting for people to come to you doesn’t work.
  3. What have you got to lose? You won’t lose anything if you reach a dead end, yet you’ll gain so much if you find an in.  Your choice.
  4. Do it all year round.  Quiet moments can yield huge gains.  Busy times bring everyone out.  There is no specific networking season unless you count ‘always’ as a period of time.
  5. If networking with a specific purpose, prepare beforehand.  General networking is pretty open once you have a basic set of openers and ideas.  For more specialised pitches or a focus on targetted individuals, you need to have a plan.
  6. Don’t think of your contacts as useful, see them as people.
  7. Introduce other people to the conversation.  Have you ever heard that you should act like the host at events, even if you’re not the host?  I’ve used this trick a couple times before.  Not only will you be memorable (for the right reasons), but you network by bringing others together to network too.  When this technique works, it works incredibly well.
  8. Focus on the person, don’t let your attention slip.  I think of it as paying ‘Bill Clinton attention’.  When Clinton communicates with people, it seems as if his entire attention has turned to that one person.  It’s like he switches off the world around him, but not to the point where he’s just staring in an uncomfortable manner.  While I haven’t spoken to Clinton personally, I’m pretty sure if I did he would come across this way.
  9. Help others. Be useful.  Just take Twitter as an example. One of the best things about Twitter is when people help others by offering recommended links, answering people’s questions, and putting in a good word for others.
  10. Keep tabs and remain on track even when an association naturally ends.  Unless you don’t like the person and you’ve totally moved on from that line of work/life, there’s no point in burning bridges.
  11. Don’t expect from others without trying to make an impact yourself.
  12. By all means find as many people to network with as you want, but focus on the quality of the contacts rather than the number you’ve collected.
  13. Don’t expect the world. It’s not like you’re owed a favour. Asking isn’t ordering.  If you’re turned down, accept it.
  14. Don’t expect instant results. Networking takes time.  That person you’ve known since you were 6…who’d have thought they would be the perfect contact now you’re 34?
  15. Be kind.  People like to be complimented and like to know you care.  Don’t be false, but do be appreciative and thankful when you can.
  16. Talk about the weather. We’re human.  We don’t talk shop all day.  Smalltalk is not just reasonable, it’s required.
  17. Show an interest in others.  An interest…not an obsession.
  18. Go gently.  A pushy attitude won’t get you far.  You’re building a network, not recruiting soldiers.
  19. Change with the times.  It’s easier than ever to network.  You have access to millions of wonderful minds via an Internet connection.  You don’t need to leave the house. But wherever you are and whatever platform you use, be prepared to go where the people are.  They don’t come to you, you go to them!
  20. You are the key…Not your tools, not your business card, not the money spent, not the gifts you lavish upon them, not anything else.  YOU are the key.
Title image: original by tiffa130 (cc)  /  Bottom image: Lumaxart (cc)

Back Away From Pointless Plagiarism

Plagiarism doesn’t always have to be intentional.  It’s unlikely, but certainly possible if you’re not careful.

Seeing double? (photo by bananabren)

Seeing double? (photo by bananabren)

Get your wits about you and give credit where it’s due.  Here are a few ways you can stay on the right side of things:

  1. Don’t take another person’s unique idea and use it unless you reference that  person’s work.
  2. Cite the source of facts, statistics, and quotations.
  3. Don’t copy from elsewhere without properly referencing and attributing, no matter how obscure it is.
  4. If it’s a close call and you feel a reference may be needed to cover all ground,  do put the reference. Don’t second guess yourself and decide against putting a  footnote.  Citing it means that you’ve done your research and it means you won’t  get into unnecessary trouble later down the line.
  5. Quote and reference in advance. When you copy quotations, photocopy pages, or  do anything with another person’s work, make sure to note down the reference, so  you can add it easily to an essay later.  A major time-waster for many students can be the bibliography and references at the end.  Even if you don’t use half the information you’ve gathered, you’ll still save time having noted the proper referencing notes in the first place, rather than working it out at the time.  I found this out pretty quickly…A quotation without a reference can be hell!
  6. Don’t blindly rely on what classmates have to say on a subject. If you take  down someone’s opinion on an essay topic, how do you know it’s an original thought?   You may find that the idea is a very specific one  that’s held by an important  academic in the field.  From taking a friend’s idea and thinking you’re onto a good  thing, you may find difficulty when you’re being asked how you came across this  information.  Stick to your own ideas and back them up.

It isn’t always as simple as copying someone else’s writing or idea word for word.  There are many different ways to get caught in the trap.  Here are some more helpful links to help you understand what plagiarism can be:

Photo by mollyjolly

Photo by mollyjolly

Does teamwork win out, or a one-person mind-machine?

Even if you don’t watch University Challenge, you probably noticed the show’s growing presence over the last few days.  This year’s final was broadcast on Monday and some people went crazy.  The reason?  Gail Trimble, of Corpus Christi College, Oxford.

The whole UK (it seems!) has been awash with hype on who is possibly the best single contestant University Challenge has seen.  Ms Trimble has become the topic of conversation rather than the whole team from Corpus Christi.

Trimble has divided the public.  Is she smug or sexy?  Tremendous or troublesome?  Awesome or awful?  Arrogant or affable?  Right down to the flick of her hair when she answers correctly, it seems that people have been obsessing in a way that’s not generally expected when it comes to University Challenge.

university-challenge

As for me, I wanted Manchester to win the final, because I have admired their fantastic teamwork over the course of the series.  They nearly crushed Corpus Christi (or the Trimble Treadmill), but a late surge from Corpus Christi was just too fast-paced for Manchester.  I didn’t feel that bad about the great comeback, because I would attribute much of it on Corpus Christi’s other team members, rather than Trimble alone.  Teamwork, ftw!

University Challenge is a team game, so I’m over the moon that Manchester got to the final and convincingly held their ground, despite losing in the end.  Even Corpus Christi gave a team effort when it mattered.

Here are 11 ways they managed it:

  1. Don’t dismiss ideas out of hand. Sometimes it takes crazy thinking to get the most out of a team.  Shut them up quickly and you shut them up for good.  What’s the point in that?
  2. Listen to everyone. Manchester’s team captain (Matthew Yeo) gave everyone an equal hearing.  It’s a team, after all.
  3. Don’t have favourite members. Just because you gel with someone and appreciate the ideas they have, now is not the time to limit your focus.  If you see further value in another person and you want to engage further with them, do that independently of the team you’re working in.
  4. Enjoy what you’re doing so you relax more. Life’s too short to take it that seriously.  Manchester would confer and, at the same time, have a laugh as they did it.  And as soon as Corpus Christi won University Challenge, Manchester applauded them.  That said, they were led by Henry Pertinez who, apparently, originally studied at Corpus Christi…!
  5. Debate in a friendly tone. Don’t just argue.
  6. Recognise each member’s strong points…
  7. …but don’t allow anything but definite knowledge to shut out people’s views. Someone else’s guess could be right.  University Challenge has proved that in the recent past, including when Gail Trimble disagreed with a team member’s correct answer and gave a wrong one instead (no disrespect to her teamwork, just a recent observation).
  8. Engage positively with all members. Congratulate them on the best answers/ideas.  Give credit where it’s due.  Encourage more participation.
  9. If applicable, don’t be afraid to ask for help outside the group. Sometimes you can all be at a loss.  It’s fine to be uncertain.  See if you can work together to find the best person to enlighten you all. [Note: That doesn’t work on University Challenge, but it’s something you should remember for your own team work.]
  10. Don’t hold a grudge. In University Challenge, there’s no time to get annoyed when someone interrupts and answers incorrectly.  Okay, they’ve lost the team 5 points, but the game goes on.  They will likely redeem themselves later and may have already been worth far more than 5 points anyway.  It’s the same elsewhere.  Even a couple of minor mistakes aren’t the end of the world.  Keep it in perspective.
  11. Lead…don’t command. A true leader is encouraging rather than pushy.  Get it wrong and people may not want to pull their weight.  What’s the point if they’re not going to feel rewarded in the process?

That’s teamwork…but how intelligent are the University Challenge contestants?  Just because Trimble answered so many questions correctly, University Challenge in general doesn’t test a person’s intelligence.  Trimble is clearly intelligent, but that’s not the point.  I enjoy seeing how many questions I get right each episode, but I don’t feel clever when I get a lot correct.  It’s just a good set of questions for me.  That’s why teamwork is the best thing to look for on a show like this.

Alcohol – 18 Tips to Tame the Spirits

Almost every university student drinks alcohol at some point.  Not everyone enjoys it, but most get on with drinking it anyway.

It doesn’t matter how detached you may be from the rituals and initiations that some clubs and societies put upon their new recruits.  Even some of the stronger spirited (no pun intended!) objectors can be pressured into drinking more than they’d like on occasion.

photo by stranded starfish

photo by stranded starfish

But there’s no need to get completely bungalowed […if you’ve never seen the fantastic Michael Macintyre, you’re missing out].  Whether you’re a teetotaller, an occasional drinker, or simply in need of slowing down your current excessive intake, take the following tips into account and give your liver (and your shrinking bank balance) a break:

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