Five years, five lessons: Lesson 2

Lesson 2: Network
Online; face-to-face; it doesn't really matter, as long as you get to know people. Business is built on relationships, and the sooner you build them, the sooner you will succeed.

The benefit from networking for us when we started wasn't in winning business (we got the odd piece of work), but in what we learned from the connections we made. Whether it was knowledge we could apply to our business, or introductions to companies with particular skills we needed (see Lesson 1), networking helped to accelerate our business.

But while it's not all about winning business, you do need a really clear understanding of why you're networking. It's very easy for it to become a bit of a social event, an opportunity to catch up with people and have a chat. And while that can be an important part of building a relationship, it's not necessarily the best use of your valuable time (but that's for another post).

So start with a clear idea of the kind of people you're looking for, maybe people with links or connections to a particular sector (or even a particular company of you want to be really specific), and remember to follow up with the people you meet. Because you never know, they might hold the key to your future success.