When it comes to networking, you may be surprised that most people know very little about your career. While they may recognize the profession, they don’t know what it involves. They’re clueless and that?s okay.
You may encounter a puzzled look when you talk to people about your job at a networking event. I experienced this confusion frequently, when I worked in TV news:
Let?s say a photographer and I would head out on a story in the morning. We?d interview a couple of people as well as get cover video. Usually, this process would take at least an hour.
Sometimes, as we’d be packing up, one of our interview subjects would ask when the story would air.
I?d say it would be on that evening. The other person would then respond by saying, “Gee, what do you do for the rest of the day?”
On the inside, we’d laugh at this remark. The person didn?t know that the story would need to be written and then raw video would have to be edited down to roughly 90 seconds of content. Several versions of the story would likely be needed for the various newscasts. All of this takes time and it’s more than you think.
The person also didn’t know that as a news crew, we might be sent to several other stories and that things like a lunch break were more likely going to be a concept than a reality.
Though it all, I discovered a universal truth:
People don’t know what you do but they need to know why your work is important.
Viewers watch a newscast because they trust it as a source of information, enjoy the storytelling, or like the people who are telling them the news. All of the behind the scenes stuff doesn’t matter to most of them.
It’s the same thing in a restaurant. You like a certain kind of food, enjoy a chef who has won awards, or like the cocktails from the bar. You don?t need to worry about who is peeling potatoes in the kitchen.
Often, we think our value is communicated through a list of daily activities or a title. It’s more about the role your work plays in other people?s lives.
For instance, an accountant may spend all day evaluating financial statements. That process probably doesn’t interest a lot of people.
But an accountant might also say that he or she helps people save money as well as make the most of their dollars. Which description gets you more excited and engaged?
So, why is what you do important? Try sharing this at your next networking event, rather than trying to prove your value through an endless series of tasks.
