I am a strong proponent of networking. When I was working for the World Bank, this was a very easy task, because the status of the World Bank at development meetings acts like a magnet: people throw business cards at you. I collected very useful ones (the most high-profile ones I had to go and gather myself, of course), but also held a bunch in my hand after any large meeting wondering what on earth I would do with some of them.
I got invited to events only because of my institution, not because of my job, title, or - woe of woes - skills and personality. I once went to wine and dine luxuriously in Milan and Turin because the organizer was so happy to have the Bank on their list of attendees (I did actually go to the meeting because it was hugely useful for my project's contacts, and did have to convince my Manager using the criteria of objective usefulness that he should approve my trip).
But the best part of networking, useful or not at the precise moment of contact, is that there are people - a "face" - behind the business cards. These are real people, with strengths, weaknesses, stories, and personalities. They make working "real", which is not the case if you only communicate through e-mail or phone. And face-value increases trust. Would I ever ask for a favor of someone I've e-mailed with extensively to organize some or other issue at work? Rarely. Would I ask for a favor from someone I chatted to during an extensive coffee break and lunch at a conference? Yes.
The most useful network is personal. And the best network ever consists of friends. Those of you out there know who you are. You are the coins for this slot-machine called career (the great part is that the machine does not eat the coin, but lets me use it again and again...).
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