In 2012, I quit my corporate job and made the bold decision to buy a franchise. At the time, I was a corporate trainer for a very large Telecommunications company and had been there for over 11 years in various positions.
Not long after starting the business, I joined my first industry association. Up until that point, I didn’t realise there was an association for my profession let alone the importance of being a member.
It was a real eye opener for me on what I’d been missing out on to advance my career, but also how sheltered and lean my network really was (certainly compared to now).
My First Networking Event
Whilst attending my first local event, I was approached to join the local council. Each year the association invited new and existing members to join a local group to help coordinate and implement community events.
Figuring this was a great way to grow my network and build relationships – I joined. Upon being inducted into the new council year, I put my hand up for the role of Vice President. As it turns out, this lead to the next 2 awesome opportunities emerging.
Within a couple of months, I was promoted to Council President as our local board member resigned and our newly elected President was the only person who could take up the vacancy. This opened me up annual trips to Sydney to attend the inaugural conference and contributing with other state presidents on the direction of the association.
A few months after taking up the role of Council President, a fellow council member referred me for a contract gig with the Chamber of Commerce & Industries. At the time, I was struggling to make ends meet with the business so this simple referral led to my being able to eat and keep going.
Since 2012, I’ve served as Council President. In maintaining this role, I’ve been privileged to have been sent on 3 paid conferences to Melbourne and Sydney (my 4th is coming up in a few weeks), I’ve helped shape the learning and development community by participating in 4 judging panels for industry awards, expanded my network, and built successful referral partnerships.
New Beginnings
In 2015, I changed career directions and became a Resume Writer and Job Search Coach. The association has a bi-monthly magazine and when I saw the line-up for the next 12 months of topics for the association magazine my heart skipped a beat. The issue for April 2016 was on Professional Development.
Finally! A topic that I could confidently contribute to as an expert. Whilst I’ve been in Learning & Development since 2010 I never felt like an expert and have been waiting for an opportunity to provide something useful for the community.
So here it is! In all it’s glory. My very first magazine article all 1000 words. The magazine went out to over 4000 national and international active readers this week.
I hope over the coming years that I can deliver a webinar and even a keynote at the annual conference.
So, enjoy the article Master Your Next Cover Letter – But definitely provide your feedback below on where your networking has taken you?
