Smarter Living

Networks provide a connection with fellow workers—an emotional link with those who know us. But they also provide a source of information or business intel—about your department, your business or your industry.

In fact, it is often the distant links in your networks that provide the most value—such as helping you find a job. The sociologist Mark Granovetter makes a distinction between strong ties (close friends, family, co-workers) and weak ties (former classmates, ex-colleagues, people we know but not well). In “The Strength of Weak Ties,” he shows how these more distant links provide doorways into other networks we wouldn’t normally have access to.

Here’s how to think about nurturing your networking relationships:

Start small. When you run into a former co-worker at your place of business, say more than a quick hello. Try to take a moment and find out how they are doing. Jobs and responsibilities are always changing, and, frankly, it’s nice when someone takes a sincere interest in our lives.

Take a leap. Invite folks to drinks after work or to join you in a company-sponsored volunteer effort. The thing here is just getting to know people a bit better beyond working hours.

Use social media. LinkedIn and Facebook can provide an effective and relatively painless way to reach out to people you know, especially those who have changed jobs. Think of a colleague or classmate you’ve lost touch with, and make contact with a simple “what’s new?” message. Relate a little (no more than a few sentences!) on what you’ve been up to, and ask how they’ve been doing.

Beyond managing your relationships, careers thrive when people keep up with changes in their fields. In every endeavor there are new technologies, new “best practices,” changing regulations and previously unforeseen challenges. This applies to both the skilled mason and the architect of office towers. This is another way to keep building a solid career foundation.

Some ways to achieve this:

Join a professional organization and attend their events. Better yet, take part in different projects and help make presentations. You’ll learn more about your field, gain experience, raise your profile and meet new people in your industry.

Enroll in workshops and training sessions. If they are offered at your workplace, these opportunities will expose you to something new, even if they don’t always overlap with your current job.

Continue your education by taking classes in your field. There are several ways to do this, from the many free and relatively cheap courses online to attending a local brick-and-mortar school. Some labor unions, too, offer training. If you aren’t sure what kind of course to take, ask co-workers or your supervisor. And be sure to check whether your employer can help underwrite the tuition. Many companies offer this benefit for classes that relate to your job. If this is an option, make sure your course plan satisfies your company’s rules.

Become the teacher. If you have a special skill or knowledge, consider becoming an adjunct professor in your field at a college or university. Higher education institutions rely on adjuncts to teach professional courses. You’ll earn some extra money and meet other adjuncts, who will give you new perspectives on your field.

IMPROVING YOUR CURRENT SITUATION WITHOUT LEAVING

Let’s say you have a job you like, but want to do even better and find a more prominent role in your organization, commensurate with your skills and interests. Or perhaps you have a nagging feeling that you aren’t being recognized for what you’ve brought to your team.

In a perfect universe, this sense of dissatisfaction would solve itself—the boss would recognize your efforts and potential, and you’d receive better assignments, a better work shift and a raise. But improving your situation at work will most likely require some proactive attention. It begins with a careful assessment of the person we’re dealing with.

Start with a self-evaluation. Grab a piece of paper and jot down the following:

Critical here is becoming aware of your own natural strengths and interests. You may already have a pretty firm grasp of them, or you may discover them as you piece together your self-assessment. If you are unsure, turn to a trusted colleague or former boss; their viewpoint will be especially valuable. You may look at your self-assessment and tell yourself, “Damn, I’m one of the best workers here, and nobody knows it!”

If so, it may be time to make a concentrated effort to raise your profile in the workplace. This will likely take some extra work. But here are a few suggestions, and none of them are backbreakers.

Step up to solve problems. You and your co-workers can probably come up with dozens of small (or large) processes that don’t work for some reason—a software issue, a procedure issue, a deadline that no one can ever meet. But everyone is so busy that no one has time to find a solution. Make yourself that person. Odds are, the answer may simply involve getting the attention of the person in your organization who can address it.

Suggest it. Figure out how to make your department’s work easier or better. Suggest it to your boss, and if she green-lights it, be ready to take the next step to make it a reality. Don’t be hurt if your idea gets turned down; these things are like batting averages, and one out of three is excellent. The point is that you’ve made a stab at improving your workplace.

Speak up. Some people have absolutely no hesitation chattering away in group sessions and team meetings. Others have a natural reticence. If speaking in these settings doesn’t come naturally, try to take a moment before the meeting to develop some questions. Some experts recommend trying to be the first person to speak up once the floor is opened up to questions—if only to quickly get the monkey off one’s back.

Beyond raising your profile, it may be most strategic to flat out ask for a raise. What better way to improve your current situation?

Like a good lawyer about to argue a case, preparation is critical to improving your chances of success. From a variety of experts, here are some points to consider.

Your attitude at the meeting is critical.

“You’ve got to go into these discussions with a clear sense that this is something you have earned, not a gift from your boss,” said Kenneth N. Siegel, an industrial psychiatrist and president of the Impact Group, Inc., a leadership consulting firm.

If your boss says a pay raise is out of the question, either because of financial restrictions or your work doesn’t merit it, here are some fallback positions:

WHEN IT’S TIME TO GO

Sometimes a job is not working out and it’s time to leave. Or the decision is made for you, and you’ve been laid off or fired. Or, after a period away from work to raise children or care for aging parents you are trying to re-enter the workforce. Each of these presents special challenges to keeping your career moving forward.

If leaving your job wasn’t your choice—i.e., you were fired—you probably feel hurt, humiliated and angry. Getting fired, even from a job you didn’t enjoy, is a kick in the gut. And a layoff, even one that’s couched in language of “a numbers game,” isn’t much better. Emotionally, it’ll take a while to recover. So take that time to assess what went well and what didn’t and what you want out of your next job. Then, get ready for the job search.

Once you’re on the job hunt, your best resource will be—you guessed it—your network. The collection of people you know—and who know you—can provide intelligence about who might be hiring or even open doors and make a call for you.

Here are a few other things to remember:

Customize your cover letter and résumé. Do this for every job and company you apply to. This is a bit of flattery, but it also demonstrates your willingness to work for this job. Be aware, though, that varying your text presents additional opportunities for errors in grammar or spelling, so make sure to proofread your material several times.

Make sure your online profiles are up to date with your latest skills. Job recruiters often troll through these sites looking for qualified candidates.

Get out and talk to people. Reach out to people in the company or field where you want to work, ask about openings and how they got started. It’s sometimes surprising what happens when you ask for some help. You will learn things, including whether the field you are thinking about is a good match.

Be aware of age discrimination. If you are nearing retirement age but still want to work, beware of the difficulties your age may pose. Age discrimination is tough to prove, but many older job seekers know it as a fact of life. To find a job that feels like a good fit—not like something that fit you 20 years ago—you might look for smaller organizations, including nonprofits, that will take advantage of your experience and expertise.

Consider a career counselor. If you are having a hard time getting back on your feet after a job loss, career counselors can help with résumé writing and career coaching. Fees vary, but expect private counselors to charge several hundred dollars for a few sessions. There are also free services offered through the Department of Labor’s CareerOneStop services.

CONSIDER GOING FREELANCE

As you consider your options, you may look to freelance or join the gig economy. For some, that can feel like an endless hamster wheel of low-paying work, scrambling to find the next gig to pay the bills. Others insist it is a realistic response to a new labor landscape, and that, handled well, it can provide a better life than working for a large organization and always fearing the next round of layoffs.

Before you decide, it helps to look at the pros and cons of independent work.

In the pro column:

A better home-life mix. You can expect to have more control over your schedule when you work on-demand or freelance. This can feel liberating after the controlling schedules of life as an employee. A survey compiled by LinkedIn and Intuit found that 67 percent of freelance workers were satisfied or highly satisfied with their work-life balance.

A sense that you are in control of your life. You may work just as hard, or harder, but it will be work that you will have chosen, rather than had imposed on you.

Encourages an entrepreneurial view of life. It will be to your advantage to explore and develop new ideas for work—to come up with ideas to use your skills, to be resourceful, to stay up late some nights planning the day ahead. Work will not be handed to you.

For retirees, a source of extra income. The gig economy has a lot of appeal for people who have retired from a traditional full-time job but still want some stimulation and a stream of money coming in.

And on the con side:

Your pay will be unpredictable. The steady reliability of the same paycheck every pay period will disappear. You will have some great months and some not-so-great months. This will require some discipline in your spending.

You may need to get used to a smaller income. Becoming an independent worker may mean you’ll need to scale back and consider living a simpler life. Advocates say this may be the temporary cost of taking more control over your life—and that you could end up making more money and living a better life in the end. But transitions can be difficult.

You’ll lose corporate benefits you may have had. Things like company contributions to health insurance, unemployment insurance, disability income, paid vacations and 401(k) matches will go away when you are on your own.

You’ll need to be disciplined with your schedule and finances. A sense of the daily routine—which can be a creature comfort or a source of mind-numbing boredom—will be out the window. If you have two or more sources of work, all with different deadlines and time requirements, you’ll need to become an expert at keeping a good schedule. The same goes for your finances and accounting. You’ll need to keep good receipts for tax purposes. Keep track of payments—and get ready for a situation when you might have to demand payments when a customer is tardy.

Fear of the unknown. This is perhaps the biggest reason some people are repulsed by the independent-worker lifestyle. Will you be able to pay the bills? Will you be happy or miserable? The prospects may strike you as thrilling and life-affirming, or may keep you awake every night.

The best way to set up a gig-economy or freelance career is to make sure you always have work coming to you, so you don’t have to go searching for the next paycheck. This comes from developing a reputation in your line of work. Some call this creating a brand.

(Wallflowers, step aside.)

“Many people don’t want to deal with the hassle of a ‘permanent career campaign,’” wrote Dorie Clark, the author of “Reinventing You.” “They think it’s too much work to contemplate their personal brand, maintain their social media footprint, or cultivate relationships when they’re not on the make for a new job. Those are the people who will lose.”

Think of your personal brand as simply letting people know who you are and what you do, and what work you have accomplished recently—through networking, personal contacts or a website. Remember, you are independent of the big corporation, and you should spend some part of your time drawing work to yourself. Being invisible isn’t a good idea, or lucrative.

The bottom line: Pay attention to your career.

It sounds simple, but it’s not so easy to follow, because we tend to confuse jobs and careers. Jobs demand so much of our time. But jobs are temporary, and are almost always in service of someone (or something) else.

But your career belongs to you alone, to nurture, steer, imagine and reimagine. No one else can do it for you.

Find the time to show your career some love. It’ll be time well spent.