It is no secret that I do not like networking, in fact I would rather watch my beloved football team lose than have to attend a networking event. And yet the benefits of professional networking are backed by research, and like me, a lot of people shy away from it.
Recent research published by Jiyin Cao and Ned Smith (read it here) have found that your view of your status directly affects both the size of your social network and your participation in networking – higher status individuals have larger social networks and are more likely to reach out and network. In particular, when “…people attributed their high status to their own talent and hard work, they were particularly eager to network: they were confident they had value to offer and that others would be receptive to their outreach.:
The article notes the various experiments the researchers undertook to explore this idea, and that each study confirmed a different aspect of the findings – “If you know you have value to bring to the relationship, you will feel more comfortable about doing this type of work.” So individuals that feel “they have something to offer will network more than other people who suspect they have less value to offer and others will likely be unreceptive.” These higher status people “don’t feel like they’re taking advantage of their networking partner, which makes them come across as more authentic.”
The authors push beyond this finding to offer some advice that people should be aware of the potential value they can bring to a relationship which should give you some comfort to embark on the process.
The article ends with a strong word of caution, which is that the “implications of their findings extend beyond the workplace, into social hierarchies and inequalities writ large.” That is, this phenomenon can “cause the perpetuation of hierarchies and reinforce inequality by making the upper class feel more entitled to their privilege and the lower class feel more doubtful about their self-value.” Very sobering, and a challenge for every leader to endeavour to remove the class hierarchy in the workplace and create an environment where all members can feel value. In the meantime, you’ll find me watching football.