Increasing their personal sphere of influence, securing a higher position and also making new contacts - networking brings women countless benefits. Yet they don't use networking and give away a lot of potential - not only for themselves, but also for their company.
"Women are often more reserved and shy in the business world than men. That's why they should definitely take advantage of networking and use it to further their personal and business development," explains Charlene Hanschick. She is a consultant for self-employed women and therefore knows exactly what women in particular should consider when building their network. In the following article, she reveals five reasons why networking is so important for women.
1. Mutual support is essential
Mutual support in networking is especially important for women. Generally speaking, we are more likely to offer support to others if they are similar to us - our own gender is a good basis for this. So men prefer to support other men and women like to support other women.
In addition, women often coincide with private challenges. A good example of this is raising children: Women can bring up this topic and in this way break the ice between them very quickly. These conversations also provide valuable impetus that can extend beyond business life.
2. Finally meet with understanding
Men communicate differently than women, and that's no secret: Compared to female interlocutors, they often lack an understanding of emotional issues. So as soon as women join networks, they can share their experiences with each other because they meet like-minded people and feel understood. This is an immense advantage for female executives because they can speak more freely there - even about their feelings.
3. Competitive advantage through information exchange
Our corporate world is still heavily dominated by men. Because women often keep to themselves in the company of men and are afraid to ask questions, they often need information that is difficult to obtain outside of professional networks. Thus, self-employed women in groups or networking communities benefit from an information advantage, as they share their information with the other participants - giving them a competitive edge that should not be underestimated.
4. Like-minded people connect
Women are very good mediators: As a rule, they prefer to make connections than men - which is why a network among women works much better. Because as soon as men are part of the conversation, women are more reserved, as already mentioned. Not infrequently, they are afraid of not being heard.
However, once they connect, business ladies get information that would not be accessible without a network. This is exactly what you see in structural or direct sales: women are the most successful employees there because they are very good at building and maintaining an interpersonal relationship.
5. Equality is standard
There is good news, even if women are still disadvantaged in the entrepreneurial world: Many professional networks actively promote equality. As a result, women feel much better off in these networks.
About Sales by Women:
Charlene Hanschick and Sébastien Briclot are the founders of Sales by Women. They are dedicated to helping female consultants, coaches and service providers position themselves optimally in the market, become visible and digitize their customer acquisition.
(Photo of Charlene Hanschick by Sebastien Briclot)
Under this author name you will find guest contributions from various people that we publish on their behalf.