“Make your contacts count – second edition” by Anne Baber and Lynne Waymon, 2007

Networking books are few and far between.  Most sales books have a chapter on networking but it’s typically limited to “Don’t forget to network”.  This good book is a much more practical and insightful read into an area that many advisers struggle with.

The book is split into four parts, but I really viewed it as two halves.

Parts 1-3 (Half 1) focus on networking skills.  Part 3 called “Sharpen your skills” is particularly good – really hands on about networking tips and tactics, but the earlier parts on your attitude, goals, expectations and overall strategies are also a very good read.  There is plenty of content and you are bound to learn something.  Like all things, you have to adapt the ideas to your situation, so some work is required of the reader.

Part 4 (Half 2) examines common “networking” situations, including job hunting, referral groups, conventions and memberships.  I found this section somewhat less successful.  The content varies from in depth to superficial and some of these topics are extremely large on their own.  I felt it became a bit of a “let’s throw in as many good ideas as we can to boost the size of the book”, but I didn’t really get a lot of value from this half.

Still, don’t let that put you off.  It’s one of the better networking books and is recommended.