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If you’re a job seeker, there’s one important study you should be aware of. It’s by Connie Wanberg from the University of Minnesota, Ruth Kanfer at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Joseph Banas at Washington University and is titled 'Predictors and outcomes of Networking intensity amongst unemployed job-seekers'. It’s published in the Journal of Applied Psychology. and involves one of the very few scientific in-depth studies of networking when it comes to job searching.

Networkers need to be confident, but not too confident

Wanberg and colleagues point out that there may be many key psychological reasons why people can become reluctant to deploy networking effectively.

The central problem is that networking involves being socially assertive. You have to open yourself up to vulnerability by letting others know you’re looking for work, and this produces unease in many.

If you feel ashamed about being out of work, it's going to be tough to confront this by letting others know you need a job.

Equally, it can be difficult to sing your own praises and let the person you’re networking with know enough about your skills and interests.

However, Wanburg and colleagues also point out that it's possible as well to be too pushy and bold when networking and this can put people off.

It’s hard to learn charm, but one tip is to ask the people you’re chatting to how they got their job – this will remind them of the importance of networking in their careers and perhaps move them to being more sympathetic to your predicament. They may feel an obligation to repay the debt they owe to others who helped them find work, by helping you.

Networkers need to follow up

Networkers also fall down by not following up on the contact – you may need to go back and remind the person a little while later that you are still in the job market. After the first contact that person who seemed so interested on the night, may have forgotten about you.

Networkers need to turn every stone

Another common failure appears to be that job seekers don't use their social contacts vigorously enough. To maximise your chances, you need to make a list of just about everyone you know, even peripherally, and consider approaching them all to let them know you are in the job market.

Going through a diary and recalling everyone you ever met anywhere you were out and about is a useful way of prompting the memory for contacts.

Indeed, network theory predicts that it's often the people you know least well who might be most productive in coming up with job opportunities. This is because the people you know best probably circulate in the same circles as you and therefore know as much as you do already about available work.

Jobs acquired through networking last longer

There is good research evidence that those who secure a job through networking are in fact more likely to stay in it for longer, perform better and have superiorly positive attitudes to their work. This could be because these job applicants are getting a better sense of what the prospective job is really like via networking, compared with those who just rely on the other more formal processes.

Dr Raj Persaud is a Consultant Psychiatrist who has worked at numerous prestigious institutions in psychiatry. Click here to visit his site.