We are social beings: we need other people in our lives and they need us. We join groups and organisations, we work as part of team in our pharmacies and we operate as part of a member of a primary healthcare team. No man is an island and we cannot accomplish everything we want on our own: people need people and this is where the skills of networking can really help.

But what exactly is networking? From the first conversation in the morning to the last in the evening, you are networking. If you meet up with an old friend from university a couple of times a year to keep in touch, you are networking. When you attend an LPC or LPF meeting, the chances are you are networking. When you recommend a locum pharmacist to a colleague, you are networking.

So, we know straight away that this is something we participate in every day and that to many networking may be as simple as a brief conversation or a one-off meeting. My view is that it can go much further than this. A useful definition is: ‘Networking is the art of building and sustaining mutually beneficial relationships’.

Notice the key words ‘sustaining’ and ‘mutually beneficial’ in the definition. ‘Sustaining’ implies a longer-term process than a simple one-off event. The second key word ‘mutual’ clarifies the purpose of networking and how it differs from the much more manipulative process of ‘schmoozing’. Networking is sometimes confused with schmoozing, but such a manipulative approach is quite different in two fundamental respects. The latter is about getting what you want from someone, but with no benefit to the other person and is overtly manipulative and all about taking.

Networking on the other hand is about exchanging ideas, knowledge and services with a focus on mutual benefit or in other words seeking a win-win situation. Brilliant networkers know that in order to grow their networks they need to develop trust. Trust is built on the principle of reciprocity – giving and receiving.

By being genuinely attentive and listening to the needs of others you are able to demonstrate that you are trustworthy. Only if you consistently demonstrate that you are worthy of trust will you build the quality and strength of relationship required to be an effective networker. Manipulation might be effective in the short-term, but it does not build trust or create lasting and healthy relationships.