Networking Made Easy

I have always been a little wary of the concept of "networking." To me, the line between this so-called "networking" and the much less euphemistic "sucking up in order to move further along in your career" seemed to be dangerously blurry and perhaps non-existent. I told myself that I would very much prefer to advance on my own personal merit rather than on my ability to schmooze. Today, however, I learned that the dreaded and slightly disdained world of networking is not actually as tainted as I initially believed it to be. In fact, in the Project 55 world, networking is as simple as showing up to social events planned for you and talking with twenty+ successful Princeton alums who are there for the sole purpose of meeting you and helping you on your way.

That pretty much sums up my experience with networking through Project 55. Earlier this month, AlumniCorps held a special Project 55 gathering for current and past fellows, volunteers, and Board members. I was able to meet and talk with many of the people there and happened to take the metro back to Maryland with one past fellow (Princeton '08) who now works at the Kennedy Krieger Institute (a premier center for kids with developmental disabilities/neurological disorders). She was thrilled to hear that I was interested in child health and development and immediately gave me her card and encouraged me to get in touch with her if I had any questions. I just had dinner with her tonight, and I learned so much about how she got to where she is and the different paths I can pursue. I was so impressed by how quickly she has advanced in just a couple years since graduation, and by her willingness to help me--she even told me to send her my resume so she could forward it on to various people in the field, should Project 55 not work out for me next year! All of this from a quick 15 minute conversation on the way home from a cocktail party--it seems like networking can actually be a pretty painless experience, with minimal schmoozing required!

As for my work at CEP, it looks like big changes are in store for me over the next couple of months. Both my supervisors with whom I have been working closely since the beginning of my fellowship will be retiring/leaving for a new position by the end of the calendar year. It will definitely be interesting to see how the lack of supervision will affect my position--I'm sure I'll have more to report on that in my next blog post!