My networking program, The Growth Table, kicked off this past week with its inaugural month. I had fourteen people who signed up to start doing monthly dinners together. The goal is simple: get a curated group of professionals in a room, share what they're working on, make meaningful connections, and keep doing it month after month.
I got some great feedback from the group on the first dinner, and one of the things that stood out was how refreshing it was to have a real conversation. Not a Zoom call. Not a LinkedIn comment thread. An actual dinner where people looked each other in the eye and talked about what they were building, what they needed, and what they could offer.
I know what you're thinking. Another networking article. Another person telling you to go to events, hand out business cards, and follow up within 24 hours. I get it. Most networking advice is recycled and generic. But I keep writing about it because most people are still doing it wrong, or not doing it at all, and then wondering why their career feels stuck.
Here is what most people miss about networking: it is not about collecting contacts. It is about building a reputation before you need anything. The people who have the strongest networks are not the ones who show up when they need a job or a referral. They are the ones who consistently show up when there is nothing to gain, who remember details, who follow through, and who make others feel seen.
The Growth Table works because it is curated and consistent. Everyone at the table is intentional about being there. They paid for the dinner. They drove to the location. They showed up. That commitment filters out the people who network transactionally and leaves the people who understand that proximity to the right people over time is one of the most valuable career assets you can build.
If you are not in a room like that somewhere, find one or build one. It does not have to be fancy. It can be six people at a restaurant once a month. The format matters less than the consistency and the curation. The question is not whether you need another networking article. The question is whether you are actually doing the thing, or just reading about it.