Do Career Coaches Network?
(726 words)
Career Coaches constantly tell job seekers to NETWORK. And sometimes job seekers get tired of hearing it.
After speaking to a career-search assistance group, I shared two statistics with the participants: 74% to 76% of people find their jobs through networking. Only about 8% find their jobs by responding to Job Postings. Several attendees wrote essentially the same question in their evaluations: “Why does EVERYONE tell us to NETWORK?”
Spoiler Alert: Because Networking works!
It is especially important when you consider all the opportunities that are never publicly posted. But there is another question worth asking: Do Career Coaches practice what we preach?
Recently, Career and Life Coach Nikki Ryberg demonstrated exactly what we ask job seekers to do. Nikki and I were both recognized by Influence Digest as two of the Top 15 Coaches in Madison in 2026. Nikki reached out to me and suggested we meet. I suppose I could say I should have reached out first, but networking is not a competition!
We spent a little more than an hour on Zoom learning about each other’s businesses, experiences, and approaches to coaching. Nikki is an experienced Career and Life Coach, and the reviews from her clients speak volumes about the impact she has made.
Toward the end of our conversation, something happened that perfectly demonstrated the real value of networking. Nikki made two introductions for me. I made one introduction for her.
Neither of us began the conversation by asking, “What can you do for me?” Instead, as we learned about each other, we naturally began thinking, “Who do I know who might be helpful to you?”
THAT is networking.
Networking Is Relationship Building
Networking is not collecting thousands of LinkedIn connections, sending hundreds of invitations to people you don’t know, or contacting someone for the first time and immediately asking for a favor. Networking is relationship building.
It is getting to know another person well enough to understand what they do, what they need, and how you might be able to help them. Sometimes you can help directly. Sometimes the most valuable thing you can do is make an introduction. And sometimes that introduction creates another introduction that ultimately leads to an opportunity neither person could have predicted.
That is why networking is so powerful during a career search. When job seekers rely primarily on online Job Postings, they limit themselves to positions that have already been publicly announced. They are also entering the process at the same time as potentially hundreds of other applicants.
Networking can put you into a conversation before a position is posted. A Hiring Manager may be thinking about adding someone to the team. A company may be preparing for growth. Someone may be planning to retire. A manager may know another manager who needs exactly the expertise you offer.
None of those opportunities necessarily begins with a Job Posting.
They begin with conversations.
After 45 years as a Talent Attraction Consultant and more than 26 years as a Career Coach, I have seen those conversations create opportunities repeatedly. That is why I continue telling job seekers to network. Not because networking is easy, and certainly not because Career Coaches need something else to tell job seekers to do.
We tell you to network because Networking works!
Network Before You Need Your Network
There is another important lesson from my conversation with Nikki. Neither of us was desperately trying to get something from the other person. We simply had a conversation. We listened. We asked questions. And while we were listening, we thought about people we knew who might benefit from meeting the other person.
That is networking at its best.
If you wait until you desperately need a job to begin networking, you are starting much later than you should. Build relationships throughout your career. Help other people when you can. Make introductions when they make sense. Stay in touch.
Then, when you need assistance, you won’t suddenly be asking strangers for favors. You will be talking with people with whom you have already built relationships.
Nikki practiced exactly what Career Coaches preach. If you are looking for Career and/or Life Coaching, I encourage you to learn more about Nikki Ryberg and
And if you are searching for your next career opportunity, stop asking why everyone tells you to network.
Start Networking.
EXPECT SUCCESS!!
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Bill Humbert’s Bio
With 45 years of experience as a Professional Recruiter and Talent Attraction Consultant and more than 26 years as an Expert Career Coach, Bill Humbert brings a distinctive perspective to Talent Attraction, Career Search, and Proper Goal Setting.
Bill began his recruiting career in Washington, D.C., in 1981. In 1990, he founded Provocative Thinking Consulting, Inc. and developed a different approach to recruiting. Rather than relying on the traditional contingency recruiting model, Bill works directly with companies as a Talent Attraction Consultant, generally serving one client at a time for a flat monthly fee.
Throughout his career, Bill has helped organizations attract and hire talent across industries including telecommunications, construction, financial services, manufacturing, management consulting, renewable energy, and professional services.
His philosophy is simple:
Recruiting mirrors the SALES Process perfectly.
Bill has presented to audiences on three continents: North America, Europe, and Africa. He has also appeared in more than 175 television interviews and has been featured on numerous radio programs and podcasts discussing recruiting, career search, and Proper Goal Setting.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bill authored 104 consecutive weeks of #TalentAttractionTuesday and #JobSearchFriday articles. Today, his Article Bank contains more than 400 articles sharing lessons from his decades of professional experience.
As a Career Coach, Bill has guided hundreds of professionals through successful career transitions. He is the author of three career search books, including EXPECT SUCCESS! The Science of the Over 50 Career Search, which received a 5-star review from Readers’ Favorite.
Coming Soon from Bill Humbert
Bill’s upcoming fourth book on The Power of Proper Goal Setting, THUMBS UP! How I Hitchhiked 15,000 Miles and Learned The Secret of Achieving Any Goal, transforms his real hitchhiking adventures across America from 1969 to 1971 into an entertaining Business book about setting challenging goals and developing the strategy, determination, and persistence necessary to achieve them.
At the heart of the book is Bill’s THUMBS UP process for Proper Goal Setting, demonstrating through real adventures that seemingly impossible goals can become achievable when you properly define your Target, determine How you will get there, measure your progress, establish an end date, and continue pursuing the goal.
Bill Humbert
Talent Attraction Consultant | Expert Career Coach | Professional Speaker on Three Continents| Author
RecruiterGuy.com
Bill@RecruiterGuy.com
EXPECT SUCCESS!!
