5 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
An outstanding & easy to apply networking guide for anyone!, Mar 22 2006
By RGH - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: $100,000+ Career: The Power of Networking for Executive Job Change (Hardcover)
John has got it absolutely right!! He has taken all the information and guidance from a myriad of sources and put them together in a clear, concise and methodical fashion. John has then added his human, humorous and sincere approach to guide even the veteran "transitional" to adapt and use the information with a structured approach. Anyone can use this book to help someone help them - and to find that position you both "want" and "need" - if that is your goal. I believe the "program" can be used to network anything and anyone together for a mutually satisfying result.
RGH - March 22nd, 2006
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent guidance for creating career and personal happiness (or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Job Search), April 26 2006
By Jason P. Leary - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: $100,000+ Career: The Power of Networking for Executive Job Change (Hardcover)
The $100,000+ Career is good reading, period. I started the book with connotations of this being a business book, but I ended knowing this is a book about people. By humanizing the frigid concept of networking, John Davies shows how getting the job we want, or conceiving of that job in the first place, is achievable. His current job, as highlighted in the book, is proof that his ideas work.
The book bridges the gap between old-fashioned communication (you know, talking to people) and how we communicate now: sending and receiving to the world, but in isolation. With thoughtful advice and engaging anecdotes, Davies offers practical steps for how to be introduced to 100 new people, the "Law of 100" that he says can get anyone the job she wants. The trick is not in meeting 100 anybodies, but knowing how to meet the right people to help you on your job search. In this book, he shows the way.
Davies clearly embraces his own advice, using his job search experience to show the Law of 100 in action. The book extends into of social networking, being marketable without being a commodity, practical tools for organizing these efforts, co-conspirators, terrible caddies, and even a phone call to Bob Marley. It's an unusual and exciting read.
Finally, any book that begins with a quote from John Waters has to be, at the very least, interesting. Anyone, not just businesspeople, will take a lot from this book. Personally, I enjoyed the advice for how to take control of my career. More valuable that that, I also learned that networking isn't about using people to get jobs. It's about developing relationships that improve and enrich our lives (no, seriously!)
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Surprising Twists On The Well-Worn Subject of Finding The Job You Really Want Through Networking, April 12 2006
By Brian Turchin - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: $100,000+ Career: The Power of Networking for Executive Job Change (Hardcover)
I like a book that takes an idea that I may think I may know well, like networking, and gives it some surprising twists that, in the end, has me thinking differently about that subject. John Davies' book is like that. What do I mean?
We all network to some extent. But, one of Davies' points, in your search for a new job, is that networking isn't just about establishing a new contact. It's about establishing a trusting relationship with someone new, who can then introduce you to someone who may, in the end, offer you a job. Instead of a cold call then, your contact creates an instant credibility with the person you want to speak to.
In fact, he isn't speaking of one introduction, but of setting a goal where you end up with 100 introductions, which he calls the "Rule Of 100." Why 100? Because, like with direct marketing where the response rate is in the range of 1 to 3%, going after 100 introductions significantly raises the likelihood of successfully ending up with a new job.
This is just one of the twists in Davies' book that had me re-examining how I think about and what I do when I network.
One suggestion I would make to supplement Davies' book has to do with the awkwardness of meeting new people. I don't know about you, but, oftentimes, I am at a loss as to what to say. To help, I found the book "The Fine Art of Small Talk" by Debra Fine useful.