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Description
Most people would agree that building and maintaining a professional network is an essential component to success. And yet, the way we're networking isn't working. Somehow, we've concluded that networking is about attending events and meeting new people — all with the goal of trying to get something.
Helpful turns that idea on its head. Networking is much more than just meeting new people; it’s about embracing the world with a spirit of helpfulness to create, freshen, and strengthen deep human connections.
Helpful is a book about professional networking. It's also a book about life, careers, and building great teams. It is at once a manifesto about how we should treat one another as well as an insanely practical guide on what to do and say when networking.
Full description available on the Helpful book page.
Author Bios
Short Version
Heather Hollick has been helping others become better leaders and craft more meaningful careers for more than 25 years. Her experience spans both business and technology, operations, and organizational development. Oh, and she was born in Canada, so she can't help but be helpful.
Long Version
Heather Hollick is a teacher, writer, and coach in the areas of networking, careers, team dynamics, and leadership development. She is also the author of the book Helpful: A Guide to Life, Careers, and the Art of Networking. Heather has a global perspective with a background in education, IT, HR, consulting, and volunteer organizations. She has worked across the US, in Canada, and in the UK, spanning companies such as Cisco Systems, MetLife, United Healthcare, Research in Motion, and the pension department of the British government. Heather earned an MBA from the University of California at Berkeley and an M.S. in applied mathematics from Purdue University. You can learn more about Heather on her website at heatherhollick.com.
Full Bio
See the About page for a full background on Heather's experience, values, specialties, and credentials.
Material for Interviewers
Download the PDF guide — Material for Interviewers — containing everything you need to conduct a great interview with Heather, including: interview questions, author bio, book information, and contact info.
Profile Photos
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Media Appearances
Early Praise for Helpful
Brilliant Guide for Making Meaningful Connections
Networking and connecting with people you don’t know is necessary for successful career changes, moves to new communities or when entering a new life stage. Helpful shows all of us how to approach and engage in meaningful ways with important people we don’t yet know.
— Deb Lovig (via Amazon)
Great Tips for Networking
Heather Hollick speaks eloquently to those who do not have a network and are unsure of how to build one. The detail that she provides is impressive! And if you are an introvert, you may feel that the first several chapters are talking directly to you. Regardless of whether you are an introvert or extrovert, this book provides a roadmap — with real world examples and practical tips — for creating your own network. This book is a must read for anyone seeking to build and grow connections with others both within and outside organizations.
— Jim and Dana Robinson (via Amazon)
Fantastic and practical book!
Whether you feel comfortable with networking or not, this book can help you strengthen your relationships (which are critical to career success). By adopting a new mindset and using the practical tips offered, you are setting yourself up for success.
In my industry (tech), soft skills are becoming more and more important to have. The practical advice in this book will increase your professionalism as you build your network. Get explicit instructions on how to follow up with people after you meet them at an event, how to handle events themselves, what to ask in informational interviews, and much more. The chapter on LinkedIn alone has tremendous value - it gives very explicit instructions on how to get the most out of it.
— Melissa Eggleston (via Amazon)
A business coach presents a guide to networking for the reluctant.
In this debut, Hollick makes a strong case for the value of learning how to network with others in professional and personal contexts. She offers concrete, actionable strategies for improving one’s social skills and making networking an enjoyable practice. In concise chapters, the author guides the reader through exercises in self-awareness, explains why networking is useful and how to approach it with the right mindset, and then introduces specific techniques for on- and offline interactions, maintaining relationships over time, and finding mentors. A final section explores the role of networking in the workplace. Many chapters include guided tasks, such as a detailed plan for strengthening a LinkedIn profile. Hollick is a solid writer with an energetic voice (“Let me repeat that. Anything that creates, freshens, or strengthens relationships for you is networking for you”), which makes her book an easy, enjoyable read. The information is solidly practical, and she offers citations as well as in-text shout-outs to books that she found most informative during her own networking education. The book’s enthusiasm for LinkedIn as a tool for building connections may not resonate for readers from communities that are less engaged with the site, but it constitutes only a small portion of the text and can be easily skipped. The remainder of the book is well organized and substantive, full of examples of how to establish mutually beneficial acquaintances, how to use networking to find out what lies ahead in one’s workplace, and how to get valuable help from colleagues without seeming too eager. Novices and experienced workers looking to strengthen their skills will find useful insights in these pages.
A thoughtful and detailed self-help work.
— Kirkus Reviews