Posted on October 22, 2012 by Cynthia Gunsinger

Face to face, phone to ear, fingers to keyboard…cheek to cheek.

You plant a tiny seed and it takes a few days or weeks to see evidence of something happening. You might have even forgotten it, but the seed hasn’t. The seed is doing what it’s supposed to do. Germinate! And it does that in it’s own time.

A networking event changed my life.

I worked in a small newspaper in South London and part of my job was calling businesses to get them to advertise in the paper. People are fascinated by my voice: wherever I am, I never seem to sound like everyone else around me.

One September day, I called a business and the nice young man made it clear he did not want to advertise but he certainly wanted to talk to me. He made good on his intention! He called me every day at the same time (the Brits are known for their set tea/coffee breaks) for three months.

Intriguing and fascinating. He was even able to describe me to a tee: height. weight, the way I wore my hair, the color of my eyes. And no, he was not a creep or a stalker!

We finally agreed to meet for dinner. He picked me up at my home (that was the norm in those days). Dinner started at 7 p.m. and we finished at 2 a.m. We were asked to leave the restaurant so they could close. We sat in his car until we got cold. We crept into the living room at my home, being careful not to disturb my siblings. At 2 a.m. my older brother decided this man needed to leave.

After all that talking, we still had more to say. We talked on the phone the following day, and the day after that, and after that. March of the following year, we moved in together.

That was over forty years ago. We had a marriage. A home. A business. Two wonderful children. We moved to the United States. We had another home. Another business. We divorced.

All of that started with someone I had never met, but we networked our way into each other’s hearts. I was going to say in and out of each other’s hearts, but I realize he is still in my heart. Not in a romantic way, but in a loving respectful way. He is the father of my children. Without him, two amazing people who call me Momma would not be here.

 I am grateful that I dared to allow that stranger into my life!

Networking is not about what you can get from the contact, it’s about human relatedness.

*  making a personal connection

*  sharing who you are

*  exchanging ideas and information

*  opening up to possibilities

*  figuring out our mutually beneficial interconnectedness

Of course, not all networking situations end in a romantic liaison. However, we cannot always plan the outcome. We have to leave room for the magic. The unintended consequences.

What have you given or received when you put yourself out there?

How can you turn your networking time and events into something that, may not be the blueprint for your life, but a memorable or at least a satisfying experience?

I would love your comments.

Author Pauline Haynes is a Life, Spirituality, and Relationship Coach on Noomii.com