"Dear Rosemary:

Just a quick note to say how much I enjoyed meeting you at last week's trade association mixer. I am particularly interested in your ideas for expanding into export market. [See importance of writing notes on back of card.] I have some thoughts of my own that may help you. I look forward to catching up with you again soon.

Best,

Jack Horner"

=> Maintaining Contact

Then, about two weeks later, call Rosemary and suggest a lunch or breakfast meeting to explore ways two of you could refer each other business.

Invite people you have met to attend social functions such as cocktail parties or other networking events.

Make it a point to make contact with every one of your contacts about every two months or so. This could take any number of forms, you need not always invite people to meet. Sometimes sending someone a clipping of an article of mutual interest or a cartoon that you think they will enjoy is all you will do. Other times, you may want to suggest lunch if you haven't seen person for several months.

=> Working Your Network

Over time, by following above steps, you will develop a sizeable network and an organized way maintaining contact on a systematic basis will become essential.

Establish a system whereby you perform a set number of network development tasks a day, preferably at same time of day. For example, you could set aside an hour first thing every morning to do your networking tasks. Let's say you have 200 contacts in your network and you want to make contact with each of these contacts at least once every two months. At this rate you will need to contact five people every day (200 contacts divided by 40 working days). All you have to do is make five phone calls between 9:00 am and 10:00 am and you're done. Or, you could make three phone calls, send one note enclosing a copy of latest article you wrote for an industry publication and meet one person for breakfast or lunch.

Some days you will have both breakfast and lunch plans with someone from your contact list. Don't forget you can also kill two birds with one stone by inviting more than one person to lunch. Bring together people from your network who don't already know each other but who could help each other. Who knows who these people know that you haven't met yet?

You get idea.

REAPING THE HARVEST

As you can hopefully see by now, key is to keep in regular contact with your network on a consistent basis. Over time, these contacts will become a rich source of referral business for you and your business will grow in leaps and bounds as a result.

Maybe solution is to do EVERYTHING part-time.

Let's say you work full-time in paid employment and you run an online business in your spare (part-)time. Let's also say that your salary is low enough that, if you just had enough time to devote to it, you're pretty sure you could ramp up your online business to point that you were generating more profit from every hour you devote to it than if you spent that same time working in your paid job.

Now, some would decide that at that point they'd quit their day job and just work on their business full-time. That may be a good option. IF you can be sure that your business is going to succeed over longer term. But it ignores fact that you don't really know what's around corner and by giving up your day job you've also just given up your financial cushion (your "insurance" if you will).

And if you decide to do away with your business because you figure if you devote your time and energy into working even harder and longer hours for your employer you'll get a promotion and more money, if you lose your job you're screwed because you don't have financial cushion of your business as insurance.

THE "ONE PART-TIME PLUS ONE PART-TIME EQUALS ONE FULL-TIME" SOLUTION

So what's answer? Work both your job and your business part-time so that, together, they add up to full-time. If (and this is an important "if" if cash flow is tight) extra time you have to devote to your business will result in a commensurately greater financial return than would working same hours in your job (make sure you run numbers to be sure this is case - if not, start a more profitable business!) this can be a viable option. Even if it yields same return (or maybe even a little less) it may still be worth considering as sort of an insurance policy against being laid off.

Likewise, an employer that's struggling in a soft economy and facing having to lay off staff may well welcome option of converting you to a part-timer with resultant reduction in payroll and overheads.

Such a situation can be a win-win for all concerned. (And if you're a parent of young children, I hardly need to point out lifestyle advantages and reduction in child care costs.)

THINK PLURAL

So, if you're still looking for The Answer, your Big Break, The One, STOP. Stop thinking in terms of "ones" and start thinking in terms of multiples. Multiple part-time ventures (and don't limit yourself to just one part-time job and one part-time business, best combination for you may be two part-time jobs and one part-time business - whatever works) which, when added together, bring in just as much or more income than your J.O.B. (Just Over Broke) and minimize your risk from vagaries of forces and events over which you have no control.

Just as investment advisers warn investors not to place all their eggs in one basket, so too you should avoid relying on just one golden goose. Get a flock of 'em!