Anyone who follows Cancer and Careers' blogs knows how adamantly we feel about networking. Besides the fact that nearly 80% of jobs are found through networking, and not traditional outlets such as job boards. Networking can also help you build professional skills such as effective communication and creativity.  Which is why I wasn't surprised to see Harvard Business Review offering this advice in a recent article: "Always say yes to invitations, even if it's not clear what you'll get out of the meeting."

The author points out that, while it's sometimes impossible to say yes to everything you're invited to, regularly connecting with interesting people can lead to unexpected opportunities.  By building your network through "casual encounters, agenda-less coffee catch-ups" and favors for others, you can end up with a group of people who are all actively rooting for your success and possibly even in a position to help you out.  Read the entire article and discover several easy and low-stress networking options here. 

Cancer and Careers offers many resources to help you in your networking process, like this tracker to keep track of people you meet and when you followed-up, as well as our easy guide to informational interviews.  Additionally, for even more info, check out our Looking for Work video on successful networking.