12 Week Networking Blitz for Actuaries

By: Nate Worrell

Estimated Reading time: 5 minutes

Do you cringe at the prospect of initiating a conversation with a stranger?

I get it. People are weird.

But have you ever had one of those “small world” moments, where you find out that a person you never met before shares your birthday, went to the same hair stylist and has a dog from the same litter that yours came from? Random connections in the real world are magical.

 In the working world, connections are essential.

· They are how you get picked for a key project. 

· They can get you in front of people who control your paycheck. 

· They can be a safety net if things go south.

Actuaries get a bad rap about being introverted. Here’s the thing - networking is not about how extroverted you are. It’s about how genuinely curious you can be. It’s a problem to be solved, the art of finding an intersection of commonality amongst two variables.

So, to elevate your career, here’s a 12 Week Challenge. All you have to do is reach out somebody every week, and you can even follow the same script. 1 – Introduce yourself, 2 – Express Curiosity, 3 – Extend an Invitation. This can be done in person (best), over email, or through Linked In.

Dear Syed,

My name is Nate and I am interested in how you go about maintaining an active newsletter, especially for an actuarial audience. Can we connect for 30 minutes this week?

Thanks in advance.

Once you land the person, focus your conversation on points of connection. Here are some sample questions.

1. What got you started in the job you’re in?

2. Have you had any unexpected career twists?

3. What are you currently involved in that excites you the most?

4. What do you need the most help with?

5. Can we connect again at a future point?

For the 12 Week Challenge, the people you reach out to will progress from someone proximally close to you to the CEO of the company you work for. Or if you are independent, any CEO will do.

Have you signed up to our weekly job alerts on Actuary List? We post 50 new handpicked jobs every week that match your expertise. To ensure you don’t miss out, sign up here. Here are a few examples of new jobs this week:

The Warm Up

This is an opportunity to connect with some friendly faces to break the ice and get used to having these types of conversations.

1. Another actuary in a different area of the company or a different area of practice

2. Your Chief Actuary or any Chief Actuary. (Usually very willing to connect)

Level One

Now, we move to actuarially adjacent. This will help you gain new perspectives for the work you do or the industry you are in. They are also likely to be aware of what an actuary is.

3. Finance VP or SVP

4. Investments or Investor Relations

5. Head of Strategy or Chief Risk Officer

The Stretch

Then, we go to people who you might not normally connect with. I have had some of the best conversations and moments of inspiration by learning what people do an don’t understand about the products they are surrounded by.

6. Entry Level Marketing Employee

7. Mid-Level Underwriting or Claims

8. Senior Level Sales

Cross Training

Now we need to branch out from the company and even the industry to get an even broader worldview.

9. Someone from a different country

10. Leader of a Non-Profit you support

11. High Profile Figure in your community

Finish Strong

You may have to get creative in finding a way to get a bit of facetime with an exec. Bump in to them after a townhall or at a company offsite event. Figure out who runs their calendar.

12. CEO

At the end, reflect on the experience you’ve had connecting with all the people up to this point. What have you learned about your line of work, about the people in it, or about yourself?

Some final tips:

· Offer to meet in person, buy them a cup of coffee or a lunch somewhere.

· Be flexible in times, and be persistent if anyone is non responsive.

· Be an active listener. Have an agenda but deviate if something catches your ear.

· Follow up after the meeting with a thank you.

And if you want to connect with me, I am always happy to have a conversation! Find me on Linked in https://www.linkedin.com/in/nateworrell/