masongoddamnwright

Short answer, and sorry for the spoilers – but yes!!

To those who may not be familiar with the terms, allow me to catch you up to speed. “What is this networking you speak of? Is it the internet?”

Well, sometimes. Not really, though the internet may be a great tool to you for networking. What it actually is, is as follows:

“Business networking is the act of maintaining positive relationships with clients and other professionals in your industry.” – indeed.com

“That’s a load of jargon, I’m still lost” some of you may say. Well, let me put it in simple terms, with another quote:

“It’s not about what you know, it’s about who you know” – (unknown origin)

Your relationships with other people in the industry is incredibly important for many reasons. For a start, you’ll be joining a field with many others of similar talent to your own. Some have been in the game longer than you, and some might just be really good at what they do, so it’s worth sharing a space and connection with them. There’s probably a good thing or two to learn from them! I have real experience with this in art. My dear friend Maya is an incredible and experienced artist, who has taught me many things about art. One of the thing she taught me was just how good using different digital brushes really was. I know that seems obvious, but sometimes you don’t think of these things or brush it aside until someone with experience tells you!

Here’s an old unfinished sketch of mine that uses this advice to create storm clouds, and reflections on the water in the background. I will also note that the lightning effect came from advice I found from other experienced artists too!

Not only could you potentially find interesting and useful advice from experienced veterans in the field, you might also find work! Getting attention and being noticed is a big part of networking, and when you get a name for yourself, some eyes landing on you might be looking to scoop up you and your talent for themselves. This, of course, is a good thing because you’re getting paid for it. Who doesn’t love getting paid to do what they’re not only good at, but also passionate about? Want to know more about making a name for yourself? Read more here!

How do you get started with networking? Well, more importantly, you need to make an effort to get involved! Reach out to people, follow people on socials, meet people at events they may be hosting, even get involved in game jams! If you want to get really savvy with it, you could make your own business cards to hand out at any real life events you attend. That would make it much easier for the people you meet to get in contact with you after the event, because be honest: how often do you forget people’s names, let alone contact details? Of course, if you’re making business cards, you’re going to want to make those stand out too, to differentiate them from the many other business cards people may be getting at events like these.

If it was me, I’d get active on LinkedIn, or maybe a platform Twitter (now X). Personally though, I think the best way to really get out there is to work with others and meet people in person. When you’re networking online, you probably want to show off your qualifications, portfolio, and other achievements for people who may be scrolling so that they can quickly get to learn who you are in the professional world. Having some of your prior work on you for networking at real life events is a good idea, but in social scenarios like that, people are less likely to want to have a big blurb of stuff thrown at them. Social skills here are crucial! Introduce yourself where appropriate, tell people a bit about what you’ve got to offer to try and lure interest, and above all – be kind and confident. Be the kind of person you would want to approach and have a conversation about games development (or whatever your discipline may be) with!

And what if this is all a bit much? Fear not! You can start small by joining online communities and contributing to them. Ask for feedback on your work, show off what you have, and look at what others have made. Not only can you learn about technique, style, or tips from others, but you can also see whenever big trends in your spaces are happening. Staying on top of current events in your field is important, because it shows your commitment to your craft and shows that you strive to remain relevant in the space.

So, there’s the long answer for you. Networking is important for a variety of reasons, and engaging in it can completely change the trajectory of your career for the better! And if you want to stay in touch with me, you can find me over on LinkedIn here!