This week on IAW’s podcast Unlimited HERizons our host and president, Megan Bozzuto, chatted with co-author, Las Vegas Local Chapter President, and Director of Member Experience at IAW, Katie Perry, who joined forces to write a book about building strong networks. The book is titled Putting the P.O.W.E.R in Your Network and will be published in October 2022. It shows how networking can be fun while finding the “right” rooms to reach the right people. 

Here are some of the advice and story behind the book from Megan and Katie:

It’s not magic

“We know that the ability to build strong relationships is essential to our success both professionally and personally. A lot of people struggle with this. They think that it just doesn’t work for them, they don’t like showing up, or they don’t like the idea of networking. It’s not something that’s gonna magically happen. You really can learn how to network,” says Megan. She had an idea to write a book to help women align their personal brand with their networking. A way that suited women’s professional needs better. When she shared the idea with Katie, she was immediately on board and the idea began to grow into reality.

Networking for women is a necessity

“I watched so many women struggle and think that they need to network in a particular way or show up with men at events and do business a certain way. There are other ways to do business where you can be successful, and I have been able to build a business that is purely based on networking. I don’t do any cold calling because my network keeps me busy enough,” said Katie. While she isn’t big on public speaking, Katie wanted to share what she learned with other professional women. “It really developed out of necessity,” she says. 

When her business partner and she started a business, Katie knew she had to network in a different way than corporate agencies. She joined IAW and found out there wasn’t a chapter president in her area. After 30 days of no volunteers, she felt that being in a position of responsibility would put her in a situation to connect and get involved in the community. “It was really great for me to expand my skill set as a leader but also expand my visibility in the way that I could lean on the things I’m great at without always being the speaker,” said Katie.

Want the full story behind the book and get more advice on networking? Listen to Unlimited HERizons updated weekly with different amazing professional women telling their stories. All IAW members can connect with Katie Perry in the IAW Community!