NETWORKING

Some time ago I got to know a very gifted artist who was already retired but still very much involved in networking. He had given up pursuing his career as an artist quite early in his life and totally given himself to networking. For him, networking meant getting various partners to the table and working together with them to achieve much more than they would on their own. It was a bit like directing an orchestra: different musicians with different instruments playing together to achieve a sound that was much richer and exciting than anything each person and instrument could have produced on their own. It was amazing to hear what he had been able to achieve by God’s grace.

What is networking?

Often people think it is just getting together with a group of practitioners, getting to know each other, having an exchange of ideas and experiences, and then each one goes their own way. While this may be partially true, it is only the very beginning of what networking is and could become. The potential lies in first understanding the benefits of supporting one another and each other’s initiatives, then understanding what everyone brings to the table, seeing the possibilities of complementing each other, and creating a working synergy together..

What is a network leader?

To release the potential of networking there needs to be one or two key people who are passionate about a particular idea or theme and who are willing to lay down their instrument in order to direct the orchestra. In other words, someone who may need to step away from the practical work they are involved in (at least partially) in order to keep the network inspired, encouraged and heading in the right direction. This requires planning, some administration and follow up work.

Networking at the Hope Event in Tallinn

The Hope Event is very much about networks and networking. Networks are looking for representatives from various countries who are passionate about their theme and equally passionate about making networks flourish. This should be for the benefit of the national church but also for European impact. Are you such a person? If you are but are not yet connected then link up through the hopeforeurope.org network site. If you know someone who you think would be great as a networker, please let us know. Europe needs networks who link and enable people to work together and release more hope for Europe than could ever be done by working alone. There is Hope for Europe! There is the opportunity to connect dreams and ideas together provided by the EEA in Tallinn in October 2018. There you can meet many more likeminded people who, like you, desire to see people reached and inspired with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We look forward to seeing you there!

Yours,