Your Network is Larger than you think: The Importance of Strong, Weak, and Dormant Ties

How many people do you know that you really, truly trust? And, how many people would you go to for advice, new ideas, or to ask for a favour? If the people in those lists are the same, you might be ignoring a large piece of your network.

On this blog, we talk a lot about intentional networking which is all about building great relationships with a broad range of people.

Think of your professional network in three sections:

1. Strong ties: You are in regular or constant contact with these people. You may work closely with them or see them frequently. Perhaps you are friends, current colleagues, or related.
2. Weak ties: These are connections you’ve made on your social media (LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.), but you don’t have regular contact with them, and you don’t know them very well.
3. Dormant ties: These are people you knew well at one time, but you’ve not spoken to them or had contact with them in at least 3 years.

Now, consider how you might benefit from all your connections.

For example, only chatting, asking for advice or feedback, or connecting with your strong ties may lead you into a circular feedback loop. Without fresh perspectives and company, it’s easy to get in the habit of only connecting with those you think and strategize like you- decreasing your ability to innovate, think critically, and continue to develop professionally. The solution? Your weak or dormant ties! Connecting or re-connecting in this way can offer diverse perspectives because these contacts are connected to different people, they likely fly in different social circles, and generally offer different thoughts, opinions, and knowledge.

We understand it can feel awkward to reach out to weak ties and ask them for their advice, opinions or career opportunities. Yet in a classic study by Mark Granovetter, we see that people are 58% more likely to get jobs through weak ties. This is why we love the Connector Model, and why it’s so successful – it creates an opportunity for you to develop weak ties, learn from them, and maybe even convert them to strong ties!

Social media also helps us learn from our weak ties because we can follow and interact with their posts and pages to better understand their perspectives and, potentially, deepen our connections. If you feel you might benefit from building a stronger relationship with these ties, plan to meet them at events, engage with their content regularly, and slowly build a relationship over time – gaining new perspectives, and new, diverse strong ties!

Finally, don’t forget about those older contacts. Research is showing that dormant ties can actually add the most to your professional development because while your connection has faded over time, your contact’s career progression has allowed them to build new networks and gain different perspectives – so they can offer you diverse, influential advice, suggestions, options, and ideas. When a tie has gone dormant, you might be pleasantly surprised by the new experiences, career moves, and advice, ideas, or perspectives they now have to offer.

This, of course, comes with the caveat: no bridges burned here. This connection must be dormant because you moved, changed jobs, or just fell out of touch. Also, dormant ties can only exist out of formerly strong ties – because it is easier to reach out to those you once knew well, as you have a history to build on.

Think about your own professional network. Who are your strong ties? Weak ties? And who are those dormant ties? Try to name 5 people who you might reach out to for advice on your next career move, on a new strategy for work, or to collaborate on a new business idea. Leverage your network in different ways – you may be surprised how you can help each other out!