So today, I want to talk about something that came up in a Ustream video thing I was doing last night: networking.

There was a long conversation about networking, and I really wanted everyone to understand that networking is easily the most beneficial skill that a blogger could have. Some people were worried about approaching other bloggers, and wondered how to create relationships, and begin networking.

It is as simple as this: they are not celebrities, they are regular people. To get to where they are now, they had to learn how to network. If you take the time and effort to network as well, there is no reason why you can’t build your profile up online.

Start with the people in your niche that are only a few steps ahead of you, and connect with them. Comment on their blog, add to the conversation, link to their posts and talk to them. If you share your knowledge and personality, you will most likely connect with people similar in views to yourself and begin to build a relationship.

I mentioned posting on your own blog as a way to network. You can post on your own blog about someone else’s post and if you link to them, the trackback or the traffic they get from your post might bring them to your blog, and create the first step of building a line of communication.

If you are still afraid of reaching out, you have to try to remember that the worst thing they can say or do is ignore you or belittle you. And if they don’t respond well to your attempts at befriending them, you just have to move on, and not take it personally. Blogging requires a thick skin because you can never please everyone.

Also, if you want to dip your toe in networking, I know each and every one of the bloggers here at The Blog Herald are great people that love to talk blogging, and hear any questions, concerns or ideas you may have.