Her Next Chapters

105. Holiday Networking: How To Talk About Your Career During The Holidays (And Beyond)

• Christina Kohl

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December is often written off as a slow time for job searching, but it’s actually one of the best times of year to network.

In this episode of Her Next Chapters, we’re talking about holiday networking and how to talk about your career during the holidays in a way that feels natural, confident, and human. If you’re in a career transition, returning to work after a break, navigating a layoff, or quietly thinking about a job search in 2026, this episode will help you show up to conversations with more clarity and ease.

You’ll learn:

  • Why December and the holiday season are a unique opportunity for networking
  • How to reframe networking so it doesn’t feel awkward, forced, or transactional
  • What to say when someone asks, “So what are you up to these days?”
  • A simple elevator pitch structure you can use right away
  • How referrals work and why networking matters more than online applications
  • Common mistakes to avoid when talking about your job search
  • How small, low-pressure asks can lead to warm introductions

These holiday networking strategies are especially helpful during end-of-year gatherings, but they work any time of year - at school events, community gatherings, volunteer roles, professional associations, and everyday conversations.

Whether you’re restarting your career after a break, pivoting into something new, or preparing for a job search in the new year, this episode will help you think about networking as socializing with purpose - during the holidays and beyond. 

  • Want to chat about your career goals? Schedule a free call HERE.
  • Send me an email ---> christina@hernextchapters.com

Connect with me on LinkedIn ---> www.linkedin.com/in/kohlchristina

Grab the Free Strengths-First Resume Template - it's perfect for anyone in career transition, whether with a long career gap, a layoff, a career pivot, or just ready for a change.






Christina Kohl:

Hi and welcome to Her Next Chapter's podcast. I'm your host, Christina Kohl. I'm a mom of three and soon to be an empty nester. I'm also a certified HR pro who restarted my career after being a stay-at-home mom for over a decade. I created this podcast to connect with moms who have an empty nest on the horizon and are wanting to redefine their identity outside of motherhood, which might include a job search. On this show, we'll have long conversations about our everchanging roles as moms. We'll hear from women who restarted their careers and share tips for a job search after a career break. So if that's you, you're in the right place, friend. Let's get started. Hi, and welcome to this week's episode of Her Next Chapters. We're gonna be talking about holiday networking. Because if you're listening in real time, this episode is going live on December 17th, which my goodness is like a week before Christmas. And even if you don't celebrate Christmas, there are still a lot of holiday gatherings around this time of year. And it's something that you want to take advantage of if you are in the job search. And networking during the holiday season is a great opportunity to help you land a job you love. Even though it's a busy time of year and you might feel like it's not the right time to be job searching, it is absolutely the right time to be networking. We're gonna talk about why networking matters and natural ways to network any time of year and especially during the holidays, and how to talk about you what you do and your job search without sounding desperate. I'm also gonna give you a simple elevator pitch structure that you can use right away. So, in case we haven't met, if you're a new listener, hi, I'm Christina. I am a certified professional in human resources and I'm also a certified professional coach. And after overcoming one of the most challenging job searches, I had a 13-year career gap. I stayed home until raise my kids, and when I was ready to go back to work, it was a really challenging job search. But I figured it out and I landed my dream job. These days I teach job seekers with a career gap or pivoting into something new, how to land jobs they love. And I have an inside scoop on what works and what doesn't for my years of experience in HR. Okay, so first of all, when we talk about networking, is networking a dirty word for you? What are some negative connotations that come up when you hear the word networking? I know for me and people I talk to, it's like, oh, it's icky, it feels forced, stressful, it's transactional, it feels really insincere, self-serving. Like, oh, I'm just out for myself. It feels awkward, it's draining. Um I wish I could see you all. Like, raise your hand if any of those like sound familiar or like it's something you can relate to. Well, I'd like to change your mind and your outlook about networking to reframe that. And instead to consider it, it's more about socializing, it's connecting with other people, you're catching up with friends and hopefully making new friends. You're giving updates about yourself, you're helping others, you're sharing your goals, right? That's a completely different mindset, but all of those things are networking. It doesn't have to be icky and one-sided and transactional. And I want to talk about why it is so important in the context of a job search. For employers, the research shows that 82% of employers placed referrals above all other options for yielding a better return on their investment. 88% of employers rated employee referrals above all other sources for generated quality of new hires. And 45% of people employed through referrals stay with the company for more than four years. So that's for the employer side. That's why employers value referrals for candidates. Wait to hear these numbers. The referred candidates were over four and a half times likely to get hired. That's huge. And one study found that only six percent of applicants have a referral. So let's look at that math, right? If you're applying and you have four, four and a half times more likely to get hired if you have if you're referred in, but only six percent of applicants have a referral, that's where you need to spend most of your time in your job search, is networking and getting and talking to people. And an estimated 60 to 80 percent of jobs aren't even posted. And even if they're posted, like here in the state of Colorado where I live, it's the law that employers have to post their jobs, but that doesn't mean they haven't already talked to someone who's a referral, and that's why you get the automatic rejection and you don't even get an interview, right? Because they already have their candidate, someone who's been referred in before the job was made public. So, yes, you could say it's it's the law that jobs need to be posted in some areas, but even then the network is what's going to give you that layup and get you noticed, right? And it's gonna get you noticed and passed the applicant tracking system, the ATS. When you are referred in all the ATS systems that I've worked in as a recruiter, when you are referred, your name, your application goes to the top of the list. Used to be, we'd say the top of the pile, right? The resume pile, but in the digital pile, your name gets bumped up to the top when you have a referral. And so it's really, really important to be having referrals. And I'm gonna talk to you about that, like how to how to do that as we continue this conversation today. So ask yourself, how confident are you in your networking skills? Like, are you just totally tongue-tied? You're an introvert, and you just uh don't like to do it. Or maybe, you know, you know you're awkward, but you can do it. Or maybe for you, networking is the easiest thing in the world. You love talking to people and you just can talk nonstop. So the other question I have for you is how large do you think your current network is? You might be saying, what network? I left the job market five years ago to be a stay-at-home mom. I haven't kept in touch with anyone, or everyone I did work with has retired and they're not in the workforce anymore. Um, or maybe if you really stop and think about it, you can put together a list of, you know, 25 people or so that that would be in your network. Or maybe you're in the category of like you, you know, lots of people. Um, if that's the case, amazing. But do those people know what your goals are? Do they know that you're in the job market? Do they know how they can help you? Do they know you need help? So again, we're gonna talk about those things today. So if you were in the group that said, I really don't have much of a network, I've lost touch with my professional network, I want to remind you that you already have a network. Your friends, every one of your friends, your neighbors, your extended family. So I'm talking aunts, uncles, cousins, the cousins in-laws, like you know, that extended big family, fellow parents, parents of your kids' friends, whether it's from school or sporting events or clubs, whatever activities your kids are in, those fellow parents are part of your network. And past coworkers, obviously, your past coworkers are part of your network. But I want to encourage you to think beyond just people who got the paycheck from the same employer, because your past coworkers also can include vendors, partners, customers, other people that you worked with in the context of a past job, they didn't necessarily work for the same employer as you, but you worked together in different capacities, those are still part of your network. Same thing with past classmates, whether it's, you know, you want to go back to high school or even earlier, certainly college, or if you've taken a certification course, anything like that, those past classmates are part of your network. And then finally, fellow volunteers. And we'll talk a little bit more about that as well. But volunteers, whether that's at your kids' school or for an organization that you're passionate about, um, any of those volunteers are part of your network and the people that you meet there as well. So the question I asked a little bit ago about how large your network is, hopefully now you're seeing that it's actually a lot bigger than what you may have originally thought. So, part two though, is how to expand your network, how to make it bigger. So you're gonna do that by going to social events and talking to new people, preferably in person. Of course, you could do this online. You could also create social events. And the holidays are a really good time to do that. If you don't know your neighbors very well, invite them over. And you're like, telling me, Christine, I don't have a budget for that. Okay, just make it a potluck and do desserts and drinks. Make it simple for everyone. Everyone bring a dessert and a drink to share, and you're gonna get to know your neighbors, right? Um, so create those social events and then volunteer anywhere of interest. So it doesn't matter that it's connected professionally or not, that would just be doing something that you enjoy. So volunteer there, you're gonna meet people when you're when you're doing that. And then secondly, volunteer strategically. And what I mean by that is to do something that's um that would be an accomplishment that could go in your resume. So whether that if you work in web design, do a web design or a web audit, web design creation, whatever it is for a nonprofit. And how do you find these? If it's not a group that you're already familiar with, you can go to catchafire.org. That's catch a fire, f-i-re.org. Catch a fire allows nonprofits to come forward with different project work that they have. And these are professional level things, whether it's event planning, maybe they need something with their computer setup, or they need an employee handbook or marketing, um, all the different things. Those are opportunities where you can volunteer strategically. And those would be resume worthy, by the way. They do go on your resume, unpaid experience is experience. And then also those are expanding your network, right? You're getting references from that group, you're meeting new people, and not only the new people that you directly work with there, but people at the entire organization and their partners. So it is a great way to expand your network in a professional capacity. And then attending professional association events is another um thing to do. A lot of times, let's say you're not working, you're like, I can't afford the fee. Most professional associations offer a discount for people who are currently unemployed and volunteer there as well. So say there's an event, be volunteer, raise your hand and volunteer. If that's especially like at the check-in station, right? People go to an event and they need to check in, get their name tag. You're meeting everyone, right? So you get a chance to to follow up with them on LinkedIn, say, hey, it was great to meet you at the luncheon last week, right? I'd love to love to keep in touch. So that is an incredible way to expand your network. And then finally, going to meetup events. So meetup.com, there's it's in your neighborhood or your community, and there's all kinds of things. And again, these are things of anything of interest to you. The point is to meet new people and to be around people where you have those introductions because you never know who is going to make that critical introduction that you need. And story time. So, my client Julie, she met a new yoga classmate. Um, they were at class together, and I think Julie's been going to this yoga class for a while. Someone new was there. They did the class afterwards, they're just chatting, you know, getting to know each other. Just a few minutes is all this conversation. And basically, something like, you know, what are you doing the rest of today? Well, I'm I'm updating my resume because I'm applying for this really exciting job. This this opportunity that I'm excited about as a finance director. Well, it turns out that this new yoga classmate knows the CFO at the place where Julie was applying for a job. And he offered to send her resume. He's like, send me your resume and I'll send it to my friend, the CFO. So keep in mind this story took me longer to tell it, probably than it actually happened in real time. They had known each other for one class and they had only talked for a few minutes. And because Julie talked about what she was doing, she talked about her job search, not in a way being needy of saying, Oh, I'm in a job search, but yeah, I need help. Do you know anybody? No, she was just saying, Hey, I'm excited because I'm doing this. And that quick little conversation got her resume in front of the CFO, the hiring manager. Okay, so you never know who is going to make that introduction that is going to be key for you. So now that could everything we've talked about so far is all year round, right? You can be doing this stuff all year. So don't say that it's too late, it's in January when I'm listening to this. Or Christina, this is it's already March, and now I'm listening to this podcast. You can do these things all year round. But in the holiday season, I'm talking end of year, December, or into early January, you might be around a lot more social opportunities than normal. So classroom or school holiday parties, winter concerts or performances. There could be neighborhood gatherings, open houses, of course, faith-based events and services, alumni and professional association, get-togethers, appreciation events, and don't forget your spouse's employer holiday parties. If you are invited, go. You're gonna meet a whole bunch of people there. So there's just a lot more opportunities right now to be able to be networking and meeting new people. And again, you want to be doing this year-round, so keep that in mind. A lot of people during December is like, oh, I'm just gonna put my job search on hold and wait till January. Okay, that's fine, but the networking can still be happening, right, during these social events. Okay, so bonus this time of year, a lot of people send out holiday cards, whether it's for Christmas or maybe it's a New Year's letter. Sharing your updates, right? And this is a time when you can include the fact that you are making a career change and that you're excited because you're looking for opportunities in marketing for mid-sized companies, right? Just something that's a sentence or two that just talks the the fact that just alerts your friends and family that you're in a job search. And it doesn't have to be a big long explanation, just something really simple. Um, just saying that you're excited because you're looking to make a change in your job or change in your career next year, shifting to whatever. All right, whatever it is that you want, just keep it short. And that alerts everyone on your list that you send cards out to. Okay, so now it. Hopefully, you're getting some great ideas and how you can and you can see your calendar filling up and you're ready to network, and you feel like it's not so cringy and one-sided as it needs to be. But all right, what do you say and how do you do it? Well, I have what I call the natural networking method, and it's basically being interested in the other person first, right? You're gonna ask them questions about their work, their life, or their plans, and then let the conversation come back to you. You're gonna share a simple, future-focused version of your story, and there's no pitch, there's no big ask, just connecting with another human being, right? And the other thing I love about this time of year, it's really easy to ask the question do you have any new year's resolutions? Right. Um this again, if you're listening real time, it's going to be on December 17th. So it's very natural to be asking, what are your plans for 2026? Do you have any goals for the for the new year? What do you do have any resolutions? And you can be asking that question first of your speaking partners, so the people you're talking with, and then they're probably gonna ask you the same thing. And if you are in a job search, that's your window just to say, well, my goal is to get a new job next year. Because and then the conversation is gonna flow from there. Oh, really? What do you do? And if you've been a stay-at-home mom for a long time, that question's gonna be might be, what did you do? Or what type of work are you looking for? Right. Um, if you've been laid off, you can talk about what you want to do next. Maybe this is an opportunity to change and do something completely different. And see that layoff, even though layoffs suck, it can also be a window to do something new. So, anyway, that the point is you're gonna ask someone else about their goals, then they're gonna turn around and ask you about your goals. So, some other conversation starters, just what have you been up to lately? How have you been? New year's resolutions, and then or asking, you know, what you're doing for over the holidays. How are things at work? So if it's okay to ask somebody that, even if you aren't currently working, how are things at work? And if they're not working right now, you're gonna hear their situation and their story and how, and then ask them how you can support them. When that question comes back to you, you can say, Well, actually, right now I'm not working, but I'm excited to land a new job next year. And then they're gonna ask, like, you know, what type of work you want to do and all of that, right? So it's these are just easy questions, starter questions to help you have the conversation. Okay, so some do's and don'ts. You don't want to dwell on the negatives. Have you been applied to countless jobs already and been rejected? Yeah. If you got laid off, was it painful to be dismissed and then have your career derailed? You bet it was. And is the job market challenging and the job search overwhelming and full of rejection? Yeah, it is. But if you start and talking about all of those negatives, that's gonna derail the whole conversation and you're gonna get off track from talking about where you're headed next. And it might wind up talking about politics, the the state of the world, uh might it can derail the conversation to all kinds of things. And that negativity is gonna and it's gonna land on you and it's gonna stay stay on you. So we don't want to go there. And that's not to say that you can't talk about that. You just want to make that stuff really brief. Um, so you want to stay positive about what you're bringing to the future. Talk about your depth of experience, things you're proud of, why you like the work that you that you want to do, like what motivates you, talk about your goals, share your excitement to start a new chapter. Okay, those are positive energy things, and that's gonna drive the conversation where you want it to go instead of it being derailed talking about the negatives. Okay. And just a real quick example, you know, somebody asks you, so how are things going for you? And if you've been laid off, this is an example. Well, things have changed a bit. My role ended when the funding shifted earlier this year. So I am in transition. I spent the last few years working on fill in the blank. And now I'm exploring roles fill in the blank where I can keep doing that kind of work, right? It's short, it's honest, it's forward forward. Focused. So that's the type of way that you want to talk about it. And that was an elevator pitch. And an elevator pitch is just really simple. You're talking about who you are professionally, the kind of work you have done, why your work matters, and where you want to go next. And of course, it's short, like usually 30 30 to 60 seconds to kick off the conversation. And the goal is to create interest and open up that conversation, not to list your entire resume. Take some time, use about five minutes, take some time and use these prompts. You can come back to this if you need to, but you know, or get out your pen and pencil now. Um, you're just gonna start with your professional identity. And it doesn't matter how long ago it was that you were in that professional role. It might have been 10 years since you worked last, if you've been a full-time stay-at-home mom. It might have been a year has gone by since you got laid off and you haven't been able to land a job. You're gonna start with that professional identity as if it was like it's it's current, it's now, and then add one or two impact highlights, things that you've done that you're really proud of. Briefly explain the transition. So why why you're in transition, why you're looking for a job, and then end with the type of work you want next. So your profession the so four things your professional identity, one or two impact highlights, explain the transition, end with the type of work you want next. And just take five minutes just to write jot that all down. And then once you have a draft, you're gonna want to practice with someone else out loud and get some feedback. Depending on how the conversation is going, you can just ask. Hey, if you hear any roles doing this type of work, I'd really appreciate you keeping me in mind. Or I love this one. Is there anyone that you know that I should be talking to? Right? So those small asks can lead to big introductions. All right, well, that is it for this week's episode. I'm wishing you and your loved ones a happy happy holiday season and a prosperous new year. If a job search is one of your goals for 2026 and you would like some help, I'm happy to hop on a call for free just to brainstorm with you and kind of get you started. So click the links in the show notes to schedule a session, and that is my gift to you for this holiday season. All right, we'll talk to you soon, friend. Thank you so much for listening today. I hope this episode hit home for you. And if you haven't already, be sure to connect with me on LinkedIn and say hello. I can personally thank you for listening. Until next time, remember your story is uniquely your own, and your next chapters are ready to begin.