One common theme among really successful people is that they don’t wait until their once-a-year performance appraisal to get feedback. Anytime they work on a project, deliver a presentation or do anything new, they ask for feedback from their manager, peers and clients.

One easy way to get more value from your feedback is to ask for more details.

At some point in your career, you may have gotten feedback like, “You need to work on our communication skills.” That could mean many different things. When you get this kind of feedback, ask for examples. “What could I do differently to improve my communication skills next time?”

Asking these kinds of questions will help you get feedback that you can put into action today.

One of my favorite ways to learn something new when I only have 10 or 15 minutes is to read blogs by EMC employees. At www.emc.com/community, you’ll find a list of blogs by real EMCers, covering everything from marketing to cloud computing to project management and more!

Once you find blogs that you like, sign-up to get free updates. Many blogs offer email updates when they publish new posts, but every blog also allows you to subscribe using RSS, which is short for “Really Simple Syndication.” To learn more about RSS, visit google.com/reader.

Contacting someone you’d like to network with but have never talked to before can be a bit intimidating. One of my favorite tricks for connecting with new people is to send a short email asking, “Can I learn more about what you do over coffee?”

This simple question has helped me connect with lots of amazing people at EMC from around the globe, including a few senior executives here. It’s a great way to start a networking relationship in an informal setting.

Of course, you don’t have to chat over coffee. If you’re reaching out to people who don’t sit near you (and you should be), a chat by phone or over webcam using Microsoft Communicator works great, too.

I’ve had a few people ask me what I write in the emails that I send. I usually say something like, “Hi, my name is Chris Ferdinandi and I’m a human resource professional in Global Services. I was interested learning about you and your role here at EMC, and was wondering if you had 20 minutes to spare in the next week or two to chat over coffee?” It’s really that simple.

Feel free to adapt my email to suit your needs.

What sort of things should you talk about when you’re networking with someone for the first time? There are three simple questions you can ask that will easily fill up a 20 minute conversation and give you some great insights:
What is a typical day for someone in your role?
How do you see your role (and the business you support) evolving over the next few years?
What are your biggest challenges in this role?

Of course, you should also be prepared to talk about your role and what you do at EMC as well. In two weeks, I’ll give you some tips on how to create a great elevator pitch.

Networking and mentoring often get mentioned together. So what’s the difference between the two?

While everyone has their own perspective on this one, I like to think of my network as a collection of informal mentors. When I have questions about things I’ve never encountered before, or I’m just looking to bounce ideas off someone, I turn to my network. I rely on them in very much the same way that I’ve relied on formal mentors in the past.

I’ve also found that if you do this enough, people start coming to you for input and advice as well, and you start to become an informal mentor for others. Over time, you’ll actually start to brand yourself as a subject matter expert.

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

Quis nostrum exercitationem

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?

• Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste
• natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium
• totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore
• veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo.

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?

Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo.

Neque porro quisquam

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

1. Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam
2. Nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur
3. Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate

Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo.

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?

Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo.

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?

Sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo.

Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt. Neque porro quisquam est, qui dolorem ipsum quia dolor sit amet, consectetur, adipisci velit, sed quia non numquam eius modi tempora incidunt ut labore et dolore magnam aliquam quaerat voluptatem.

Ut enim ad minima veniam, quis nostrum exercitationem ullam corporis suscipit laboriosam, nisi ut aliquid ex ea commodi consequatur? Quis autem vel eum iure reprehenderit qui in ea voluptate velit esse quam nihil molestiae consequatur, vel illum qui dolorem eum fugiat quo voluptas nulla pariatur?