{"id":25807,"date":"2026-09-27T12:18:11","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T16:18:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/?p=25807"},"modified":"2026-09-27T12:18:41","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T16:18:41","slug":"physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/","title":{"rendered":"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-path-to-node=\"15\">The misconception that networking only happens in crowded conference halls or traditional office settings is officially dead. Virtual connections, if done thoughtfully, can yield incredible professional opportunities.<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"16\">On the <i data-path-to-node=\"16\" data-index-in-node=\"7\">Breathe In, Write Out<\/i> podcast, we unpacked how job seekers and working professionals can thrive in a remote-first world.<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"17\">5 key takeaways from our session:<\/p>\n<ol start=\"1\" data-path-to-node=\"18\">\n<li>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"18,0,0\"><b data-path-to-node=\"18,0,0\" data-index-in-node=\"0\">Virtual Rapport is Real Rapport:<\/b> You don&#8217;t need to sit in the same room to build trust. Intentional 1-on-1 virtual check-ins and small-group micro-meetups build strong, lasting relationships.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"18,1,0\"><b data-path-to-node=\"18,1,0\" data-index-in-node=\"0\">Leverage the &#8220;Rule of 10&#8221;:<\/b> Set modest, realistic goals before entering any networking event or webinar. Focus on finding 1 high-value connection and 2 quality follow-ups rather than trying to meet everyone.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"18,2,0\"><b data-path-to-node=\"18,2,0\" data-index-in-node=\"0\">The Power of Virtual Internships:<\/b> Remote internship programs give rising talent early, real-world experience across HR, marketing, and strategy without geographical limits.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"18,3,0\"><b data-path-to-node=\"18,3,0\" data-index-in-node=\"0\">Resumes Need Function Over Form:<\/b> Avoid distracting complex column layouts or fancy fonts that choke Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS). Clean, scannable, outcome-driven content always wins.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"18,4,0\"><b data-path-to-node=\"18,4,0\" data-index-in-node=\"0\">Sharpen the Saw Continuously:<\/b> Revisit proven personal assessment tools (like the Myers-Briggs or Princeton Review quiz) every couple of years to keep your strengths aligned with your career direction.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"19\">\ud83c\udfa7 <b data-path-to-node=\"19\" data-index-in-node=\"3\">Watch the full 40-minute episode here:<\/b> <a class=\"ng-star-inserted\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qCiNzEeXxJI&amp;utm_source=gemini\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-hveid=\"4\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qCiNzEeXxJI<\/a><\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"20\">\ud83d\udce9 <i data-path-to-node=\"20\" data-index-in-node=\"3\">Looking to help your team or students build stronger career-networking strategies? Reach out through LinkedIn to connect with me <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/RobertBraathe\">https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/RobertBraathe<\/a><\/i><\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"20\">\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The misconception that networking only happens in crowded conference halls or traditional office settings is officially dead. Virtual connections, if done thoughtfully, can yield incredible professional opportunities. On the Breathe In, Write Out podcast, we unpacked how job seekers and working professionals can thrive in a remote-first world. 5 key takeaways from our session: Virtual [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":147,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25807","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-networking"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\r\n<title>Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network - Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network - Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The misconception that networking only happens in crowded conference halls or traditional office settings is officially dead. Virtual connections, if done thoughtfully, can yield incredible professional opportunities. On the Breathe In, Write Out podcast, we unpacked how job seekers and working professionals can thrive in a remote-first world. 5 key takeaways from our session: Virtual [&hellip;]\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-09-27T16:18:11+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-27T16:18:41+00:00\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Robert Braathe\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Robert Braathe\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\r\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Robert Braathe\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b8536db7857744bb23a8611995490b45\"},\"headline\":\"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-27T16:18:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-27T16:18:41+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":238,\"articleSection\":[\"Networking\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/\",\"name\":\"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network - Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-09-27T16:18:11+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-27T16:18:41+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b8536db7857744bb23a8611995490b45\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/2026\\\/09\\\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/\",\"name\":\"Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b8536db7857744bb23a8611995490b45\",\"name\":\"Robert Braathe\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ca89b35dde089a08aaee7eb4417df1edb80a77859aff96499f292564e022279f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ca89b35dde089a08aaee7eb4417df1edb80a77859aff96499f292564e022279f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/ca89b35dde089a08aaee7eb4417df1edb80a77859aff96499f292564e022279f?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Robert Braathe\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.albany.com\\\/hr\\\/author\\\/rbraathe\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\r\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network - Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network - Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog","og_description":"The misconception that networking only happens in crowded conference halls or traditional office settings is officially dead. Virtual connections, if done thoughtfully, can yield incredible professional opportunities. On the Breathe In, Write Out podcast, we unpacked how job seekers and working professionals can thrive in a remote-first world. 5 key takeaways from our session: Virtual [&hellip;]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/","og_site_name":"Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog","article_published_time":"2026-09-27T16:18:11+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-09-27T16:18:41+00:00","author":"Robert Braathe","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Robert Braathe","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/"},"author":{"name":"Robert Braathe","@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/b8536db7857744bb23a8611995490b45"},"headline":"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network","datePublished":"2026-09-27T16:18:11+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-27T16:18:41+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/"},"wordCount":238,"articleSection":["Networking"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/","url":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/","name":"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network - Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-09-27T16:18:11+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-27T16:18:41+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/b8536db7857744bb23a8611995490b45"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/2026\/09\/physical-distance-is-no-longer-a-barrier-to-building-a-high-impact-professional-network\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Physical distance is no longer a barrier to building a high-impact professional network"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/","name":"Robert Braathe&#039;s HR &amp; Albany Jobs Blog","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/#\/schema\/person\/b8536db7857744bb23a8611995490b45","name":"Robert Braathe","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ca89b35dde089a08aaee7eb4417df1edb80a77859aff96499f292564e022279f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ca89b35dde089a08aaee7eb4417df1edb80a77859aff96499f292564e022279f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/ca89b35dde089a08aaee7eb4417df1edb80a77859aff96499f292564e022279f?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Robert Braathe"},"url":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/author\/rbraathe\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25807","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/147"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25807"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25807\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25810,"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25807\/revisions\/25810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25807"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25807"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/hr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25807"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}